PRESS RELEASE

New Providence, New Jersey and Lusaka, Zambia, Monday, 1st February 2016:Zambia’s fastest growing telecommunications company, MTN Zambia, has launched a popular social media service in partnership with Kirusa, the leader in voice and social media solutions for mobile users in emerging markets.

The AMAVIP service is one of the popular social media services offered by Kirusa that gives celebrities and their fans an opportunity to interact with each other in a more personal way.

The service enables celebrities and their fans to record and access voice blogs anytime and anywhere. It is the easiest way to connect with notable personalities ranging from movies, music, politics, sports and media.

AMAVIP also assists mobile subscribers to receive daily soccer updates, such as team news, pre and post-match analysis and quotes from team players and managers. Users can follow their favorite clubs and teams and get alerts on football news, players, matches, goals, penalties and much more.

With this launch, MTN Zambia subscribers can get the latest updates from the various celebrities Kirusa has on its platform.

The first to launch on the AMAVIP service was famous DJ and musician JayRox and popular rapper and actress Bombshell. In Sports, fans will be able to follow all the latest updates by major football clubs like Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, etc.

Speaking at the launch, MTN Zambia Chief Marketing Officer Manu Rajan said, “Celebrities are always considered icons and fans look up to them for inspiration. Services like AMAVIP give fans an emotional connection they seek with their favorite celebs. Fans can also respond to celebrities, making it an extraordinary experience.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Inderpal Singh Mumick, CEO of Kirusa said, “Zambia is tremendously enthusiastic about sports and celebrities. Hence, we were confident that services like these would aid the nurturing of bonds between fans and celebrities. Over 200,000 fans are already connecting with their favorite stars on AMAVIP, and we look forward to having, even more, celebrities connect with their fans.”

Kirusa’s InstaVoice services have already made their mark in other African countries. The InstaVoice Celeb has continued to attract mobile users everywhere, surpassing 11 million fans in seven countries. Similarly, InstaVoice Sports has reached more than 2 million followers.

About MTN Zambia

MTN Zambia is part of the MTN Group a multinational telecommunications company with a footprint in 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East. It started its operations in Zambia in 2005 after acquiring the then Telecel. It initially began as an exclusive GSM network providing voice and Short Message System (SMS) services. The portfolio has grown to include voice (local and international), data, fixed and wireless internet, money transfer and other value added services.

The company is Zambia’s market leader with the largest market share providing communications solutions across all the ten provinces of Zambia. MTN Zambia’s footprint is covered by 4G, 3G, Edge and 2G networks.

MTN Zambia is the country’s fastest growing and most innovative network and is highly acclaimed for its quality network and dynamic tariff billing system. The company puts its customers at the forefront and uses its position on the market to uplift people’s lives and communities through a robust Corporate Social Investmentprogramme in Education, Health (United Against Malaria), and preservation of the country’s cultural heritage through sponsorship of traditional ceremonies.

MTN Zambia supports Zambia’s number one passion; soccer and is a proud sponsor of the national soccer team. The relationship with the local football association, FAZ started in 2010 and has seen the national team crowned 2012 African Champions at the continental showpiece – the Africa Cup of Nations. MTN Zambia is also a proud sponsor of the premier league also known as the MTN/FAZ Premier League which has grown to become a competitive league watched by millions of Africans across the continent.

At MTN Zambia, we have continued to grow from being a generic telecommunications company known for basic telephony to a lifestyle-enabling, one-stop shop for solutions that support consumers through every moment and every stage of their life.

About Kirusa

Kirusa is the leader in voice messaging and social media mobile apps that enable mobile subscribers to “Have a Voice!” and share their stories with their family and friends across the globe. Kirusa’s solutions include InstaVoice®, InstaVoice Celeb™ and InstaVoice Sports™ apps, which are offered in partnership with more than thirty-five mobile carriers in Africa, India, LatAm, and the Middle East, as well as via the app stores, and are used monthly by over 80 million mobile usersin four continents. Kirusa solutions are built on its patented technology, and its highly reliable and scalable multi modal and cloud platforms, which process over one billion events a month. Kirusa has been recognized as one of top 20 most promising technology companies by Silicon India, and one of top 25 emerging technology companies by Smart Techie magazine. The InstaVoice app won first prize at NJTC Mobile Apps Forum. Informa selected InstaVoice as a finalist for the Best App in Africa. Headquartered in New Jersey and led by an experienced team of wireless telecom executives and technologists, Kirusa has offices in four continents. InstaVoice is a US registered trademark of Kirusa, Inc. For more information, visit: http://www.kirusa.com

For further inquiries, please contact

For MTN Zambia
Corporate Services Department
Tel: +260 966 220 188
E-mail: matanio@mtnzambia.co.zm

For Kirusa

Alchemy Corporate Communications 
Anju Makin
US Tel: +1(973) 536-2652
E-mail： anju_makin@alchemycc.com