MTN South Africa Announces Postpaid Price Increases Effective February 2024

MTN South Africa announced price increases for postpaid contracts that will take effect from 1 February 2024. The price increases come at a time when the company continues to invest in network resilience to ensure that our customers enjoy a high quality network experience, despite continued national power cuts, ongoing crime at sites and a weaker Rand against the dollar. According to Monetary Policy Committee statement of November 2023, the South African Reserve Bank forecasts headline inflation of 5.0% in 2024.

In recent years, demand for data services has grown exponentially, placing greater strain on telecoms networks. At the same time as investing to improve our extensive network infrastructure, we have had to contend with the escalating costs of ensuring resilience during loadshedding, inflationary pressure and more instances of battery theft and site vandalism. The price adjustment will enable us to enhance our network resilience to ensure that our customers experience improved network stability and reliability.

The 2024 adjustment encompasses an average increase of 4.3% on customers’ total monthly bills (which include all elements such as insurance, device fees, out of bundle spend, itemised billing etc). Out of bundle voice rates will increase by R0.11 on average, while out of bundle data rates increase by only R0.04 per MB. Subscription fees will increase by an average of 8.8%. Device fees, insurance premiums, and add-on voice / data bundle prices will remain unchanged.

The following standardised usage charges will increase as below:
•    Out of Bundle Data:  R0.29 per MiB, billed in 25 KiB increments [R0.04 increase]
•    Out of Bundle Local Voice Calls: varies according to the respective price plan.
•    R1.69 per International SMS – [R0.04 increase]

The following standardised usage charges remain unchanged:
•    R0.35 per local SMS
•    R0.70 per local MMS
•    R2.50 per international MMS
•    R0.20 per 20 seconds for local USSD
•    R19.00 per month for Itemized Billing, where applicable
•    Local Voice call rates are quoted per minute but billed per second
•    All price plans offer per-second billing for local and international voice

Whereas the out-of-bundle usage charges will become effective from 1 February 2024, the adjusted subscription fees will only become applicable from the date of the customers’ Bill Run date (i.e. the date when inclusive benefits are allocated) – this date will typically fall on the 1st, 12th, 17th and 27th of February 2024.

We remain committed to delivering exceptional value and service while navigating the economic realities impacting the industry, and the country. In addition to the network enhancements, we will continue to offer a wide range of innovative products and services, ensuring customers receive the best possible experience.

– Excerpt from MTN’s Announcement