Telecom Operators

Saudi Telecom Company (STC) will first invest its half-a-billion dollar venture capital fund mainly in the region and then look abroad, its CEO said.

Oman has postponed its third mobile license offering due to complications regarding Zain Group's acquisition of a 9.84 stake in partially state-owned Oman Telecommunications (Omantel), according to UAE newspaper The National. The winner for the license bid was initially going to be announced on September 4.

Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) represented by its Business unit offers the latest solutions for small and medium enterprises, such as small offices such as network, communication, mobility and cloud computing services at low costs, which confirms Mobily’s leadership role in the ICT market.

Internet of Things (IoT) will generate estimated US$1.8 trillion revenue for mobile network operators by 2026, driven by the early deployment of commercial Power Wide Area Networks in licensed spectrum, according to GSMA, which highlighted new figures in the IoT Forecast Database Research published by analyst house Machina Research.

On Sunday morning, Etihad Etisalat, Mobily, held a reception for all its employees at the company's main sites, on the first day of work post Eid Al Adha holiday.

The Jordanian region of Saraya Aqaba is the first in the country to get Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) connectivity. The luxury mixed-use tourism and leisure destination located on the shores of the Red Sea in the Gulf of Aqaba in Jordan was fitted with the infrastructure by R&M, A Swiss producer of products and systems for communication and data networks.

Etisalat is launching a new youth-targeted SIM in the UAE called Swyp in an apparent effort to compete with the launch of the Virgin Mobile brand by du's parent company EITC. The Swyp prepaid mobile service hasn't officially launched yet, but the brand's website is up and running and the apps have been uploaded to the app stores.

The Virgin Mobile brand was officially launched by Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC) on September 5 in the UAE, bringing the first fully digital mobile service to the country. Virgin Mobile offers simple and transparent technology and a unique consumer experience through its innovative app-based service.

Dr. Khaled H. Biyari, STC Group CEO, announced that STC customers will be able to make voice calls inside and outside the network free of charge for two days on the occasion of the Saudi National Team qualification to World Cup 2018 in Russia.

Saudi Telecom Company (STC) said it increased Wi-Fi coverage in Makkah and Holy Sites to prepare for pilgrims traveling to Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj. The coverage includes tunnels, bridges, and a number of public utilities in Mina which received pilgrims to start their Tarwiah day on August 30.