Telkom Kenya Launches Second Investment in 3G and 4G Upgrades

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Levi Nyakundi, Telkom Kenya Marketing Head
Levi Nyakundi (R), Telkom Kenya Marketing Head during the launch of Form Ni 50 Promotion

Levi Nyakundi, Telkom Kenya Marketing Head

Today, Telkom Kenya announced a grand promotion that will see 50 subscribers win 50 cars each for the next 10 weeks. The telecoms company decidedly launched the campaign on Valentine’s Day (although the first winner will be announced on February 15) to commemorate a significant growth in the number of subscriber under its umbrella (4 million).

As the telco switched ownership to its current largest shareholder Helios Partners, it promised to offer leading data-related products especially for the demographic that values the internet over voice and SMS. Its first step was the launch of 4G services, which are available in 32 towns and urban centres at the moment. This makes it the second largest operator as far as LTE coverage is concerned. The mobile operator has also doubled its 3G zones to enhance internet connection speeds.

“2017 saw us complete the first phase of our National backbone and metropolitan transmission network and invest KSh5 billion towards network modernisation leading to the launch of our 4G network, which is currently available in 32 towns and urban centres across the country. Telkom has also doubled its capacity and coverage on its 3G Network, improving our customer experience. We also revamped our Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system and are also continually working on increasing our retail outlets in order to provide great customer experience,” said Mr. Levi Nyakundi, Head of Marketing, Telkom Kenya. 

The mentioned upgrades are thanks to Telkom’s KES 5 billion investment, whose first phase oversaw the betterment of the national backbone and metropolitan transmission networks to deliver triple backup features and enhanced service experience.

The second phase, which will cost KES 600 million is underway and will focus on improving redundancy in major towns and extension of the backbone network to other areas. At the same time, this phase aims to enhance 3G and 4G rollout.

The budget also targets a revamp on customer experience on the network with a better Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. Furthermore, the carrier plans to open more Telkom Shops as customers need easy access to care centres. This goes in line with what competitors have done, including Safaricom that keeps opening new shops across the country.

We also mentioned that Telkom is awaiting licensing approval from the Central Bank of Kenya to launch its mobile financial service platform after axing Orange Money in 2017. While the service’s details are still scanty, the company confirmed the Airtel Money and M-PESA competitor is imminent.

1 COMMENT

  1. Technically speaking Faiba 4G comes second to Safaricom. Telkom ONLY installed a few 4G boosters in many towns but coverage is paltry. For instance, in my hood, one year later there’s no 4G. In fact, all of the areas where Telkom 4G is lacking in Nairobi, Faiba 4G is present.

    Hopefully, the second phase will seek to extend 4G coverage, otherwise as of now Faiba 4G has better coverage than Telkom and It’s their first few months in business, which they promised before end of 12 months after launch coverage will be tripled.

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