Early this month, MTN announced that it had exclusive rights to distribute the HTC Dream in South Africa and other African markets. On its part, Vodacom has announced exclusive rights to HTC Magic, courtesy of Vodafone, which has rights to sell the Android-powered phone in the markets it services, including South Africa.

"It's very important for Vodacom to bring our customers the latest technology and upgrades available; we are very excited to be introducing this latest cutting-edge, Android-powered HTC smartphone in South Africa," said Chris Ross, managing executive for sales for Vodacom South Africa.

After MTN announced its exclusive rights, Vodacom was asked why it was beaten to the deal, but the company said it was waiting to announce the distribution of HTC Magic. Vodafone unveiled the phone in February.

The HTC Magic features a 3.2-inch QVGA touch-screen display, a trackball and navigational buttons, Google applications, Google Maps and Google Search. Vodacom said it will also unveil an applications store to accompany the release of the device.

The competition by Vodacom and MTN is expected to provide opportunities for local software developers keen to upload applications to the online store.