Telkom lifts lid on new mobile brand

Telkom Mobile MD Attila Vitai explains why the company is de-emphasising the 8ta brand. By Duncan McLeod.

Attila Vitai

Telkom has unveiled a redesigned brand for Telkom Mobile, it’s cellular arm, saying the change, which involves a de-emphasis of the name 8ta, reflects the fact that the company is now “mature enough” to attract higher-spending customers away from longer-established rival operators, says MD Attila Vitai.

The new logo, which users on social networks like Twitter were quick to deride on Monday, features the Telkom name with the word “Mobile” written below it in a blue crayon-type effect. It was designed by advertising agencies JWT and G2 in consultation with Telkom Mobile employees and the group’s executive committee.

Vitai explains that from Wednesday this week, Telkom Mobile will become the umbrella brand for the group’s mobile business. 8ta, he says, will remain as a “sub-brand” focused on the same markets it has until now.

“8ta has been very successful in the segments that it serves,” Vitai says. “We have focused our activities into the youth market and predominantly the low-using subscribers. This is typical of a new entrant into a market where there is already 100%-plus penetration. You wouldn’t expect us to come to the market and churn away highest-value customers from our rivals.”

He says the timing of the brand change serves as “a marker” that company has “grown up” and can now offer “good enough service to start attracting higher-value customers”, adding that Telkom Mobile wants to attract customers who “like to talk a lot” and who are “data hungry”. It can do this, Vitai says, because it has access to more than 100MHz of spectrum, far more than its rivals. “We have a data-centric network and we want to fill it up.”

Convergence between fixed and mobile will also be a strong focus area for Telkom Mobile. The company plans to launch a range of new data and voice products on Wednesday, but declines to disclose the details ahead of time.

The new Telkom Mobile logo

Vitai says the new Telkom Mobile branding will form the basis of a gradual repositioning of the Telkom group’s familiar green and blue telephone logo.

“We think that this is a much fresher, much more dynamic version of the old Telkom group logo,” he says. “With the passage of time, everyone will fit in with our new logo. We wanted the consumer and business divisions to be happy with the general direction this branding is taking. We will all converge on this [new] logo over the passage of time.”  — (c) 2013 NewsCentral Media