Mobile price war heats up as 2degrees extends carryover minutes to prepay
Tuanz boss says rivals' responses to rollover txt and data have been lackluster. | Company updates on CEO search.
2degrees has extended carryover minutes to prepay customers with three "Prepay Plus" plans announced today:
- $19 Carryover Minute Combo, with 50 NZ carryover minutes, unlimited txt, 500MB national data
- Carryover Chat 60, with 60 NZ carryover minutes for $8
- Carryover Chat 200, with 200 NZ Carryover minutes for $19
The company says its one of the first telcos in the world to add carryover minutes for pre-pay.
The carrier was the first to introduce carryover minutes in NZ on contract plans, and recently added carryover data. Un-used voice minutes or data rollover to the next month for up to a year.
"2degrees has done a great job of shaking up the mobile market with these kinds of innovations. Lower pricing is one thing but changing the way we think about billing is a much more important, to me, and 2degrees has done well to come up with rollover minutes, carryover data and shared data for customers," Telecommunications Users Association head Paul Brislen told NBR ONLINE.
"The prepay market is the largest part of the mobile telco sector, so it’s vital these kinds of offers are made available in prepay," the Tuanz boss says.
"It will be interesting to see what the two incumbents do to reply to 2degrees’ initiatives in this area – so far their responses have been somewhat lacklustre and I suspect they’ll be looking to do something equally unusual to respond. If they carry on as they are customers will continue to flock to 2degrees, so a response is required and sooner rather than later."
2degrees also said today that a search is on for a new CEO.
"The board began an international search the very week after Eric and Kathy Hertz' accident," external communications manager Charlene White told NBR.
"Stewart Sherriff will remain here as CEO until a suitable replacement has been found."
Mr Sherriff is also chairman of 2degrees, and CTO at Seattle-based Trilogy International Partners - the carrier's majority shareholder.
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Mobile price war heats up as 2degrees extends carryover minutes to prepay
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