MTN puts 200MB cap on BIS

MTN has announced that as of 1 March 2013, the R59 BlackBerry BIS package on its network will now be known as BlackBerry Absolute and will include a 200MB fair usage policy.

As part of the new BlackBerry Absolute Plan, for R59, MTN customers will continue to enjoy all the benefits and features that come with owning a BlackBerry handset: including services such as BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) where users can text, share photos, video clips and voice notes as well as access BlackBerry Email, Instant Messaging, Internet Browser and BlackBerry App World. The new plan includes a 200MB fair usage policy.

‚”The BlackBerry Absolute Plan is aimed at optimising the network to make it efficient so as to provide a world-class experience for our customers,‚” says Devan Chetty, GM: Core & IP Planning at MTN SA. ‚”It is important to note that the BlackBerry Absolute Plan will not limit our customers’ experience and connectivity on their BlackBerry handsets. Our analysis of usage behaviour shows that the majority of our BlackBerry customers fall within the 200MB usage pattern on a monthly basis. This means that those customers who use up to 200MB per month will continue to enjoy BlackBerry features and services. It was with this understanding in mind, and our commitment to providing a world-class Internet experience to our customers, that we designed BlackBerry Absolute.‚”

MTN will also be offering an extra 200MB free, to customers using more than 200MB for the first three months of the launch of Blackberry Absolute. While features such as voice calling, video calling and screen sharing fall out of the Blackberry Absolute price plan, MTN customers can utilise any of MTN reduced Internet bundles or the free 200MB data allowance for these services.

For customers who use only a limited number of BlackBerry services and consume low amounts of data, MTN has BlackBerry Tiered plans in place where customers can access selected BlackBerry services from as little R14.95 to R29.95. The full suite of BlackBerry Tiered plans give customers the choice to pay only for what they use.

Once customers have depleted the 200MB allocation, they will stay connected to BlackBerry BIS by either using their Internet bundle or getting charged directly from their airtime balance.

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