Vodacom lights up Soweto music festival in celebration of turning red

Vodacom paints South Africa red

Skies go red as Vodacom lits the Orlando Stadium in Soweto last night during a music festival to celebrate the giant cellphone company's re-branding attended by thousands of frenzied South Africans and guests from different places

Fireworks at the Orlando Stadium last night

Sowetans go crazy as music pumps the night on

Orlando Stadium packed to the brim

Soweto youth jive the night away

Vodacom Group CEO Mr. Pieter Uys briefs the media about the brand make-over during a pre-concert press conference held at 24 Central Centre in Sandton last night

One of the journalist from different nedia
houses throws a question at the briefing

Top Tanzanian journalists also attended the event at Sandton, before joining the festivities at the Orlando Stadium. They are from right Bakari Machumu (Managing Editor The Citizen), Dennis Msacky (Manging Editor Mwananchi) and Manyerere Jackton (News Editor Mtanzania)

Mr. Pieter Uys speaking to the media

Thousands of music fans have danced through the afternoon and into the night at the Vodacom Unlimited music festival. Orlando Stadium played host to an unprecedented all-star line-up which for the first time ever, brought together top local and internationally acclaimed DJs including Louie Vega, Black Coffee, and Liquideep. All proceeds from the event are going to the Orlando Children's Home.

As an area synonymous with South Africa's vibrant new future, Soweto was chosen as the perfect location for Vodacom to officially launch its new brand and identity. At 9pm, fans saw the stadium turn from blue to red in a stunning display which culminated with a link to the iconic Ponte tower illuminated for the first time in red.

Unveiling one of South Africa's largest ever brand make-overs, Vodacom Group CEO Pieter Uys said:

"The change in colour is the tip of the iceberg, just the outside indication of a much bigger change at Vodacom. The role we play in our customers' lives has changed - connectivity has gone from a convenience to a basic need, and we need to turn our business on its head to make sure that we cater for this.

"Power to You" isn't just our advertising slogan - it's a new approach and new direction for Vodacom. This isn't a once-off change, it's a journey and I'm confident that as the weeks and months unfold, you'll find the changes run much deeper than simply turning from blue to red."

Network, service and value, which are the three critical customer touchpoints, are all being transformed as part of this process. Speaking about the changes to Vodacom's network, Pieter Uys said:

"We currently have the most extensive network in South Africa, but we can't stop here. We are going to more than double the number of Vodacom 3G base stations in the country, which will take connectivity to more people than ever before. We're leading a revolution to connect the entire country - this isn't about cherry picking a few people in cities for an elite service, it's about getting a decent connection to everyone and ensuring that nobody gets left behind."

Technological innovation will remain a key part of Vodacom's network strategy as well. The company currently has more than 4,300 3G sites in South Africa, half of which are 21 Mbps enabled and just under 1,000 of which are enabled for 42 Mbps sites. To put this next generation 42 Mbps technology in perspective, with compatible modems the theoretical peak speed achievable by customers is more than 100 times faster than Vodacom's original 3G offering launched as a South African first in December 2004.

Moving on to the service and value changes underway at Vodacom, Pieter Uys said:

"Our customers expect the best service to match our leading network. We're rolling out totally redesigned stores to make the entire experience of Vodacom fresh and inspiring - and we'll of course showcase the latest technology. Customer service is also undergoing a revamp. By building on the success we've had opening new channels like support via Twitter seven days a week, we'll make it faster and more convenient to deal with us. Delivering tangible value to customers is the third part of the new Vodacom customer promise and will be backed up by the introduction of new products and services."

Summing up the new Vodacom, Pieter Uys said:

"Tonight we turned Orlando Stadium and Ponte red, and from tomorrow you're going to see this change happening everywhere else. We have to thank Soweto, the epicentre of South Africa's renaissance, for hosting this event celebrating the rebirth of Vodacom. The people of Soweto epitomise the energy and determination that we aim to show the world. We have started a journey which will see all our customers feel and experience what "Power to You" really means."