Mobily said its network at holy sites had registered a 56 percent increase in the number of the international inbound roamers beating last year’s record.

According to statistics released by the company, Mobily’s network also recorded a 500 percent growth in the usage of WhatsApp while other social media platforms witnessed a massive increase as twitter recorded 234 percent increase while Skype registered 400 percent increase compared to the same period of 2012 Haj season.

Mobily attributed this massive growth to its steady infrastructure and to the recent network upgrades that were conducted in Makkah region ahead of Haj season as the company announced that it has added many fixed and mobile towers at different sites in Makkah and Mashair.

Mobily’s CEO Khalid bin Omar Al-Kaf said growth in the number of international inbound roamers and the use of the social media platforms and applications came to meet the company expectations thanks to the its steady network and the well-designed packages offered to pilgrims.

“All new towers have been connected to Mobily’s own fiber optic network that covers Kingdomwide; the huge coverage includes Jamarat bridge area and the whole network is connected to seven circuits, two of them serving international,” Al-Kaf added.

As part of its social responsibility, Mobily has enabled free Internet access for all pilgrims through its WiFi network at the holy sites.