Paying all bills by 'mobile cash' also to soon become reality
Voice over internet protocols (VOIP) like Skype could be allowed soon.
"It is purely a licensing matter. I hope they come to TRA for licence," Mohamed Al Ghanim, Director General of Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA) said during a rare, hour-long online chat with tweeters in the UAE.
It also won't be long before Near-Field Communication (NFC) will be available in the UAE.
"Near Field Communication will soon be available, operators will work with banks to ensure NFC transactions," tweeted Mohamed Al Ghanim to a query put forth by Prashanth Kumar.
Last month, Emirates NBD (ENBD) teamed up with Etisalat and Visa for the FNC service, which when launched will allow customers to pay their shopping bills using their smartphones.
This move, many financial experts reckon, could make credit cards and cash passé, allowing customers the ease of paying their bills without having to queue up at checkout counters.
This futuristic concept, which allows secure wireless communication between any two devices that are shortly distanced, is still being tested by the key providers, but no official date has been earmarked.
Earlier this month, Etisalat also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Emirates Identity Authority (EIDA) about ways to use the NFC technology to enable Emirates ID card data transfer.
Hosted under their official handle @theUAETRA, residents quizzed the TRA chief about a host of issues, which was then relayed at the Government Communication Network meet, enabling directors of communication departments in the federal government to witness the use of twitter as an eParticipation tool.
Among the topics highlighted, mobile number portability appeared a hot favourite, with TRA clarifying that no date for the commercial launch has been decided on. "(It) is now under trial between the operators and TRA staff. (And) once (the) tests are over, we will announce it," he tweeted.
The official also categorically said "there was no plan to add mobile operators in the UAE market, regardless of their status (MVNO or facility based)".
© Emirates 24|7 2012
