Etisalat Breaks Competition Rule
Reuters
DUBAI, 2 October 2006 — Emirates Telecommunications Corp. could face penalties for trying to lock in customers before a competitor begins operations, the United Arab Emirates telecom regulator said. Emirates Telecommunications, or Etisalat, the second-largest operator in the Gulf Arab region by market value, lost a virtual UAE monopoly this year when the country issued a mobile and fixed-line license to du telecom. Du is expected to launch a mobile network by the end of the year. Etisalat tried through a new promotion to lock in customers before du entered the market, the telecom authority said in a statement received by Reuters yesterday.
ALAFCO to Buy 10 New Aircraft
Reuters
KUWAIT — Kuwait’s Aviation Lease and Finance Company (ALAFCO) plans to buy 10 Airbus and Boeing aircraft next fiscal year for up to $500 million, its chief executive said on Saturday. Ahmad Al-Zabin told Reuters that ALAFCO, which makes its Kuwaiti bourse debut Monday and whose major shareholder is leading Islamic bank Kuwait Finance House (KFH), is eyeing record profits and revenues for the financial year that ends on Saturday. For the new fiscal year starting Oct. 1, ALAFCO is planning to push on with an aggressive growth strategy after buying nine Airbus and Boeing planes this fiscal year for about 126 million Kuwaiti dinars ($435.8 million).
AIG to Offer
Islamic Insurance
Mazen Mahdi, Arab News
MANAMA — US insurance giant American International Group (AIG) announced yesterday the launch of the AIG Takaful, a regional company headquartered in Bahrain, providing Shariah compliant insurance solutions (Takaful). The launch comes two weeks after AIG revealed the setup of the venture AIG Middle East, Mediterranean and South Asia regions (MEMSA), headquartered in Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC). The venture is part of an effort by the insurance giant to increase its share of the region’s growing insurance market, which is growing at an average of 20 percent each year.
CITC to Publish Regulator Framework
Arab News
RIYADH — The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) will publish the “Regulatory framework” and the “Request for application” documents for licensing of public fixed services by no later than Oct. 15. The documents will be available to all interested parties on the CITC website: www.citc.gov.sa. About the publication of the request for application documents for licensing of public mobile services, a CITC press release said that it was in discussion with the concerned government bodies to address spectrum availability. “An update will be announced at the earliest possible date,” said the announcement released by CITC spokesperson Sultan Al-Malik.