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Cell C recently announced It has begun migrating its contract and broadband customers outside of its network in a process that is expected to be completed in the next two months.
This, the mobile operator said, is part of its network strategy in which it will disconnect its own radio network and partner with “the best in infrastructure and services.”
What surprised many people is that Cell C’s contract and broadband customers are being migrated to Vodacom, and not MTN.
In November 2018, Cell C and MTN signed a national roaming agreement which gives Cell C access to MTN’s 3G and 4G networks.
This agreement was extended in August 2019, allowing Cell C to shut down its radio network and move all its traffic to the MTN network.
“Over a 36-month period, beginning on January 1, 2020, Cell C will transition from a physical radio access network to a virtual one provided by MTN,” said Cell C.
Given that Cell C was building a new “virtual network” in partnership with MTN using its own spectrum, it was fair to assume that it was migrating its broadband and contract customers to MTN.
This was not the case. Now it has emerged that Cell C is, in fact, migrating its broadband and contract customers to Vodacom.
This was made possible by a new roaming agreement with Vodacom that gives Cell C access to Vodacom’s 4G network.
Cell C roamed Vodacom’s 2G network since its launch in 2001 and expanded this roaming agreement to include Vodacom’s 3G network in 2012.
Cell C extended its roaming agreement with Vodacom in 2015, but began moving its traffic to MTN in 2018 after striking a 3G and 4G roaming agreement with them.
The return to Vodacom was a surprise due to its extensive association with MTN in recent years.
It is interesting to note that Cell C did not mention that it was migrating its contract subscribers to Vodacom in its press release or information shared with customers.
It is currently unclear whether Cell C’s prepaid subscriber base will migrate to Vodacom or MTN.
MyBroadband asked Cell C for a comment, but the company did not respond at time of publication.
Cell C’s full statement on its network migration
Cell C’s full statement regarding the migration of its customers is provided below.
Cell C is moving forward with the implementation of its network strategy as part of its restructuring strategy, which aims to improve overall operational efficiency and adopt an operating model to partner with the best in infrastructure and services.
The migration process has started with contract and broadband clients and should be completed in the next two months. The phased transition of prepaid customers will be confirmed in due course.
Cell C’s network strategy will allow the company to provide network services to customers through roaming agreements with partner networks, while continuing to offer a complete Cell C customer experience. Network roaming agreements are being implemented. for three years, during which time Cell C will transfer customers from its own network to partner networks and dismantle its own towers in the phased process.
Cell C will collaborate with infrastructure telecommunications providers who continue to invest in network deployments and provide the foundation for new technologies, while advocating for innovative service offerings through collaborations and partnerships.
“Our strategic vision is to differentiate ourselves by focusing on innovative products and services without owning capital-intensive infrastructure. This creates more flexibility and the ability to deliver the right quality of service to our current and future customers, ”says Cell C CEO Douglas Craigie Stevenson.
“Cell C is a pioneer in the evolution of the MNO space in South Africa by becoming a major wholesale buyer of network capacity and infrastructure services. It is beneficial for everyone, as individual operators provide segment expertise for the benefit of everyone in the industry. “
In response to a greatly changed business environment, the adoption of the network roaming model will promote a more ingenious use of the capacity of the telecommunications infrastructure in the country, improve overall network connectivity and provide Cell C customers a better customer experience.
It supports the policy objectives of avoiding network duplication and burden on the environment, as shared infrastructure drives efficiency through a more viable, flexible and agile model.
“We are moving closer to our vision that offers customers quality network access and makes Cell C a priority service provider for the customer, improving lives and delivering digital solutions on a scalable quality telecommunications platform.
“From an operational standpoint, the business is getting stronger and a successful recapitalization will ensure the long-term sustainability of Cell C,” concludes Craigie Stevenson.
Now Read: Cell C Starts Migrating Clients Outside Its Network
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