The mobile operator and Google-owned online video platform YouTube are working together to launch a service that lets users schedule videos to download overnight when data is cheaper.
The service, YouTube Smart Offline, allows Vodacom Android users who have purchased a 'night owl bundle' to download videos between midnight and 5am.
The night owl bundle can be bought by prepaid and hybrid contract users, and have between a 24-hour and seven-day validity. Prices range from R4 for 50MB, which lasts 24 hours, to R49 for 1GB, which lasts for seven days. This data can only be used after midnight and before sunrise.
The telco hopes to launch contract bundles in the next few months.
In late 2015, YouTube introduced offline video with the aim of to improving the user experience in regions with unreliable connectivity.
Last year, Facebook started testing ways to allow users with slow or intermittent Internet access to view videos offline. Netflix and ShowMax also now have offline video offerings.
Vodacom's YouTube Smart Offline lets users keep videos offline for 48 hours - eliminating the need to worry about spotty connections, buffering and extra data charges.
To use the service, Android Vodacom users first find the video they would like to watch in the YouTube app and then tap the 'offline' icon to schedule it to be saved that evening. Users also have the option to choose which resolution they would like it saved in.
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