Kenya-based telco Safaricom and Google have announced plans to leverage their digital and data capability to enable Kenyans access the wide collection of entertainment, education, sports and news content available on YouTube.
The initiative will see Safaricom avail an affordable KES10 ($0.09) data bundle to ensure that no one is left behind by the accelerated digital transformation brought about by social distancing amidst the ongoing pandemic.
The new daily bundle, which will be free on the first day for first-time subscribers, will offer 80MBs for use on YouTube, which is equivalent to up to 30 minutes of standard definition streaming and up to an hour of low definition streaming.
According to Safaricom, the bundle will be available for 90 days from May 15 to August 13, 2020.
Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom, said: “Through this proposition, we want to leverage our extensive 4G coverage to ensure that customers who could not previously enjoy the power of the Internet can access a new world of content in an affordable manner from the comfort of their phones. With as little as 10 shillings, customers can now learn a new skill, attend virtual concerts or keep up with their favourite local content.”
The announcement follows the service provider’s partnership with Google to provide a KES20 ($0.18) a day 4G smart phone package aimed at empowering customers currently on 2G devices to upgrade and enjoy high speed Internet connectivity.
“We are excited about this partnership with Safaricom that will make data more affordable to users in Kenya who in this current situation are looking for affordable ways to stay connected, informed and entertained,” added Mariam Abdullahi, director, Android and Platforms Partnerships for Africa.
Abdullahi said the partnership will provide Kenyans the opportunity to go to YouTube daily to watch their favourite shows, listen to music, learn a skill or develop their passion with the millions of content available without the hassle of thinking of their data.
Customers in Kenya can access the YouTube bundle by dialling *544#.