Cheapest no frills telco deals are worth a look

New providers are offering better deals than the big carriers, writes

Sophie Elsworth

MOBILE phone customers can save more money than ever before as new carriers flock to the market.

Smaller operators piggybacking off the networks of the big three telcos – Telstra, Optus and Vodafone – are continuing to put pressure on the larger providers to sharpen their deals and bring their charges down.

Within the last 24 months multiple mobile virtual network operators (MVNOS) have opened for business, including Tangerine Telecom, numobile, Belong Mobile and Pennytel.

Pennytel’s chief executive officer, Rene Sugo, said the Sydney-based carrier ran on the Telstra network and had amassed 10,000 customers in less than two years.

“The deals will be a bit different than the big telcos so it’s definitely worth considering MVNOS,” he said. OPTUS

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“The data, phone calls and network are the same – the difference is the customer service and billing.”

The cheapest MVNO deals for 10GB of data and unlimited calls and text are about $25 per month, telco comparison website Whistleout’s database shows.

Often bigger carriers charge more but offer some extras, including entertainment or overseas call inclusions.

Whistleout spokesman Kenny Mcgilvary said the main reason customers would choose an MVNO was their “price point”.

“There are no frills and you buy a deal that is on a network you know and trust,” he said.

“It doesn’t necessarily come with all the other inclusions and bells and whistles of a more established brand.”

Moose Mobile chief executive officer Dean Lwin said his business had more than 35,000 customers since beginning operation in 2017.

“The market is currently so competitive and, for the vast majority of the population who use under 10GB per month, if you’re paying more than $25 you’re paying too much,” he said.

“Consumers haven’t heard of these smaller brands so they don’t trust them, but if you look for deals with no contract term there’s really nothing to lose, except the chance to save some big money.”

Mr Lwin said if customers weren’t happy they could easily switch because they weren’t locked into lengthy contracts.

Instead, MVNO customers were usually on month-bymonth deals.