OVO mobile was bought by Amaysim in June 2020. Any existing OVO mobile customers were transitioned to a plan with Amaysim. OVO is no longer available for new customers. This review has been left here for the information of previous customers.
Introduction to OVO
My Mobile Data has launched a new Australian MVNO known as OVO. OVO operate on the Optus 3G and 4G network.
- These days almost everybody has a mobile smartphone. Many people are choosing to live stream and consume their media on the go.
- OVO has signed a five-year deal with the Optus 4G network to provide access to their network as well as live streaming of a number of unique sports.
- They also offer some plan elements you won’t find elsewhere such as free parental lock software.
- OVO is being described by industry experts as a mixed hybrid between a traditional prepaid mobile service provider and an on-demand video streaming service.
What is OVO Mobile offering Australian consumers?
OVO is a new Australian MVNO run by the parent company My Mobile Data. It’s backed by the Optus 3G and 4G network. OVO signed a five-year deal with Optus to provide not only calling, texts and mobile data but also live streaming access to a number of unique sports.
As far as MVNOs go this is a unique offering by an Australian company. OVO offer data free streaming for their subscribers. Exactly what is included varies but the sort of thing you’ll get access to with their ‘OVO Time’ app are live trackside videos of Australian dragster racing, All of this is ‘free’ streaming content ( the cost is included in your plan) and exclusive commentary and never before seen archive footage.
Specifics include :
- Gymnastics Australia – live streaming of all the Australian national events & Catch up
- 400 Thunder Drag Racing Series – live streaming of all the meets
- Audi Sport Customer Racing Australia – live streaming from inside the car + telemetry
- Water Polo – live streaming of all the meets & Catch up – from September ’17
- World Superbike – live stream audio commentary, video highlights for all events world wide + historic classic races
- Radio streaming of the Triple M and Hit FM stations nationally
It’s a competitive market at the moment
It’s a competitive market when it comes to choosing a telecom carrier or MVNO as your service provider. Never before have consumers been spoiled for such choice, with a large selection of prepaid plans catering to all user types.
At last reported count, there were at least 2.9 million mobile phone customers who are not using the three main carriers, Telstra, Optus and Vodafone . This means that almost 3 million Australian’s are preferring to get their prepaid service directly from MVNO,s which is only set to grow in numbers as the years pass. Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) are companies which resell the networks from the three national carriers and offer some of the most competitive prepaid plans on the market. MVNOs such as Amaysim, Boost Mobile and Lebara offer the same great service which you would expect from the national carrier, often at much better prices.
Roy Morgan Research client services general manager Tim Martin was quoted as saying :
“around 15.7 percent of the 18.28 million active Australian mobile services were getting their services from an MVNO provider, which equates to 2.9 million users.”
While the MVNO marketplace is as competitive as its ever been, new providers are popping up all the time to try and grab a piece of the pie. In the recent months alone we have seen Coles, Kogan enter the market. OVO is already one of the fastest growing phone companies in Australia.
Australians consuming media on the go is increasing
Australians love their media on he go and it’s now reached past a tipping point. Gone are the days where we would only catch our favourite shows sitting in front of the television, or watch a movie on our desktop computer.
These days almost everyone has a smartphone and many people are buying tablets and other handheld devices, allowing a larger audience of users to live stream and consume media on the go. Recent reports have shown that media companies which want to stay relevant and engage with their audiences, need to offer streaming on-demand choices for their users or risk losing that audience to other providers which do.
Australian consumers’ media watching habits are changing and perhaps this is what OVO is trying to tap into. By catering to a market demographic which enjoys watching live motorsports, OVO could potentially sign over a large audience market to their MVNO offerings. While Australians are still getting used to the concept of watching streaming media on their smartphones and tablets, rather than sitting in front of their TV sets, the numbers are showing that at this early stage we are comfortable to do so, with the numbers bound to only increase as the years go on.
Who are OVO’s 4G competitors ?
It’s not easy finding a direct competitor for OVO because of the exclusive content extras they offer. That’s kind of the point, they are trying (and succeeding) at standing out from the pack with these content extras. There are, however, a variety of phone companies that we recommend who do not have those extras.
- Boost Mobile operate on the Telstra 4G network. They are a direct competitor of OVO and offer a competitive prepaid deal. Backed by the Telstra network.
- Yomojo and Moose Mobile use the same Optus 3G and 4G networks that OVO do.
- Lebara Mobile and Kogan Mobile use the Vodafone 3G and 4G networks.
- Or you can compare all Australia’s best phone plans here.
In Summary
The MVNO market is about finding a valuable niche and serving it well. OVO’s fans might be impressed with the prepaid plans which are on offer by the company, and, if they’re interested in the content, it’s hard to see them choosing an option other than OVO.
Consumers media habits are changing, and there is a trend for people to consume their media on the go and not sitting in front of a television. However, it remains to be seen if the prepaid plans on offer by OVO, will result in the sort of behaviour change that phone companies are trying to deliver. These content inclusions could be just another gimmick to try and offer users what they can already get from other providers.