Muscat – More than 3.29mn people in Oman are active on social media, representing about 61% of the population, according to figures released at the opening of the Forum on e-Applications and Legal Challenges on Tuesday.

The three-day event, organised by Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre, is addressing data protection, digital contract legislation and the legal liability of artificial intelligence (AI) decisions.

The forum was inaugurated by H E Dr Ali bin Amer al Shidhani, Undersecretary for Communications and Information Technology in Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology. It drew wide participation from government, judicial and academic bodies, alongside international experts and technology companies.

Tahir bin Awadh al Ibrahim, Executive Director of Legal Affairs Unit at TRA, informed that Oman has more than 5.4mn mobile broadband subscriptions, nearly 588,000 fixed-Internet connections and about 1.55mn Internet of Things (IoT) subscriptions, reflecting the country’s growing adoption of smart services and digital platforms. Average download speeds now stand at 92Mbps for mobile and 78Mbps for fixed networks.

Social media usage continues to expand, he added. Facebook has about 4.17mn users in Oman (71.4% of the population), Instagram 2.81mn (48.1%), Messenger more than 1.88mn (32.3%) and LinkedIn about 1.11mn (19%).

Ibrahim said the forum’s discussions aim to build dialogue between legal experts, developers, academics and policymakers. “Telecommunications regulation is not limited to a regulatory role alone; it also aims to enable innovation and protect users simultaneously.” 

He added that the growth in digital applications places increased responsibility on regulators to balance user protection with support for innovation. TRA is working on flexible regulatory tools and compliance models to help Omani startups and developers grow while safeguarding market integrity.

The forum is expected to produce recommendations to strengthen legislation and regulatory frameworks, supporting a secure and innovation-driven digital environment aligned with Oman Vision 2040.

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