Nigerian ISP leader Tizeti has launched an unlimited voice service app for Android and iOS mobile devices – WifiCall.ng. Targeted at both individuals and businesses, users will be able to make and receive crystal clear, unlimited voice calls to anywhere in the world via IP phones or web portal. The new product from Tizeti will be rolled out for Nigerian mobile phone numbers initially and subscribers with a +234 line will be able to use the service from anywhere in the world.
Built by the Tizeti team to tackle the issue of expensive phone calls on the continent, WifiCall is a first for not only the Nigerian ISP space but the African ISP space, providing users with a versatile, user-friendly interface, giving them access to a modern version of the “yellow pages”. Implementation of the WifiCall platform is expected to reduce calling costs for businesses by 30-50%, with monthly subscriptions starting fromN6,000 [$16.67] a month.
Unlike WhatsApp, WifiCall subscribers can call any phone number in the world, using their data package. For businesses WifiCall allows ease of a variety of client services and internal communications.
Key product features for the WiFiCall app include
- Customisable dashboard
- Calling statistics
- Personalised digital receptionist messages for multi-line requirements whereby companies can create and manage queues
- One click phone number search + search engine of business phone numbers
- Subscribers can select their own number
- Multi-user sub-account management with ability to top up online and allocate call credits to users.
- Management of users within a calling space
The service comes with a number of additional innovative features, such as allowing mobile users to place calls directly from Twitter by tweeting phone numbers to @wificallng while on the social network, a feature developed with SMEs in mind, so they can provide seamless customer service. Looking to make sure tech platforms can build services around the WifiCall product, developers will have access to the API suite within the platform, to tailor product-based solutions for businesses. This extends past the wide variety of features already on offer across web and mobile including the ability to top-up credit online, allocate call credit to multiple users as well as create digital receptionists and queues.
Kendall Ananyi, CEO and Co-Founder of Tizeti says “WifiCall.ng is reinventing our traditional understanding of phone communication using next-generation Cloud and AI technology, bringing voice communications in Nigeria into the 21st century. Our goal continues to be to reduce the cost of data and accelerate the rate of connectivity across the continent – this is a first step in continuing to bridge the digital divide that exists. We are excited to continue pushing boundaries in ICT infrastructure and maintain our competitive edge by offering quality and unlimited data service”.
According to the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI), affordable internet is defined as 1GB of data costing no more than 2% of monthly income. Based on the current estimated national minimum wage in Nigeria of N30,000 [approximately $83.33] per month, the current average rate for 1GB of data at N1,000 [approximately $2.78] is significantly higher than the prescribed N600 [$1.67].
Ifeanyi Okonkwo, Tizeti’s Chief Operations Officer adds, “Tizeti has developed a system that meets the needs of a wide selection of Nigerians. Whether it’s a household with a handful of users or a business who wants to setup a fully-fledged call centre solution, they can all do this in minutes at a fraction of the cost. Previously, setting up a voice service of any size was only available to mega businesses and multi-tenant estates and it would take months to develop and required significant CAPEX to deploy. WifiCall.ng has created a viable solution for Nigerians, further expanding our extensive reach nationwide”.
Tizeti operates widely as a “Comcast for Africa” and builds and operates solar-powered towers in Nigeria, while also providing residences and businesses with unlimited high speed broadband internet; covering over 90% of Lagos to date.
Since graduating from Y Combinator’s Winter 2017 batch, the company has installed over 12,000 public Wifi hotspots within Nigeria with 500,000 users, also partnering with Facebook to offer Express Wi-Fi, to roll out thousands of internet hotspots across Nigeria’s capital. The company has since expanded its services to Ghana with new consumer-facing brand Wifi.Africa.
WifiCall.ng is now available for download in Google Playstore and Apple Store.
