MUSCAT -- Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel)Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel) yesterday unveiled a suite of broadband Internet packages, offering the Gulf region's fastest service for home and business users, ranging up to a maximum speed of 8 Mpbs and 16 Mpbs respectively. In all, 13 ADSL packages, targeted at all segments of society, including special offers for schools and charities, were introduced at a press conference addressed by Dr Mohammed bin Ali al Wohaibi, Chief Executive Officer of OmantelOmantel, at Grand Hyatt Hotel. "This is the first time Internet users in the Sultanate are being offered such high speed ADSL services at equally competitive rates. The new services place OmantelOmantel in the lead position among Internet service providers (ISP) in the Gulf region," Dr Al Wohaibi said.

Notably, the existing ADSL service for home users, costing RO 12 a month, which runs at a speed of 384 Kpbs will be upgraded to 512 Kpbs, without any additional charges, while the other four packages have speed ranging from 1 Mpbs, 2 Mpbs, 4 Mpbs and 8 Mpbs, priced at RO 19, RO 29, RO 39 and RO 99 respectively a month. The services have various free add-ons, including free traffic ranging from 2 Gb to unlimited traffic, anti-virus/spam and free e-mail facility ranging from 1 to 7 accounts. "OmantelOmantel is launching a very advanced level of Internet service, which can offer up to 24 Mpbs speed. The roll-out of the new service has cost RO 10 million in investment," Dr Al Wohaibi said.

The nation-wide broad band network expansion will provide 180,000 ADSL lines, he added. The investment in ADSL services is a wise decision as it will provide huge capacity as well as superb speed, the OmantelOmantel CEO said. The French telecom company Orange served as consultant for the new ADSL service roll-out and they are fully involved in its implementation, Dr Al Wohaibi pointed out. "OmantelOmantel is expecting a significant growth in ADSL subscription, projecting 75,000 new connections this year compared to the existing 29,000 subscribers," Dr Al Wohaibi said. "We are encouraging dial-up customers to upgrade their connections to ADSL services," he said.

Presently, there are 53,000 dial-up customers and 24,000 pre-paid Internet customers in the Sultanate, he added. OmantelOmantel has put in place a next generation ADSL network using IP-based technologies for voice, video and data transmission. Wireless Internet services are ideal for personal use for people on the move whereas ADSL facilitates heavy use at home and offices. OmantelOmantel is considering introducing Wi-Max for wireless Internet services and discussions are under way with the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority in this regard, Dr Al Wohaibi said.

The new ADSL service complements the Sultanate's efforts to disseminate digital culture all over the country, he added. Present at the media briefing were Saleh bin Abdullah al Farsi, Division Head of Marketing and Customer Service, Muhanned Dawood al Asfoor, Acting Director of Marketing, and Sameer al Siyabi, Acting Division Head of Network Development and Projects.

Future policy
The new ADSL strategy is part of OmantelOmantel's future policies towards Internet service in the Sultanate. It also strengthens OmantelOmantel's position as a leading company in the region and as a prominent Internet service provider, Dr Al Wohaibi said. The new strategy emphasises the company's keenness to be part of the efforts to spread a digital culture in the Sultanate and push forward the digital society and e-government project, which has received great attention from the government and citizens, Dr Al Wohaibi said. In order to keep pace with the emerging knowledge economy, OmantelOmantel felt the need to develop an Internet strategy & expand the Internet users' base, Dr Al Wohaibi said.

OmantelOmantel now offers high Internet speeds and prices reckoned the best in the Gulf region. The ADSL strategy developed in league with the French Orange Business Service Company confirms OmantelOmantel's vision and ability to cope with regional competition in Internet services in particular and in telecommunications services in general, Dr Al Wohaibi said. The hi-speed ADSL service will enable individuals, businesses, commercial and educational institutions to select packages that suit their requirements, he added. Saleh bin Abdullah al Farsi, Division Head of Marketing and Customer Service at OmantelOmantel, said: "As part of the new strategy, OmantelOmantel is offering 13 ADSL packages -- five for home or individual users, five for businesses (companies and enterprises) and three for educational and social sectors. Each package includes a range of diverse categories that suit the use of each subscriber."

He added that these new packages will make an enjoyable and valuable experience. The Internet sector achieved a 12 per cent growth last year, he said, adding that this was a clear indication of the demand for this service. The number of Internet subscribers in the Sultanate rose to 107,000 up to March 2008, he said, adding that ADSL accounted for 22 per cent of the total subscribers. The new Internet packages were introduced after conducting a comprehensive study of customer requirements, Al Farsi said. The research also focused on tariff, which ensured that the OmantelOmantel tariff is the cheapest in the region, he added. OmantelOmantel, therefore, guarantees high quality service and added value to users at the most competitive rates, Al Farsi said.

Rise in demand
The expansion of Internet services in the Sultanate contributed to the growth of the number of users, Al Farsi said. Therefore, demand for the service went up dramatically in view of electronic services provided to public and private institutions in the Sultanate, he said, adding that Internet usage goes beyond entertainment to cover educational, business and medical activity. The government efforts to bridge the digital gap and support the Omani society in turning digital and to knowledge economy made it incumbent upon the company to provide an able and unique communications infrastructure, and draw up a new strategy to keep pace with the present stage and create a strong base for the future, Al Farsi said.

The new strategy would give a strong push to Internet use and contribute to the enhancement of information network. It would also play an important role in the spread of Internet culture in schools, Al Farsi said. OmantelOmantel is also working closely with the government to turn digital in the clearance of transactions among government bodies and the private sector. This would result in a transformation in dealings between various segments of society and enhance the knowledge economy and place the Sultanate among countries which attract foreign investment, Al Farsi said.

Home packages
Muhanned Dawood al Asfoor, Acting Director of Marketing and Services Development, explained that the first home use package provides ADSL Internet surfing at speeds reaching 512 kpbs and a range of other value added services, 1 free e-mail and free anti-virus and spam security solutions, in addition to one baisa per one MB of downloads as per the previous pricing. The package is priced RO 12 a month. The present subscribers will be upgraded to this package free of charge. The second home package offers a speed of 1 Mpbs, and 2 Gbs of free traffic, a set of value added services, two e-mail accounts and free anti-virus and anti-spam protection, priced at RO 19.

The third home package offers a speed of 2 Mpbs, and 5 Gbs of free downloads, a set of value added services, three e-mail accounts and free anti-virus and anti-spam protection at a monthly tariff of RO 29. The fourth home use package offers speeds up to 4 Mpbs, and 10 Gbs of free downloads, a set of value added services, five e-mail accounts and free anti-virus and anti-spam protection at a monthly tariff of RO 39. The fifth package offers speeds up to 8 Mpbs, unlimited free downloads, a range of value added services, seven free e-mail accounts free anti-virus and anti-spam protection at a monthly tariff of RO 99. OmantelOmantel took into account global trends when designing these packages with the objective of satisfying the needs of this segment, Al Asfoor said.

Business packages
Al Asfoor said the new business packages were developed keeping in mind the requirements for different uses at competitive prices. The first business package offers speeds up to 1 Mpb, free 5 Gb downloads, a range of value added services, three free e-mail accounts and free anti-virus and anti- spam solution at a monthly tariff of RO 49, besides a charge of 1 baisa per extra Mb of traffic as per the existing practice. The second business package offers surfing speeds up to 2 Mpbs, 10 Gb of free traffic, a range of value added services, five free e-mail accounts, and free anti-virus and anti-spam solutions at a monthly tariff of RO 95.

The third business package offers surfing speeds up to 4 Mpbs, 15 Gb of free traffic, a range of value added services, eight free e-mail accounts, and free anti-virus and anti-spam solutions at a monthly tariff of RO 135. The fourth business package offers surfing speeds up to 8 Mpbs, 20 Gb of free traffic, a range of value added services, 10 free e-mail accounts, and free anti-virus and anti-spam solutions at a monthly tariff of RO 195. The fifth package provides the fastest surfing speed of 16 Mpbs in the Gulf region, unlimited free traffic besides a range of value added services, 15 free e-mail accounts, and free anti-virus and anti-spam solutions at a monthly tariff of RO 355.

"We hope these new packages would evoke strong demand in view of the high speed and competitive tariff. Government institutions and Internet cafes will achieve the maximum benefit compared with the previous packages," Al Asfoor said. The new strategy stresses OmantelOmantel's keenness to interact with the business community upon which it pins high hopes to push forward Internet services in the Sultanate, especially in the tourism and industrial sectors, Al Asfoor said.

Educational and social packages
OmantelOmantel accords great attention to the educational and social sectors as reflected from the new packages designed for them, Al Asfoor said.

Educational institutions constitute the future of the country, he said, adding that OmantelOmantel, while designing these packages, gave more consideration to the service than profit. The first package for schools and charity organisations offers speeds up to 1Mpbs with no traffic charges. It also offers one free e-mail account, and free anti-virus and anti-spam solutions at a monthly tariff of RO 20.

The second package offers surfing speeds up to 2 Mpbs with no traffic charges, free anti-virus and anti-spam solutions and 1 free e-mail account at a monthly tariff of RO 40. The third package offers speeds up to 4 Mpbs, with no traffic charges, free anti-virus anti-spam protection and one e-mail at RO 60 a month. Through these packages, OmantelOmantel aims to enhance the role of schools and charities towards the betterment of society, Al Asfoor said.

© Oman Daily Observer 2008

 

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