Rain, the South African wireless internet service provider, has announced the launch of its new voice service, Rain Mobile. The company, which has previously provided only data services for smartphones and wireless services for use in homes, has now become a full-service telecoms provider.
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With this move, Rain becomes the fourth telco in South Africa after Vodacom, MTN, and Telkom. Rain Mobile will be based on 4G technology, and will offer high-definition voice calls, data and SMS, with national coverage.
Rain has acquired 20MHz of spectrum in the 700MHz band, which is ideal for providing broader network coverage. The new mobile network is overlaid onto the existing 4G network and provides for more comprehensive reach, thereby offering national coverage in voice, SMS, and data. Rain has also introduced its rainOne plan, which combines both home and phone services into one plan. The plan costs R559/month with no lock-in, and includes “unlimited” 5G home Wi-Fi, free monthly calls and data for two phones, each with 2GB of data and 60 minutes of voice calls.
Rain Mobile’s launch comes just a month after African Rainbow Capital Investments, one of Rain’s biggest shareholders, hinted at an imminent unveiling. The new service offering is seen as Rain’s attempt to take on its bigger rivals, Vodacom, MTN, and Telkom.
The company’s move to provide voice services is expected to attract more customers and help Rain gain a larger share of the telecoms market in South Africa. With both a national 4G mobile network and a 5G network, Rain is now offering customers the ability to connect all their devices with one monthly bill, a convenience that is expected to appeal to many South Africans.
“Customers with rainOne will be able to seamlessly port their existing number and use Rain Mobile as their primary Sim, with national 4G mobile coverage,” Rain said.
“The convergence of a home and mobile voice and data offerings in one affordable plan is an innovation we are confident will appeal to South Africans. We recognise that our customers have family members, so with rainOne we are catering not only for their need to access the internet from home, but also outside on their mobile devices,” CEO Brandon Leigh said in the statement.
“Now customers have another option for mobile services from a provider that has already established a strong reputation in the home internet market. The expansion of Rain’s network, both in terms of 5G coverage and spectrum acquisition, indicates that we are serious about being a major player in the mobile market as well,” Leigh added.
