Safaricom unveils Ksh 20 digital newspapers to customers

Safaricom has partnered with media houses in Kenya in a new innovation that will see newspapers made available to all smartphone customers in the country at Ksh 20 per issue.

“The world is quickly evolving to be digitally-led and we see our customers increasingly seeking ways in which they can achieve their goals by tapping into the convenience of their smartphone. We are glad to partner with media houses to digitise the newspaper channel and make them available on the mobile phone,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom.

The KES 20 price per newspaper includes data usage meaning a customer’s data bundle will not be consumed when reading through each paper. No registration or signup will be necessary neither will customers be requested to download and install any application.

The service can be accessed by visiting Safaricom.com and selecting the “Discover” option followed by “Newspapers”, upon which a customer will see newspapers available for purchase. Customers will need to have their data on when accessing the portal as each purchase is linked to their mobile phone number for ease of access.

In addition to the portal, customers can also dial *550# to purchase the newspapers. Purchased publications will appear under “My Newspaper” tab for 7 days after purchase.

Newspapers currently available include The Standard, Saturday Standard, Sunday Standard and The Nairobian.

Others are Daily Nation, Saturday Nation, Sunday Nation and The Business Daily.

The initiative is part of Safaricom’s contribution in the fight against COVID-19 by empowering customers to conveniently access the newspapers even as they limit their movement.

It is also a further commitment in the company’s goal of enabling more businesses harness the power of the internet to meet the needs of their customers.