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Kabul, Afghanistan, August 1, 2007.
Afghanistan's leading Telecom operator, Roshan, has once again reaffirmed its commitment to bring innovation and leadership to Afghanistan by introducing a new service at the forefront of technology. e-TopUp is an electronic payment solution that will enable pre-paid subscribers to refill, or 'Top Up,' their airtime credit without using Scratch Cards, but using SMS. The new service has been launched in partnership with MoreMagic Solutions and will be introduced in various phases throughout the country starting August 2007.
For the first time in Afghanistan, e-TopUp will give customers the flexibility to recharge for any amount above 50 AFA, which is the lowest refill amount in the country. 'e-TopUp has been in trial at participating Roshan stores and dealers since October 2006 and due to the outstanding results of the trial, Roshan will extend the e-TopUp service over time to all authorized Roshan dealer locations nationwide. It is another example of Roshan's commitment to serving our customers. With e-TopUp customers are not limited to the refill amounts provided by Scratch Cards and can credit their accounts for any amount above 50 AFA. e-TopUp also provides tremendous benefits to our dealers, making it easier and safer for them to sell airtime,' stated Altaf Ladak, Roshan Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officer.
Ali Arshad, owner of a well-known Roshan airtime dealer that has been trialing the product commented that 'e-TopUp has been well received by customers who like the convenience of choosing how much airtime to buy, which gives them a great deal of flexibility. e-TopUp is very easy to use: with a simple interface, the Dealer enters the customer's number, a pin-code and the credit amount ' the transaction can be done directly from a mobile handset, using a friendly application or a SMS command, or through a web interface. It also allows dealers to distribute airtime more quickly throughout the country, ensuring a better reach, particularly in rural areas.'
The e-TopUp solution comes from MoreMagic in Boston, Massachusetts in the United States. More Magic is a leading provider of mobile and electronic payment solutions and a leader in transaction solutions for mobile service providers. MoreMagic has been successful with the e-TopUp solution in over 30 countries, and is now bringing this solution to Afghanistan. 'We are very excited to be able to provide this product with Roshan and, by the same token, affirm our commitment to the Afghan mobile industry. Roshan's vision for M-Commerce in Afghanistan has been articulated around key principles such as user experience enhancement, and the e-TopUp solution is clearly aligned with that strategic objective,' stated Pankaj Gulati, CEO of MoreMagic.
e-TopUp is currently available in 11 Roshan Customer Care outlets, participating Dunya Telecom and Zarnigar Telecom retail outlets in Kabul, and in Roshan shops across the country where nearly all credit refills are now done using e-TopUp.
Roshan (Telecom Development Company Afghanistan Ltd) is Afghanistan's leading Telecom operator, with coverage in over 180 major cities and towns and over one million subscribers. Roshan directly employs more than 850 people and provides indirect employment to more than 20,000 people. Since its inception 4 years ago, Roshan has invested over US$260 million in Afghanistan and is the country's single largest investor and tax payer. Roshan is deeply committed to Afghanistan's reconstruction and socio-economic development.
About MoreMagic Solutions
MoreMagic Solutions is a privately held company based in Newton, Massachusetts. MoreMagic provides world-class micro-payment, m-commerce and electronic recharge and solutions around the globe using their award-winning, carrier class mobile payments platform MBrokerTM. MoreMagic has deployed its solution in more than 30 countries worldwide. For more information about MoreMagic, go to www.moremagic.com.
For further information on ROSHAN, please contact:
Shamsia MITHA
PR Manager
E-mail: shamsia.mitha@roshan.af
Or visit our website: www.roshan.af