StarTimes Media, a PayTv provider in Kenya currently covers up-to 80% of the country, this is quite a strong position as it positions itself quite well to ensure subscribers opt for the company’s service when migrating to digital transmission from analogue. The global deadline is 17th July 2015, over a year away, but Kenya had set a deadline of late last year that has been postponed severally due to court cases from three media houses opposing the analogue transmission shutdown.
StarTimes has been keen on getting as many subscribers as possible from within the capital Nairobi and outside. Some of the juicy deals pushed to consumers involve price cuts of the DVB-T2 decoder, home delivery of Set Top Box to financing options to bring down the cost of acquisition of the same.
Previously StarTimes went in on a deal with Equity Bank to extend loans to customers to enable them purchase the set top box. This would go through the normal creditor vetting. Today StarTimes has announced yet another financing deal, this time with Jamii Bora Bank, slightly different, that will include even non-customers of the bank. But the end result is that they will become account holders upon loan facilitation.
How it works:
- Prospective subscribers will access the credit facility by dialing *858# to access the loan processing application.
- Select Loan Request that will then ask you to feed in your personal details.
- Confirmation code will then be sent to the user who will need to open a bank account that will be used to channel the funds when making loan repayments.
- Upon approval which happens within 48 hours the customer can then head over to a StarTimes Customer Care Office and present the code, KRA Pin Certificate, national ID and passport photograph.
Loan repayments are as follows:
- For the StarTimes Free To Air Set Top Box, you have an option to pay Kshs 644 for a 9 month period or Kshs 932 for a 6 month period.
- For the StarTimes PayTV Decoder the you either pay Kshs 387 for 9 months or Kshs 559 for 6 months.
There is no down-payments for all options and customers get the Set Top Box plus 1 month Unique bouquet valued at Kshs 1500.
