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August 19 2004

MTN Nigeria is set for the commercial launch of its virtual recharge service known as MTN Virtual Top Up (VTU), after a very successful three week test run of the product amongst a crop of MTN subscribers and dealers.

MTN Virtual Top Up (VTU) is a new and innovative product that enables MTN subscribers load credit on their phones without the use of physical recharge cards. According to Afam Edozie, MTN’s Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer, “the results of our test-run far exceeded our expectations, as the product turned out to be even more popular among our customers than we had initially projected”. He added that “the company has since commenced a massive recruitment of distribution partners and vendors across the country. We are also fine-tuning the logistic and security arrangements for the full-scale commercial deployment of the innovative recharge method”.

In the MTN Virtual Top Up option, all a subscriber has to do is to request a recharge value that he wants from a vendor, supply the vendor his mobile phone number and within a few seconds, he gets an SMS confirming that his account has been topped up. He could then cross check his accounts and pay the vendor.

Edozie added that in the close to three years since MTN’s commercial launch in Nigeria, “our company has been at the cutting edge of innovation, leading and pioneering innovation in the entire telecom industry, for the sole purpose of delivering better value to our customers”. He stated that “whether it’s MTN BoosterCard, or the new SMS-based method of recharging phones or the new recharge card method now available to BusinessTIME customers for paying their bills, called Recharge a Contract, MTN remains committed to being the most proactive with addressing our customers’ needs for value and convenience.”

A cross section of the subscribers who spoke on MTN VTU said they are satisfied with the latest recharge option from the stable of MTN.

According to Oye Balogun, a Lagos based investment analyst, “I’m happy about the product because it saves me from middle men who are in the habit of inflating the cost of the N750 recharge card. Now I can buy with ease and at the right price”.

“What I like about MTN VTU is the convenience”, noted Emeka Agu, a businessman who depends a lot on his phone for his numerous business transactions. He said he buys from a particular dealer and that guarantees that he can order airtime at anytime of the day. “I don’t have to leave the comfort of my room before I can buy a recharge card.” Agu said.

MTN VTU distributors also gave kudos to MTN for its unrelenting effort at bringing innovative solutions in telecommunication to the doorsteps of Nigerians. According to Femi Akande of Airtel Nigeria, “MTN VTU is unique and offers a fantastic opportunity in airtime vending”. He described the product as very easy to understand and use and highly secure. “People order airtime recharge as gift items for friends and loved ones simply by supplying their number(s) and paying the vendor to credit airtime to those numbers”.

For Chris Mbagwu, another MTN distributor, the biggest advantage of MTN VTU is the convenience of having airtime as and when one needs it. “With VTU there is no question of running out of airtime of any denomination. It’s a very practical way of meeting the needs of subscribers. The top up, according to Mbagwu is done right at the MTN platform with no intermediaries. “Once you’ve topped up, that’s it. There is no issue of fake card”.

Osita Ogbonnanya, MD/CEO of Tenosys Global Konnect, in the same vein described the new recharge option as “innovative, reliable and a great concept especially in a country where there’re lots of infrastructural challenges”. He says the success of the product could encourage the larger society to adopt the virtual recharge option as a way of doing business. “MTN has introduced a new business model that can be developed and applied in other business areas”.

Rex Okereke who is into the GSM recharge business gives the thumbs up for MTN VTU for its user friendliness. “It takes about 10 seconds to conclude a transaction” he noted, adding that the ease of use, wide acceptance even at the test stage and high security will guarantee good and continuous business into the future.

For Gregory Enahoro of AstraLogica, MTN VTU takes the pressure and certain cost elements off the distributor. “It’s secure and cost effective as I no longer have to transport stock from the point of purchase to the warehouse with the attendant cost burden.” Enahoro addes that all a distributor needs to operate it is the special VTU SIM and he is in business. “You don’t have to invest in equipment and heavy security to be able to vend the VTU way. I’ve been vending without problems since the introduction of MTN VTU”.

MTN VTU, according to Edozie was developed for MTN Nigeria by a Nigerian company, Nigerian Electronic Funds Transfer Operations, NEFTO. NEFTO provides, installs and maintains vending terminals for the sale of airtime and mobile commerce transactions. NEFTO currently has MTN Nigeria and a handful of companies in the financial services sector in its clientele, and has the capacity to support many other technology and communications companies with this innovative solution.

In the new recharge option, using a special SIM, a vendor is able to transfer the naira value of prepaid airtime (in the existing MTN recharge denominations) from a virtual vending account in the MTN VTU Master System, directly & instantly to a subscriber’s prepaid account. MTN recharge cards come in denominations of N750, N1,500, N3,000; and N6,000, respectively. While the N750 card gives a subscriber 5 access days, the N1,500, N3,000 and N6,000 cards give 15 days, 30 days and 60 days access respectively.

Airtime sold via a VTU system to MTN Pay As You Go subscribers has the same number of access days as the regular recharge cards. The Virtual Top Up system is protected from unauthorized airtime transfer by authenticators thereby minimizing the risks associated with the physical distribution of airtime recharge cards.