Chief Executive Officer Knott-Craig had a vision for a leading mobile cellular network. It would be one of the world's premier networks and would offer the best coverage, quality, outstanding service and it would be run by a team of dedicated professionals. It would also be dedicated to providing millions of previously disadvantaged South Africans with meaningful and affordable access to telephones for the first time.

During the months November to December 1996,the product team at Vodacom developed a product called prepaid. At the time, the payment and billing mechanism was unknown to South Africans, there was even doubts whether the regulations within South Africa would allow the operator to introduce prepaid into the country. Today, prepaid is a principle reason that the mobile cell phone industry has grown to some 500 million phones in the world.
Vodacom covers almost 13 000 km's of national roads, about 80% of the country's population and 52% of the total land surface.

In the 2007 year of trading Prepaid currently constitutes 90% or more of our connections to Vodacom - some 80% of our base is prepaid today. Prepaid is very significant, as soon as Vodacom introduced Prepaid they were forced to add additional capacity into their network. Vodacom's original projected number of total prepaid customers had been 50 000. The prepaid growth was so large that Vodacom actually connected 50 000 prepaid cell phone customers in in the first month!

The number of Vodacom users passed 4 million in October 2000; a success accelerated by the rapid acceptance of prepaid cellular mobile by the emerging market. In just over six years, prepaid has well and truly driven such dynamic success.

When cellular was launched in South Africa in 1994, nobody would have thought that cell phones would eventually be owned by such a wide variety of the South African people. Prepaid vouchers have meant that everybody - from a businessman to a street hawker - can own a cell phone, and more than 90% of all new connections to the Vodacom network are now prepaid.

Vodacom South Africa launched its 3G network in December 2004 and its 3G HSDPA network in March 2006.

The facts remain that Vodacom is South Africa's largest mobile phone company, of which Telkom South Africa owns 50% the other 50% is held by Vodafone Airtouch Plc ,Hosken Consilidated Investments and Rembrandt Group Limited .

Vodacom prepaid information can be found at the following web site.

Vodacom has always been a proud sponsor of sports in South Africa and in Africa at large, sponsorships include Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates, Vodacom Cheetahs and the Super 14 Rugby competition to name a few.