Tizeti, a Nigerian internet service provider has unveiled WifiCall.ng, an internet voice calling platform targeted at individuals and businesses.
WifiCall is a VoIP—or Voice over Internet Protocol—subscription service that allows unlimited calls to any phone number, even if that number isn’t registered on WifiCall’s network.
Techcrunch reports that Tizeti will offer the product in Nigeria for now, with plans to open it up to phone numbers outside Africa’s most populous nation and largest economy in 2020.
With the launch, Tizeti will take on already established tech businesses in voice calls like WhatsApp-which is the most downloaded messaging app in Africa- Skype and telcos amongst others.
Commenting on the launch, Tizeti co-founder and CEO, Kendall Ananyi told Techcrunch: “On the low end we’re competing with the mobile providers. WifiCall gives you a real number and it’s cheaper. But we’re also offering enterprise options you would not get with a mobile connection or even WhatsApp.”
Betting on voice calls as the future of calls, Ananyi said: “The way Africa skipped landlines and went straight to mobile, this is us saying the next level for our voice communications is to move toward voice IP networks,” Ananyi said.
WifiCall is available online or for download for free under the “Basic” package. The entry-level commercial “Business Unlimited Pro” package—that offers up to 10 users, call recording, and call analytics—goes for ₦15,000, or around $35 a month.
Recall that in September 2018, Tizeti raised $3 million to expand beyond the shores of Nigeria. The new funding round was led by 4dDX Ventures.
