Kenya Orange Slashes Wireless and Fixed Line Calling Rates

By Peter Omondi

Nairobi—Orange, the integrated solutions provider has announced a price reduction on its wireless (CDMA) and fixed networks

 A statement from the company says the move was facilitated by the recent successful integration of the different platforms used by the company to support all their telephony services, and informed by the changing market dynamics.

Under the new tariffs announced by Orange CEO Mickael Ghossein, CDMA customers will make calls for as low as Shs.2 per minute to fellow Orange wireless users, Orange fixed line and Orange mobile users. Calls from the wireless service to other networks will be charged at Shs.4 per minute. All calls will be charged on per second billing.

SMS from the Orange wireless handsets within the Orange network will be charged at Sh.1 while to other networks will be billed at Shs.2.

“Previously, calls from the Orange wireless network were billed at Shs.7 per minute during peak hours and Shs.3 per minute, off peak. We have now scrapped the on and off peak tariffs on both the Orange Wireless and Orange fixed line networks, as part of our ongoing commitment to making communication affordable to all, irrespective of the time”, Ghossein said in a statement sent to newsrooms.

The new Orange fixed line tariffs will see a reduction in the cost of calling per minute from a maximum Shs. 14 to other networks to Sh.12 per minute. Calls to other Orange fixed line handsets, Orange wireless and Orange mobile will now be charged at Shs. 6 per minute.

Ghossein announced that they will be offering 30 bonus on-net minutes for all post-paid fixed customers, with the new tariffs. “The bonus minutes will be applied automatically and will be consumed before any billable minutes”, he said.

The CEO also said that there has been a phenomenal increase in the number of new fixed line operators despite stiff competition from the mobile sector.

Orange has in the past three months lowered its mobile calling tariffs and internet access costs.

Orange is the only wireless service (CDMA) provider in the country so far, and dominates the fixed line market.