Zain launches low denomination air time cards

Rene Meza, the new managing director of Zain Kenya, has adopted a strategy for competing with Safaricom on its own terms.

The mobile phone service provider, which rebranded from Celtel to Zain on Aug. 1, is set to launch a low-end scratch card worth 20 Kenyan shillings (US$0.31) to counter increasing competition in the lower rungs of the market.The card is set to compete with Safaricom's "Bamba 20," which was launched a few months ago.

The new Zain card targets rural dwellers as well as youth, Meza said.

Zain has further realigned its scratch card denominations by replacing the 40 shilling scratch card with a 50 shillings card, while 200 and 300 shillings cards have been replaced by one worth 250 shillings. The new system is in sync with denominations offered by Safaricom.

Zain's electronic voucher distribution system also now allows subscribers to add credit to their phones for as little as one shilling.