SA: New Nokia Data Package to Rival Blackberry’s

“Xtreme Data’s objectives are to expand Nashua Mobile’s competitive product offering by positioning Xtreme Data with Nokia phones as a fixed cost to smart phone data services, as an alternative option to BlackBerry’s BIS offering,” Tim Walter, Nashua’s executive head of marketing, said.

The ‘Xtreme’ Data Package answers a call for unlimited internet by mobile phone users in South Africa most of who use Nokia handsets.

According to a 2011 Reconstructed Living Lab (RLabs), Nokia phones are the most used handsets in South Africa (SA) at 51% compared to Blackberry usage at 4%. In the past, Blackberry has been the only mobile phone with a dedicated internet package by local mobile operators leaving out most people from the concept of mobile broadband.

Thus, for Nashua Mobile MD, Chris Radley, the introduction of a fixed cost data service will increase the usage of smart phones to access the web.

“With our new offering, we hope to make the mobile web accessible and affordable to a wider range of smart phone users.”

It presents an opportunity for developers to create more applications for local content promotion. The Nokia Store is one of the most diversified applications store in SA.

Users on the Nashua mobile will be able to surf the web and check their emails at a rate of R59 a month. The new data plan will currently be available only on the C3, X2-01, E5, E7 and E8 range of Nokia Smart phones.