Emirates Telecommunications Corporation

The Emirates Telecommunications Corporation (Etisalat) operates and manages GSM mobile and fixed telecommunication networks and provides Internet services directly and through its subsidiaries in the UAE and 18 countries across Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

Etisalat’s subsidiaries also provide telecommunication and IT training and consulting services, cleaning and maintenance services, digital cable TV, pay-per-view, free to air channels and multimedia services, telecommunications infrastructure development, water transportation and storage of submarine cables, business consulting and directory services, software solutions; and retail in computers, computer peripherals, telecommunication equipment and electronics.

Established in 1976 as the first mobile and fixed-line operator in the UAE, Etisalat’s 30-year monopoly was broken in 2005, when the Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (du)Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (du) won the license to become the second fixed-line and mobile operator in the country.

Etisalat increased its total group subscribers by 26% to 135 million, in 2010. However, in the UAE, the company’s mobile subscribers decreased by 0.25% annually, to 7.7 million; its fixed line subscribers dropped by 5.27% to 1.2 million and Internet subscribers decreased by 0.83% to 1.3 million.

The company’s 2010 profits decreased by 13.64% to AED7.63 billion (USD2 billion), while its revenues increased by 3.56% to AED32 billion (USD8.7 billion).