Subscribers will be able to switch telecom providers

Dubai: Mobile phone subscribers in the UAE will soon be able to switch between service providers du and etisalat, while retaining the same number, like customers in Europe and the US.

The number portability will also help them to retain the respective codes. Arabic daily Al Ittihad reported that the facility has been approved by the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA) and will be on offer early 2010.

A TRA official believes that number portability, once launched, will increase the competition between du and etisalat. However the facility will only be applicable for those mobile subscribers who have been with the service providers (du or etisalat) for a year.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Hassan Omran, chairman of etisalat, told Gulf News in an exclusive interview that the number of the company's subscribers has crossed the 85 million mark and that the company looks forward to having 100 million in the near future.

Etisalat's contributions to the government budget since its inception sum up to Dh52 billion, with its share last year being Dh9.6 billion, Omran says.

Emiratisation

About 95 per cent of senior positions within the organisation have been filled in line with the emiratisation goals and the company is striving to raise the emiratisation level in technical posts to 60 per cent over the coming years.

Etisalat has a strong presence in the Middle East's largest three economies, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE. In Saudi Arabia, etisalat spent $3.5 billion (Dh12.8 billion) to set up the ‘Mobili' network, and today, it is the kingdom's second biggest operator with about 15 million subscribers.

http://gulfnews.com/business/telecoms/subscribers-will-be-able-to-switch-telecom-providers-1.514301