The UAE could admit new operators apart from Etisalat and du in the country’s telecommunications sector, in line with an international agreement, according to Telecom Regulatory Authority. For the time being, there are no plans to grant licences to any new operator and the companies will continue to be the sole service providers in the second largest Arab economy until 2015, as per the Telecom Regulatory Authority.
This situation could change in 2016 as the government has offered an official commitment to the World Trade Organization that Etisalat and du will continue to monopolize the telecom sector until the end of 2015 at the earliest. The agreement, part of an international protocol to liberalize the telecom and other sectors, stipulates that the UAE would consider liberalization of its massive telecom industry by the end of 2015 at the latest.
The Mena Weekly Monitor – Bank Audi
4 July
