Abu Dhabi, 28 May, 2008: Etisalat, in cooperation with Huawei, is hosting a high-profile gathering of international telecom operators in Abu Dhabi this week. The two-day 'FTTx Solution Seminar' is being held on the 28th and the 29th of May in Abu Dhabi Intercontinental Hotel. This significant event will bring together more than 80 fiber access experts of international telecom operators from Europe and South Africa, to highlight their latest FTT services.

Nasser Bin Obood, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer of Etisalat said:"GPON is now the most advanced optical access technology in the world. Etisalat has decided to select GPON as its FTTH construction mode and is working closely with Huawei to bring to reality a next generation, All-IP future."

According to industry experts, the FTTH Technology enables better service delivery in key areas such as High Speed Internet Service (HSI), bringing customers speeds of up to 60Mbps, Telephony, IPTV (Advanced digital TV) also including High-definition television (HDTV)  and other high-bandwidth online experiences such as large file remote sharing, 3D gaming and Video On Demand (VOD). As with all other services provided by Etisalat, it is ultimately the customer's experience that defines the success of a platform or a service, and FTTH is fully equipped to handle customer requirements such as high bandwidth, flexibility, responsiveness, and reliability.

Mr. Nasser continued: "Our target for Etisalat is to have FTTH infrastructure deployed to 20% of houses in the UAE by the end of 2008. We will be able to offer very high bandwidth, up to 100 megabits per second, which can be used for video, Internet, and voice. "

Thanks to Etisalat's continuous efforts to introduce cutting edge technologies, Al Raha Gardens in Abu Dhabi is now one of the first areas in the Middle East to connect to a FTTH network.

Etisalat has established a reputation as an operator that is continuously identifying new ways for its customer to reach out and experience the best services and technologies that the world has to offer. Etisalat has expanded internationally across Asia, Africa and the Middle East and owns stakes in operators in 16 countries. This has helped increase Etisalat's subscriber base exceed 63m out of a total population of 668m people.

For further information please visit www.etisalat.ae

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Notes to Editors
The FTTH technology fiber with a optical beam (instead of the current cooper network)  represents a boost in both total bandwidth as well as bandwidth efficiency. The FTTH Encapsulation Method allows very efficient packaging of all user traffic (voice, internet and video), with frame segmentation to allow for higher quality of service for delay-sensitive traffic such as voice and video communications, all in one link.

Press release issued by Corporate Communications Department - Etisalat

For further media information, please contact:
Saeed Salem Mohamed Al Badi, Senior Manager Media Relations
Tel: 02 6182173
Fax: 02 6334448
PRD@etisalat.ae

© Press Release 2008