Telecom News --

Airtel Africa launches Synchronica-powered Mobile Messaging Service Airtel Connect in 16 Countries

Royal Tunbridge Wells, 23 June, 2011

• Airtel Africa has deployed the mass market Airtel Connect mobile messaging service based on Synchronica Mobile Gateway in 16 countries
  
  
• The launch delivers on the groupwide framework agreement between Airtel and Synchronica
  
  
• Synchronica has worked closely with Airtel to ensure groupwide rollout of the Airtel-branded service, met Airtel's deadlines
  
  
• Airtel Connect is a flat-rate mobile messaging service that enables mass market push email, instant messaging, and social networking on mass market phones

Bharti Airtel (Airtel), a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa, has successfully deployed its mass market mobile messaging service based on Synchronica's Mobile Gateway infrastructure software in

The groupwide launch is the culmination of a groupwide framework agreement between Airtel Africa and Synchronica (AIM: SYNC, TSX-V: SYN).

Airtel Ghana will be the first operator to launch Airtel Connect which will offer a consumer-focused mobile messaging service which combines push email, synchronization, instant messaging, and social networking in a single platform on a fixed monthly rental of GHC 3 (USD 1.99) for unlimited use and will be available to all Airtel mobile customers, regardless of the type of mobile device they own.

Airtel has embarked on a major print and radio advertising campaign to promote Airtel Connect. As an incentive, customers will be offered the chance to take advantage of a free 30-day trial.

"Synchronica has proven itself to be the ideal mobile messaging partner for us"

"Synchronica has proven itself to be the ideal mobile messaging partner for us", says Andre Beyers, Chief Marketing Officer, Airtel Africa. "Since we chose to work with Synchronica, they have met all of our development, integration, and deployment milestones. With Airtel Connect, we can offer all of our customers, regardless of which mobile device they use, a user-friendly way of connecting to their favorite email, IM, and social networking services."

Carsten Brinkschulte, CEO of Synchronica, adds: "Airtel shares our view that forward-thinking operators need to introduce addictive data services that can be enjoyed by the mass market, not just those who own a high-end smartphone. Our solution will help Airtel not only to increase average return per user (ARPU), but also to combat churn."

Synchronica's Mobile Gateway, on which Airtel Connect is based, provides 100 percent device compatibility by using the built-in messaging clients found in a wide range of smartphones and feature phones in addition to the MMS and SMS technologies for basic handsets.

Already licensed by more than 80 mobile operators worldwide, Synchronica's messaging platform is simple and cost-effective to deploy in the operator data center or hosted by Synchronica and allows operators to offer a comprehensive next-generation messaging service which works on any handset in use today.

The launch of Airtel Connect follows Airtel's recent success at the Ghana Telecoms Awards where the company won awards in the categories best customer care company, best marketing campaign, and CEO of the year.

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