Categories
Close
Menu
Menu
Close
Search
Search

Featured Articles

News

Ad-funded MVNO Samba Mobile closes

Mark

Share:

Print

Rate article:

No rating
Rate this article:
No rating

Advertising-funded virtual network Samba Mobile has closed down in the UK… just a month after rival MVNO Ovivo Mobile ceased trading.

Samba Mobile was formed in 2010 and launched its mobile network in 2012. It’s posted a message on its website that says “Samba has had to take the difficult decision to close, primarily due to high and increasing - and therefore unsustainable - data costs.”

It says these data costs have made its current model “unsustainable”. Customers who signed up this month will receive a refund for their SIM card or dongle; any credit that’s been bought and hasn’t been used will also be refunded.

The statement goes on to say “You have taken part in a unique experiment that has been welcomed by the ad industry – we have run over 1000 campaigns for our partners and have, to a large extent, proven that people are happy to consume advertising if they are in control of the experience and if they get something meaningful in return. We will be taking this experience into subsequent ventures.”

The Samba Mobile service had used the Three UK network. Customers received a basic data allowance by watching promotional videos online.

Comments

Collapse Expand Comments (1)
paul

I'm well p****d off, I've just lost 2 lines, my numbers & cash with that ovivo, now samba where its taken me 6 month to accrue 5.3 gig of data, only to lose the lot, unbelievable, who's next, asda & or giffgaff, they're also mvno's just like ovivo & samba, beware folks, be very careful which network you use, its as if the big boy's allow these mvno's to become established, then when they feel a slight pinch of lost custom, they pull the plug and let us all sink, its time some watchdog put some provisions in place to protect the public, but not the trading standards as all they can do with their sale of goods act is talk a glass eye to sleep.

3
0
You don't have permission to post comments.

Opinion Articles

ExclusiveDon't bother looking for a dramatically reduced HP TouchPad in the UK

Mark Bridge writes:

This weekend, you could have picked up a HP TouchPad webOS tablet for $99. Both the HP USA online store and Best Buy in Canada were selling the obsolescent devices at a substantial discount.

Yet over here in the UK, we've seen nothing except a prize draw from The Carphone Warehouse and a less-than-£90 discount from Amazon. And I don't expect anything much better in the short-term.

ExclusiveWill LG buy webOS from HP?

Mark Bridge writes:

Google and Motorola. HP and webOS. Each apparently heading in opposite directions when it comes to strategy.

However, although HP has pretty much pulled the plug on making webOS devices, it's not calling time on the webOS platform.

ExclusiveThis week at The Fonecast: 20th August 2011

Mark Bridge writes:

Welcome to this week's UK mobile industry news summary from TheFonecast.com. After a week's holiday on the scenic north coast of Norfolk, which not only lacks cellsites but also hills to put them on, it's good to finally see the '3G' indicator reappear on my phone. My week off may have been relatively quiet - but the last few days have more than made up for it.

ExclusiveIan Hook from Compliant Phones talks about mobile phone call recording

Mark Bridge writes:

Recording a phone call made by a mobile phone isn’t particularly difficult – it's something we do regularly for our podcasts – but recording every call made and received by a mobile phone isn't so easy. It's even more of a problem for companies with dozens or even hundreds of employees using mobile phones... and yet, for many organisations, this type of thing will soon be a legal requirement.

To learn more, I've been talking to Ian Hook, vice-president of marketing at Compliant Phones. I started by asking Ian why companies would want to record all their mobile phone calls.

RSS
First6263646567697071Last

Recent Podcasts

ExclusivePodcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Mark Bridge learns about the mobile technology trends at Mobile World Congress 2015 by chatting to James Rosewell of 51Degrees, Dr Kevin Curran from the IEEE and Chris Millington of Doro.

They talk about wearable devices, wireless charging, mobile operating systems and much more... including some of their favourite products from the exhibition.

ExclusiveLooking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

We're taking a look back at the biggest mobile industry news stories from February 2015, including allegations that the UK's security service tried to breach SIM card security by hacking into one of the world's biggest SIM producers.

We also talk about the planned BT and EE merger, the creation of two new UK virtual networks, some acquisitions in the mobile payment arena and a new Ubuntu smartphone.

ExclusiveA month of mobile: O2 counts on 3, Microsoft counts to 10 and Apple counts its profits

We're back with a month of mobile industry news, including takeover talks and takeover rumours. O2 and Three are said to be discussing a merger... but is there any truth in the suggestions that BlackBerry could be up for grabs?

We also discuss Apple's record-breaking quarterly figures, the highlights of CES and the launch of Microsoft Windows 10, as well as saying farewell to the current version of Google Glass.

RSS
12345678910Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Archive Calendar

«July 2026»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
293012345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
272829303112
3456789

Archive