8ta from Telkom is South Africa’s 4th Mobile Operator. Heita!
The 8ta “Hello” advert song by Martin Solveig is here
Please note that The BlaBla Blog has NO connection to 8ta or Telkom whatsoever. We cannot answer your 8ta related concerns. We recommend that you contact 8ta directly via their website here: http://my.8ta.com/mobile-web/ or check for information here: http://www.8ta.com/help/
After much speculation and a clever viral marketing and teaser campaign of pink dot emblazoned billboards and television adverts, Telkom has today formally launched its’ consumer offering into the highly competitive mobile marketplace.
To be known as 8ta and branded as 8.ta, the branding features the digit 8 and the lowercase letters ta separated by the pink dot which makes its’ presence felt in the official logo. [at least the logo isn’t the copy write symbol hey Trevor!? ~ editor]
8.ta Logo (from TechCentral at http://www.techcentral.co.za/telkoms-mobile-launch-live-blog/17958/)
As TechCentral report in their live blog of the launch function, 8ta subscribers will use a ‘081’ prefix to their mobile telephone numbers, and will be looking at charge fees of 65c/minute for cellphone to landline calls and R1,50/minute for calls to all mobiles. As far as data costs go, pricing will be 25c/MB in-bundle and R1/MB out of bundle. These pricing numbers are not official in any way at all, so please don’t see them as guaranteed.
At those sort of pricing options, the other mobile operators are going to have to bring their own pricing down to remain in line and stay competitive. And that can only be good news for mobile phone users across the country.
Telkom SA MD Pinky Moloi is quoted as having said that “Our aspirations are to disrupt the mobile industry! We have to change the rules of the game to favour consumers. Our target market is everyone.” Now that is fighting talk. And don’t think we didn’t notice the link between the MD’s name and the colour focus in the branding…
On that subject, I worry a little if pink was the right colour to attach to South Africa’s 4th mobile operator. Vodacom in blue, MTN in yellow, Cell C in red (or black now?) and now 8.ta in pink. Seems a bit weak maybe? Can’t see your average manly mid-level LMS demographic taking to pink all that readily, can you?
8.ta Launch (from Phillip de Wet at http://twitpic.com/2xlvoi)
I also took a quick moment to check if the 8ta domain and website is up and running in tandem to the launch party. 8ta.co.za is a registered domain. Its’ registration record indicates that it was registered by Lexsynergy Ltd. with an address in London and contact number in Pretoria? The telephone numbers match those supplied for the domain admin and technical contacts, but these two are both listed as being the responsibility of Pretoria-based attorneys Adams & Adams. The same registration details are attached to the .com domain as well.
In either case, there is no live site at either of those domains. So, at least for the time being, the only site that does give some information about 8.ta is www.heita.co.za which shows the pre-launch media campaign elements. You can also track developments on Twitter using the new 8ta brand name as a search modifier.
As soon as official pricing and more product offering details are available we’ll bring them to you.
[Update1: 15 Oct@06:30 - The heita.co.za site now does redirect to what appears to be the official 8.ta website at www.8ta.com. This is also true for 8ta.co.za. From the new site we can see the info below and that pre-paid deals will be available throughout the country from Monday, 18 October. Initial stores serving 8.ta sales include Telkom Direct, CNA, GloCell, Edgars Mobile, Autopage Cellular, Jet Cellular and Awesim Telecoms. Check the "Get It" page for store locations in your area. ~ editor.]
Did you offer 8ta contracts phone’s? If yes. Contact me on this number 07x xxx xxx1..for terms and condition please you can email it to my email address
Whether 8.ta do offer “contracts phone’s” or not is entirely irrelevant here Samuel. Try contacting 8.ta directly and asking them maybe?
Also, leaving your cell number on a public forum is probably not such a good idea…
Another one received via our email contact form:
DARRYL likes capital letters, incomplete subject lines, and poor spelling. He’s looking for someone to get hold of him that will not take long.
If DARRYL sounds like the dreamboat guy that you’ve been looking for call him now on 082 xxx xxx0.
The BlaBla Blog
Matchmaking & Online Dating Service
(Since October 2011)
heita data _ solid as hell and s far i havent been cheated out of 1mb of data as is the case with mtn.
And still we get them… Here’s another message received via our Contact Form earlier today:
“From Petrus:
since last friday waiting the phone to be derlived from RAM but till today if not derlived today cancel the order I don’t want it any more I will get the phone from other network.”
Don’t know about 8.ta, but certainly for my last phone delivery I had to be present to sign for it myself, with ID and proof of residence in hand, and couldn’t get someone else to receive it on my behalf. It’s a RICA thing I assumed.
Petrus, I hope you haven’t been sitting around waiting at your delivery address since last Friday in vain? Likewise, I hope you were there when the delivery dudes showed up, as they may have done already?
Either way, I hope you get a phone eventually, whether from 8ta or another network.
Oh, and in case you haven’t figured it out yet – The BlaBla Blog is not affiliated, linked, connected to, etc. 8ta in any way. Emailing us will not resolve your issues. It will however continue to amuse us.
PLEASE 8.TA PEOPLE MY YOU SPEED-UP THE PROCES OF MY CONTRUCT PHONE ,IS NOW TWO WEEKS WAITING GOR IT TO BE DELIEVERED.
Way to hurt a guys’ feelings Elliot. Really.
Seriously people.
Does anyone bother to actually read anything anymore? Have we truly failed to communicate the simplest of information to you? Are we using a totally incomprehensible style of writing? Or is it that you want us to think you lack some fundamental cognitive skills?
really nice network can we have a win a million rand competion
New year, new attitude, same old dumb users?
Noted the email address? This from someone employed to help run our nation. And they act all surprised when there a service delivery protests?
Heita, hau & eish my domrades.
hi fellas please what ever u post make sure it is relevent to the 8ta issue n stop been irelevent
Oh the irony. The delicious, idiotic, deep-rooted irony. If only you knew Kwinda. If only.
PLEASE HELP ME, I’M A RICA AGENT AND I WANT TO EXPAND MY BUSSINES BY DOING RICA AND DISTRIBUTION OF 8TA, WHAT CAN I DO?
Well Patrick the RICA Agent, the first thing that you could do is maybe
CONTACT 8TA DIRECTLY!
And then maybe focus on
READING THINGS WITH A LITTLE MORE ATTENTION TOO.
Glad to be of assistance.
Another one received via email:
Name: willemina bierman
Email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx@vodamail.co.za
Message: good day I just want to find out what steps to follow if I want to cancel my contract with 8ta, my reason is that my husband also have a contract with 8ta which he is not using and i’m going to use his phone.
my financial account no: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
my billing account no: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
thank you for your service.
wilma bierman
Billing Account Number ( 333800340 )
Recurring Monthly Fees
Contract 1 R 90.00 I CANCELLED THIS CARD LIKE 10 TIMES!!!!!
CLI Presentation R 17.00 ??????????????
Itemized Billing – Paper R 51.00 WHY DO I PAY FOR PAPER IF I DONT RECEIVE ????? I RECEIVED MY FIRST STATEMENT
Contract 3 R 230.00 IS THIS MY BLACKBERRY???? 0815542672
Internet 5 Promo Discount R 751.00 Cr WHAT IS THIS????? MY LAPTOP??????THE SAMSUNG????
Internet 5 Promo R 950.00 WHAT IS THIS FOR??????
Add on Device Installment Fee R 189.00 WHAT IS THIS FOR??????
Blackberry BIS R 59.00
Subtotal (Recurring Monthly Fees) R 835.00
Balance Overdue R 1,884.94 I PAID THIS!!!!!!!!!
~Message truncated by BlaBla Admin: More of the same. Much, much more~
I SWEAR IAM NOT GONNA PAY A CENT UNTIL YOU SORT THIS OUT!!!!!!!!!
Tut, tut, tut.