WhatsApp’s new calling service which will be activated in the current month in the Kingdom, is expected to lead to a drop in revenues for local telecom companies, as smart phone users will be making free calls using the new application.

However, the Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC) had decided to reduce call rates for mobiles and landlines by 40 percent in anticipation of this change. This move was expected to encourage mobile phone users to talk for longer durations. But this step will also create strong competition between the traditional call system and free calls as part of social networking apps on smart phones.

Around 15 percent of smart phones users in the Kingdom already make free calls using various social networking apps on their smart phones. Moreover, several smart phone users do not care to recharge their mobile credit for this reason when they travel outside the Kingdom, preferring to make free calls through their social apps depending on Wifi hotspots which are available throughout hotels and restaurants abroad.

“The new WhatsApp service will surely encourage smart phone users to change from sending messages to making free calls, as WhatsApp is considered as the most circulated social application among Saudis and expatriates. Indeed, no one uses a smart phone these days without downloading this social application,” Emad Eskandar, social media director at a company for digital services told Arab News.

“There are several social apps on smart phones that provide free calls to their users, but these apps did not have the same success as WhatsApp.