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Why is Sentech suddenly making
positive changes?
The main reason is that Sentech wants to
aggressively grow their customer base, which have declined or
stagnated over the last 2 years.
Sentech plans to grow its customer base with
a 150% over the next 12 months. This means that the current
customer base of more or less 4 000 members will have to shot
up to 10 000 by this time next year!
Will Sentech succeed in winning
customers over in large numbers?
It will certainly be the case if other
wireless broadband access providers such as iBurst (and other
ISPs) can’t come up with better deals or if iBurst keeps up
with their disinformation campaign.
While lack of state funding might seriously
hamper Sentech’s efforts, we’re convinced that they might just
surprise us on the end of the day.
Have any other wireless access
providers responded to MTN and Sentech’s latest price
reductions?
As far as we know only iBurst has responded.
They’ve made ‘Data Bonus’ and ‘Data Carryover’ improvements to
their offerings. This might come over as generous from iBurst’s
side but many consumers don’t see it as ‘revolutionary’ in the
slightest sense.
In fact, many consumers are fed up with
iBurst’s campaign of disinformation. Especially after
‘an aggressive advertising
campaign against what they call ‘rogue’ wireless internet
providers’ (iBurst
clarifies data bonus offer, MyADSL, 2 March 2007). This while
‘iBurst remains
unapologetic about the campaign despite the backlash from
consumers’ (iBurst defends its ‘anti-WISP’ campaign, MyADSL, 28
February 2007). In fact, iBurst has beyond reasonable doubt
proven that they underestimate our
intelligence.
Let’s have
a look at iBurst’s improved offerings and why people have
all the reason in the world not to trust
them:
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Data
Bonus – The ‘Data Bonus’ is in
reference to the fact that existing subscribers on
12, 24 and 36 month contracts will receive
additional bandwidth free of charge. ‘These
allowances range between 200 MB and 500 MB per
month, depending on the package’ (iBurst clarifies
data bonus offer, MyADSL, 2 March
2007).While
it was not clear from their initial
announcement, ‘iBurst has confirmed that
their month to month customers will not
receive extra bandwidth in their ‘Data Bonus’
offerings’ (iBurst clarifies data bonus
offer, MyADSL, 2 March 2007). In other words,
iBurst’s prepaid customers will not be
eligible for a ‘Data Bonus.’
Many iBurst prepaid
customers reacted negatively on the news with
responses like: “What a joke, month to month
I pay the same amount to them, so why is
there no increase for me? Come on iBurst
explain?” and “That's discriminatory... time
to get ADSL and vote with my feet!” (iBurst
clarifies data bonus offer, MyADSL, 2 March
2007). While
many subscribers should be happy about the
additional bandwidth they will receive, one
can’t blame them for not feeling to happy
about the state of affairs, especially after
the following deliberate false claim was made
by iBurst: ‘…iBurst now offers the cheapest
in-bundle rate at 39 cents per megabyte on a
1 Gig package and 12c per meg on a 9 Gig
package” (iBurst improves offerings with
additional data, MyADSL, 28 February 2007). A
bold face lie because ‘Sentech’s 1 GB package
is now priced at R299-00 per month, which
gives a per-Meg pricing of 29c per Meg. This
is far lower than iBurst’s 39c per Meg on the
same package. MTN’s recent offer of 2 GB for
R 399-00, which translates into around 20c
per MB is also much cheaper than iBurst’s 39c
per Megabyte. Sentech’s 10 GB package is
priced at R 999-00 or 10 c per-Megabyte,
again cheaper than iBurst’s 12c per Meg’
(iBurst improves offerings with additional
data, MyADSL, 28 February 2007). In other
words, iBurst is trying to take us for a
ride.
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Data
Carryover – In reference to the fact
that iBurst customers will now be ‘…able to carry
over the unused portion of their monthly data
allowances to the following month’ (iBurst improves
offerings with additional data, MyADSL, 28 February
2007). While
the above sounds great, iBurst again made a
false claim that will definitely not go down
well: “…customers will now be the first
broadband subscribers able to carry over the
unused portion of their monthly data
allowances to the following month” (iBurst
improves offerings with additional data,
MyADSL, 28 February 2007). Another bold face
lie because ‘many ADSL subscribers are
already enjoying the benefits of data
carryover from ISPs like WebAfrica and
Cybersmart. These carryovers are also not
time limited like the iBurst offer’ (iBurst
improves offerings with additional data,
MyADSL, 28 February 2007). In other words,
iBurst is not the first service provider to
offer the carrying over of unused
bandwidth.
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