Airtel’s Tubonge Bundles offer relatively better value for money than Safaricom’s Flex Bundles
Value for money that is what consumers seek for in the market. Through competition, this is most often than not achieved. Airtel Kenya has launched a new voice call plan dubbed Tubonge Bundles to compete head on with the recently launched Flex Bundles from Safaricom Limited. These two bundles are aimed at the budget consumers popularly referred to as hustlers here in Kenya.
“Our aim is to simplify life for our customers and make value for their money. 70 per cent of our customers mostly use voice-call service and we aim to make them feel at home, and even attract more.”
-Prasanta Das Sarma, CEO, Airtel Kenya
From the look of things, Airtel Kenya have the upper hand with the introduction of this new tariff. The cheapest Flex Bundle comes in at Ksh.99. This is the Daily bundle that offers you 115 Flex Units which is equivalent to 38 minutes worth of talk time. On the other hand, the Daily Tubonge Bundle will set you back only Ksh.10. For the Ksh.10 you will get 100 minutes on-net calls and 5 minutes off-net calls. If I were to renew the Daily Tubonge Bundle 10 times the same day (haven’t tried this), this will cost me Ksh.10×10=Ksh.100. This will translate to 1,000 min on-net calls and 50 min off-net calls. Can you even dare compare the Tubonge Bundle to the Flex Bundles?
To bring this two case scenarios into perspective, let’s draw a similarity to the participation of Kenya’s in the bond market. Previously, the minimum amount that could be invested in the government bonds was Ksh.50,000. This served as a put off to most citizens. This is exactly the same response that the Safaricom Flex Bundles are receiving. The rates are relatively expensive for the hustler.
On the other hand, M-Akiba serves financial inclusion by allowing one to purchase government bonds for as little as Ksh.3,000. Most individuals can afford this contrary to the previous cap price of Ksh.50,000. This is what Airtel Kenya is achieving with their Tubonge Bundle. The rate is low, only Ksh.10 for the daily pact. The targeted hustler will have no problem subscribing to this. The Tubonge monthly offer comes in at Ksh.150 while the Flex monthly offer costs Ksh.2,499.
“Our customers remain at the core of our business and as such we are delighted to be launching a product that will in essence make their lives simple by giving them value for money while meeting all their communication needs. We endeavour to keep giving our customers the very best products and services that will positively impact their lives.
We will continue to heavily invest in the Kenyan market and ensure that our customers enjoy affordable and innovative products and services.”
-Prasanta Das Sarma, CEO, Airtel Kenya
The following table summarizes the Tubonge Tariff:
| TUBONGE BUNDLES | |||
| Subscription Fees | Validity | Airtel-Airtel | To Other Networks* |
| Ksh.10 | 24 hrs | 100 min | Ksh.2 |
| Ksh.50 | 7 Days | 100 min | Ksh.2 |
| Ksh.150 | 30 Days | 100 min | Ksh.2 |
*Recharge to call other networks
What is left is to hope that Airtel Kenya doesn’t ‘Update Terms and Conditions’ of the Tubonge Bundles down the line after it has gained popularity with the masses like they did with the Unliminet Bundles.
To purchase Tubonge Bundles dial *544# from your Airtel line and choose option 1. From there you can purchase either the Daily, Weekly or Monthly Bundles.
