Etisalat to offer internet-based phone calls in Q2 2012 (UAE)

Leading telecom operator in UAE, Etisalat, has said that it will offer internet-based phone calls by the end of the second quarter, as told to Reuters. As per the report, the move comes in an attempt to fight off competition from Skype and other international providers.

The report reveals that in UAE, only Etisalat and rival du are licenced for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services – free Internet-to-Internet calls and cheap Internet-to-phone calls – and both have yet to do so as they try to maximise earnings from conventional calls.

Even though Skype has been officially banned in the region, the larger population still continues to access it thereby cutting into the margins of the mobile operators. Essa Haddad, Etisalat’s chief commercial officer, told Reuters that they are talking about quarter two, 2012. Haddad declined to indicate how much cheaper Etisalat’s VoIP calls would be compared with its usual international tariffs.

He added that any price change has to be (approved) by the regulator and that’s why it’s taking time because they need to get this finalised. Previously, the telecoms regulator has indicated it would not allow significantly cheaper VoIP tariffs, but analysts warn that will do little to persuade UAE residents to switch from the likes of Skype, which can still often be accessed locally despite the ban.

Faced with this challenge, Etisalat has bet its ePlus platform will improve customer loyalty and stem the flow of subscribers to du, which has built up an estimated 46 per cent share of mobile subscribers since launching services in 2007. Etisalat, which operates in 17 markets, has reported declining earnings in seven of the past eight quarters, with the rise of du and VoIP key factors in this slump.