'3G is hype' says Cell C CEO

‘3G is hype’ says Cell C CEO

South Africa

Speaking at Cell C’s recent results presentation the company’s CEO, Jeffrey Hedberg, said that while they have a 3G ready core network, ‘3G is hype and we won’t fall prey to hype’.

Hedberg said that Cell C can not justify investing money into something [3G/HSDPA] that does not offer a good return on investment. Hedberg noted that Cell C needed to evolve their data and broadband strategy, but it won’t invest billions into a 3G network just to say that they have 3G.

Cell C Chief Financial Officer Fabrizio Mambrini added that 3G is becoming an obsolete technology with overseas operators already talking about 4G.

Cell C currently has around 600 000 data users on their network according to the company’s latest figures. These customers are served by Cell C’s extensive GPRS/EDGE network which promises speeds of up to 244 Kbps.

Despite Hedberg’s insistence that a 3G/HSDPA network is not a sound investment, both Vodacom and MTN are experiencing significant growth in their data revenue and broadband subscriber numbers.

An extensive mobile broadband network has the added advantage of attracting traditional voice customers to the network.

Some Cell C customers have already indicated that they have moved to Vodacom or MTN because of their HSDPA service offerings, a trend which may cost Cell C and Virgin Mobile many subscribers in the high-end market.