Mobile data wars in the Kenya mobile telephony market are nothing new. All three major carriers have their set of plans that appeal to different people: Safaricom has the most robust network with 33 million customers, and has since rolled out data bundles that do not expire; Airtel has some of the cheapest plans around, and Telkom Kenya has the most diverse data subscriptions and has been expanding 4G coverage to key urban centres across the country.
Telkom, which, by the way, is reportedly finalizing on a merger deal with Airtel before 2020 rolls in introduced a promotional Weekend Data Package. Named WeKENData, the promotion was launched on 12th October, and will run all the way to 29th December 2019 and offers an attractive package for people who want a substantial amount of data purposely for the weekend, but with a catch.
WeKENData
The offer has two bundles in place: 1.5 GB for KES 70 and 3.5 GB for KES 120.
Both bundles can be purchased on a Saturday or Sunday. Both packages are valid from the time of purchase till midnight, and cannot be rolled over to the following weekend [SAD].
Admittedly, this is a terrific deal, and there are many creative ways subscribers can exhaust them, bearing in mind that Telkom speeds have been getting better in the last couple of weeks, especially in Nairobi where LTE is basically everywhere.
The investments made by the company to expand coverage are becoming evident, although folks outside major towns are yet to be served with consistent and reliable coverage.
Telkom and Project Loon have also been testing high-flying balloons that beam 4G signals in remote areas that are not served by cell towers. The carrier has been quiet about an official rollout of the project, having been granted permission by the Communications Authority of Kenya.
Lastly, there is a possibility the operator is prepping exciting offers in response to Safaricom’s launch of data bundles that last forever, so we will keep our eyes open until then.
