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4G services launched

Mon, 16 July 2012

By A Staff Reporter — MUSCAT — Oman has become the third country in the region to introduce the 4G LTE Mobile Broadband Network as Omantel launched the first such value-packed generation next network. The launch of Sultanate’s first 4G LTE network comes after a series of trials which successfully delivered speeds of up to 100 Mbps. The launch follows the awarding of Omantel’s 4G LTE network contracts to Huawei and Ericsson end of last May.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are the two other countries that have already introduced 4G in their preferred networks. “We are proud to announce the launch of first commercial 4G LTE network in the Sultanate centred on providing our customers with unprecedented speeds which will revolutionise the way we use the Internet,” Dr Amer Awadh al Rawas, CEO of Omantel, said during the launch.

“This is another historical moment for the telecom sector as a whole as we continue to enrich our customers and offer them the most innovative products and services. Our state-of-the-art network will enable us to provide unmatched mobile broadband speeds,” Al Rawas further noted. “Omantel has been heavily investing to extend broadband coverage and increase speeds to ensure that our customers are provided with the best overall customers’ experience. As of today, we have successfully completed the build-out of more than 50 sites across the Sultanate.

At launch, the 4G LTE network will be available to tens of thousands of people in different areas. Among these areas are Sultan Qaboos University Campus, Mawaleh, Al Khoud, Al Khuwair and Ruwi, in Muscat Governorate as well as Buraimi and Khasab. We are committed to extend coverage to the majority of Muscat and the main cities nationwide in the next period,” Al Rawas added. “We have selected these initial areas in particular as these locations have many users and high traffic in 3.5G. With the expected uptake of 4G LTE we foresee a more balanced load which will result in improved speeds for both 3.5G and 4G networks” Dr Al Rawas said.

4G services launched
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Dr Amer Al Rawas concluded his statement by thanking Ministry of Transport and Communications and TRA for providing spectrum and to support the launch. He also thanked the project management team from Omantel’s partners, Huawei and Ericsson, for their efforts to enable us to become the first provider of 4G LTE in the Sultanate.

Explaining on how to subscribe to the service, Haitham Abdullah al Kharusi, Vice President of Omantel’s Consumer Business Unit, said “The 4G LTE will be available for data usage at this point in time and as the technology develops, we will see more devices and handsets that supports 3.5G and 4G LTE and eventually data and voice. These will be introduced as soon as they become commercially available.

Now 4G LTE can be used through special dongles that are provided at introductory competitive price from Omantel at only RO 30 including a sim card configured for 4G LTE which will include 1 GB of data. The 4G LTE starter-pack will be available at Omantel outlets in Sultan Qaboos University Campus, Omantel HQ and Muscat City Centre outlets in Al Mawalih, Al Khaudh, Muscat Grand Mall and Zakher Mall in Al Khuwair, Ruwi main outlet, Al Buraimi and Khasab outlets.

Omantel is offering 4G LTE with a promotional offer at the same rates of the 3.5G Mobile Broadband packages. Prepaid customers can opt for a daily package for RO 1, weekly for RO 3 or monthly starting from RO 5 onwards. While postpaid Mada customers can subscribe to the monthly packages that start from as low as RO 5 for one month making them the most competitive 4G LTE offering in the whole region.

Omantel is the pioneer provider of integrated telecommunications services in the Sultanate of Oman connecting individuals and corporate subscribers in different regions through a modern fixed, mobile and Internet network. By offering innovative products and unmatched after-sales service, Omantel owns the biggest subscribers base of more than 2.7 million. We have also been the fastest growing mobile operator in the Sultanate in the past several years and our current mobile network market share is 60 per cent.