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The business behind Amaysim (sounds amazing) began work on this latest prepaid mobile offering in early 2010. However, the actual service launched this week in Sydney and was followed by TV commercials during Cricket’s test clash between Australia and England.
Prepaid plans are always accepting new offers as it makes the landscape more competitive and means everyone has to work a little harder to keep their customers and attract new ones.
The prepaid mobile market in Australia is dominated by 3 key players, Telstra, Optus and Vodafone. Optus holds the majority of the market when it comes to prepaid mobile plans, which appeal to various target groups. He has been and continues to be a true leader.
At the moment, the competitive landscape has 18 competitors fighting for the prepaid mobile plans market.
Amaysim has come out fighting with a very competitive offer of 15c a minute, no flagfall, 12c text and 90 day credit expiration. Let’s not forget the 5c per megabyte for mobile data.
There are no free calls or bonus credit on offer at this time, meaning if you top up $50, you get $50 credit. A sim starter kit will set you back $5.
Let’s compare them to Optus Talk & Text, Just Mobile and Virgin Bean Counter.
- Optus Talk & Text charges just 10 cents per minute for each call plus 10 cents for flag drop. So a 3 minute call will cost you $40c.
- Just Mobile Just 15 gives you 15c per minute for every call and no flagfall. Credits last 180 days. A 3 minute call will cost you 45c
- Virgin Bean Counter charges 10 cents per minute with a flag drop of 25 cents and an expiration of 45 days. So a 3 minute call will cost you 55c.
- Amaysim charges 15 cents per minute without a flag, so a 3-minute call will cost you 45 cents.
When it comes to data rates, Amaysim charges just 5 cents per megabyte (MB). Compare this to:
- Optus Voice and Text – $1.32 per MB
- Mobile Only – $1.00 for 5 minutes (WAP GPRS)
- Virgin Bean Counter – $2 per MB
So can Amaysim succeed? You can, but you need a very strong distribution base to promote it. At the moment, it is mainly sold through Caltex gas stations and directly online. It will also soon launch an affiliate program for online sales and promotion.
The group behind the program has a lot of experience in the market for mobile and prepaid plans. They have already proven very successful with other European brands that they have launched.
Prepaid Plans listed them earlier this week and the page has already started generating traffic. We will certainly be keeping an eye on the performance of this brand and making sure customers have access to all the information they need to make the right decision for their prepaid mobile needs.