Vodafone To Make Ultra Cheap Mobile Phones

Vodafone may not be a well-known brand in Pakistan but it could change soon – here’s why: Vodafone, the top cell phone companies in Europe, have announced that they will sellreally cheap phones targeted to developing countries. How about a mobile phone for Rs 1500 with a Vodafone brand on it? As you can guess it will be manufactured in China but it will have the brand name of a top carrier. Should be much better than the low quality phones coming to Pakistan from unknown manufacturers in China!

In April Vodafone bought 52% of Hutchison Essar in India thus making their arrival in emerging markets formal. Now they are the very first big carrier who is about to compete with the handset makers such as LG and Nokia. This week, Vodafone unveiled two very low-cost handsets (US$25-45, PK Rs 1500-2700) aimed primarily at customers in emerging markets such as South Asia and Africa.

WSJ made an interesting comment on this:

Cereal and cellphones may have little in common. But wireless-service provider Vodafone Group PLC has been cruising the supermarket aisle for inspiration. The world’s largest cellphone-service provider by revenue is rolling out lines of Vodafone-branded handsets, akin to supermarkets stocking their own store-brand products alongside established brands.

Behind the move is Vodafone’s desire to drive more people to use its services, both high-speed data services in established markets as well as more basic calling and text-messaging services in emerging regions. In some cases, the handsets may be packaged with Vodafone’s or a partner’s service.

Naturally Vodafone will want to sell its new phones to Pakistani market. Look out for some interesting deals in the near future as Vodafone settles down in India and contemplates its next move. Just speculating, how does a vodafone-ufone deal sound? At least it rhymes!

BusinessWeek also covered this story – Read Vodafone’s Low-Cost Cell Phone Gambit at BusinessWeek or read the excerpts below.

Vodafone executives announced in London that the company is rolling out its own line of ultra-low-cost handsets. To be built by a Chinese partner, the GSM-standard phones will carry the Vodafone brand name and sell for $25 to $45, depending on locale.

With its unexpected move, Vodafone (VOD) becomes the first carrier to introduce its own phones intended specifically for customers in developing countries. Until now most so-called “private-label” devices resold by operators have been aimed at the high end of the market. “[These] will be the lowest priced GSM products ever,” crowed Jens Schulte-Bockum, Vodafone’s global director of terminals, at the event.