The latest Iraq Telecommunications News – mobile phones, Iraqi Communications and more – brought to you by Iraq Business News
Kuwait’s Zain is considering several tender offers to manage its telecoms network in Iraq and will likely award the contract in the next few weeks, a company spokesman has said. According to Reuters, Zain refused to name bidders for the managed service agreement, but said there were at least three, with international players such as […]
Telecommunications should be one of the hottest growth industries in Iraq, but according to a report from Reuters, providers have yet to introduce 3G technology into a market where the military jams mobile phone networks to stop insurgents detonating bombs. Poor infrastructure, high operating costs, conflicts between communications regulators and security problems are stunting development […]
Asiacell has stated that its revenues increased 17% year-on-year to US$377.29 million in Q1, according to a report from Wireless Federation. EBITDA rose 14% to US$213.63 million, with EBITDA margin falling 1% to 57%. Revenue and EBITDA growth was driven by increased customer base and increased usage. At the end of Q1, Asiacell had 8.306 […]
Zain Iraq is unifying its subscriber data, currently distributed across the network, into a single database using the Nokia Siemens Networks’ One-NDS platform. One-NDS enables real-time data access across multiple applications. It addresses Zain’s need for a resilient and high capacity subscriber data repository to meet its growth targets by introducing flexibility not found in […]
According to a report from Reuters, Iraqi telecom operator Kalimat plans to invest $250 million in 2011, and to launch an initial public offering (IPO) next year. The company's chief executive, Wilson Varghese, said the planned IPO should help the company to expand as it eyes a nationwide rollout of services by the end of […]
Dr. Abdulmalek Al-Jaber, CEO of Zain Jordan, part of Kuwait's Zain Group, has announced the full hook-up of its network to neighbouring Iraq via an optical fibre cable, Kuna has reported. The Jordanian network has been linked to the Iraqi network using an optical fiber cable that continues to Baghdad, he said. "The hook-up enables […]
The Iraqi unit of Kuwait telecoms firm Zain is planning to spend $100m this year as part of its plan to expand throughout the entire Kurdish region over the next five months, its chief executive said yesterday. Emad Makiya, CEO of Zain Iraq, the country’s biggest mobile phone operator, said the firm planned to extend […]
UAE telecom Etisalat has not ruled out expansion into Iraq after dropping its $12bn bid for a chunk of Kuwait’s Zain that would have given it access to the market, a senior executive said, according to a report from Arabian Business. “We are looking at all opportunities,” said Ahmed Bin Ali, group senior vice president […]
Iraq's communications minister said he expected the country's planned fourth mobile phone licence to fetch between $1 billion to $2 billion [2.4 trillion Iraqi dinars] in an auction expected by the end of this year. According to Reuters, Mohammed Allawi said the expected cost for the licence, including installations and infrastructure costs, could be in […]
France Telecom-Orange and its partner Agility, a leading logistics company, have announced a binding agreement on Monday with the shareholders of Korek Telecom to acquire a 44% stake in the Iraqi mobile operator. France Telecom-Orange will contribute its marketing, commercial and technical expertise to reinforce Korek Telecom's leading position in the Kurdistan region of Iraq […]
Reuters reports that Iraq has fined Kuwait-based telecoms provider Zain $262 million for putting 5 million Sim cards in the local market without permission, contravening its licence. The company has three months to pay. Zain's Iraq unit will appeal the fine, its chief executive, Emad Makiya, said. "They have no right to issue such a […]
The Iraqi Communications Ministry has signed a preliminary agreement with the Saudi company STC to link Iraq to Turkey and Saudi Arabia by an optical cable system. Official ministry spokesman Samir Ali Hassoun told AKnews that this initial agreement determines the financial aspects of the deal. The Ministry of Communications has been working for a […]
