A new partnership between Opera Software and Airtel will see Airtel subscribers choose mobile data package they can afford and pay for them depending on time used or the site they visit.
The time-based or site-based pay-as-you-go service dubbed Opera Web Pass will be launched in 17 countries across Africa.
To access the service, subsribers have to start Opera Mini on their mobile phone, select 1 for “Opera Web Pass” in the Speed Dial start page and choose from a list of web pass subscriptions, allowing them to purchase packages that suit their internet access needs.
In a statement to TechMoran Andre Beyers, Chief Marketing Officer at Airtel Africa said, “Opera Web Pass will make a significant difference to our customers’ ability to buy data bundles easily and in a way that suits them. We have enjoyed a beneficial relationship with Opera and seen growth of the Opera Mini browser across our 17 markets in Africa”
The Opera Web Pass uses the existing capabilities of the Opera Mini platform and allows Airtel, in a flexible and cost-efficient way, to package time- or site-specific data offerings to their users, say for a certain period of time or for a website. Mobile subscribers without data plans can also use the service to access the web by choosing an exact time period to access the web, rather than the amount of megabytes.
The firms believe Opera Web Pass will liberate users, streamline mobile internet, make it non-intrusive and easy-to-use. It can also help monitor and optimize web passes and campaigns in near real time making almost any phone on any platform web friendly.
Lars Boiolesen, CEO, Opera Software said, “At Opera, we believe that access to the web is a universal right. Partnering with market leaders such as Airtel has offered us the opportunity to help lower the barriers to access the mobile web and empower more African users to get online.”
