All callers to mobile phone numbers of Etisalat will be required to dial the prefix (050) followed by the mobile phone number of the contact person from December 15, it was stated yesterday.
The move comes ahead of the entry into the market by Etisalat's new competitor, du.
The statement was made by the UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA).
It said no mobile phone calls will be made successfully without dialling the prefix number followed by the mobile telephone number, whether the call is made to a call recipient on the same mobile network or to a call recipient on another mobile network from December 15.
As a result of this new dialling requirement, the TRA has urged people to begin adding the required prefix to all the mobile phone numbers listed in their directories or stored on their mobile phones.
For example, to call the mobile phone number (65xxxxx) you must dial (050 65xxxxx) or the call will not successfully connect.
"That is a big hassle. I do not know if there is some kind of technology that will help me add the prefix to all my numbers without having to do that number by number," said Ayman Abu Hussain, a resi dent of Abu Dhabi. "I have never thought I would have to do that," he added.
Husam Sami, an Ajman resident, said he does not mind the trouble of adding the prefix to all his mobile phone numbers. "I do not mind that.
"At least I have a feeling that in the near future we will have relatively cheaper phone call rates with the entry of a new competitor to the UAE market," he said.
Meanwhile, in a rare move, the TRA recently asked Etisalat to withdraw the promotional offers that it had announced for the benefit of its customers in the country on the occasion of its 30th anniversary celebrations.
The implementation of the discount schemes offered to Al Wasel and GSM subscribers hit snags as Etisalat faced allegations of breach of rules, wherein it had made promotion offers to customers without the permission of the TRA, according to knowledgeable officials.
By Emirates Today Staff
© Emirates Today 2006
