Uganda Telecom launched its new hotspots offer at convenient choice locations in Uganda. The Hotspots will be located at restaurants, hotels and cafes as well in Kampala, Entebbe, Jinja, Gulu and other select upcountry destinations.

At the launch event held at Kyoto Restaurant, Centenary Park, Uganda Telecom unveiled a new and convenient mode payment mode for access of at Hotspot zones. The payment mode will be executed on an SMS based platform meaning that Internet users and access will no longer be determined by or restricted to the availability of an on-site attendant, a scratch card or an IT specialist when surfing at Internet Hotspots following the launch of this innovative, user friendly and affordable way to access the Internet.

This new offer presents a more convenient payment mode for access of internet at Hotspot zones. The payment mode will be executed over an SMS based platform.  This means that Internet users and access to internet will no longer be determined by or restricted to the availability of an on-site attendant, a scratch card or an IT specialist when surfing at these venues.

Customers will only have to send an SMS, reading UTHS followed by the amount of surf time required to 167 without leaving any spaces.  The customer will then instantly receive a pin number which they will use to surf as per the tariff plan below:

Customers will only have to send an SMS, reading UTHS followed by the amount of surf time required to 167.e.g. UTHS1 without leaving any spaces.  The customer will instantly receive a pin number which they will use to surf. There are three payment plans of surf durations of 1 hour, 3 hours and 6 hours for UGX 2,000/=, 5,000/= and 10,000/= respectively and the keyword to send is UTHS1, UTHS3 and UTHS6 respectively. The cost attached to each plan is the charge of the SMS.

If the customer does not use all their time at the initial hotspot location, they can log out and save the PIN and use it another time at the same location or any other Uganda Telecom Hotspot location.

"As National Operator providing affordable access to communication for all Ugandans is our major driving goal. With this new innovation, we therefore go a step ahead to create relevance of your existing communication solutions and enabling more Ugandans to access the internet anytime and anywhere with a Uganda telecom hotspot sign in a friendly and cost effective manner," said Charlotte Kemigyisha, Acting Marketing Manager.

Uganda Telecom was recently voted the most innovative company by the Uganda Investment Authority and this new innovation is just one of many first that the telecom company has pioneered with in this market. Uganda Telecom is also the biggest Internet service provider in the country.

Although Internet Hotspots have been in existence in the country, they have been facing a lot of problems in terms of intermittent services and low speeds.

"The customer experience has not been very good. But we are going to improve this experience by bringing in high speeds and expanding the network of hotspots to as many locations in the country as possible," Kemigyisha said.

At the time of launch, twelve locations including Kyoto Restaurant at the Centenary park, Emin Pasha Hotel, Hotel Triangle in Jinja, Mateos, Good African Coffee at Game, Capital Shoppers and Entebbe Airport, Iguana Pub, Javas on Workers House and Bombo Road, Fatboys, Just Kicking and Crocodile Restaurant in Kisementi are up and there will be another 50 locations set up within the year.

Uganda Telecom will also extend this service to the University students who are more often than not challenged to thoroughly research their work prior to presentation by placing Jazz SurfSpots at all Main University campuses in Uganda to help grow internet usage and knowledge among the youth.

Uganda telecom is currently the only total communications provider in Uganda, providing Internet, data, GSM, landlines among others.