Economy

Third telecom operator will be announced in early 2019

The licence for the third mobile communications operator (from the local partners) is in the final stage and the announcement will be made early in 2019, Eng Yousef bin Abdullah Al Balushi, deputy CEO for Spectrum Management Affairs at the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA), said.

The announcement was made during the draw, which was organised by TRA for the frequency domain 3400-3700 megahertz. The frequency will be distributed among mobile operators in the Sultanate to be used in operating 5G, 100 megahertz for each company.

As per the outcome of the draw, Omantel was allocated the frequency from 3400 to 3500, Ooredoo from 3500 to 3600 and the third operator from 3600 to 3700, as per TRA rules and regulations.

He pointed out in a statement to Oman News Agency (ONA) that all the domains and frequencies for the third operator will be ready and granted the same way with Omantel and Ooredoo. The aim of this process is to create a competitive atmosphere to provide better services at reasonable rates for all parties.

He added that TRA will allocate the frequency domain 3400-3700 megahertz after coordination with the Ministry of Finance. He pointed out that TRA closely monitors the nominated frequency domains for international mobile communication services as per the items of the international radio communication conference. TRA supports adding a definition for international mobile communication services at the frequency domain 24.25 -27.5 gigahertz and the frequency domain 40.5 -43.5 gigahertz.

He said that the 5G will ensure the transfer of data at a super speed and will reduce the response time. It will also provide enough capacity for the huge number of devices connected to the internet. It will also enhance customer experiences and will promote new initiatives such as smart cities and the Internet of things. He affirmed that TRA is deeply interested in the 5G technology and closely follows the studies and experiences in different parts of the world.

“TRA has set up a national team for 5G mobile communication. The team comprises members from the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Ministry of Housing, the Ministry of Regional Municipalities, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs, Muscat Municipality, Dhofar Municipality and Sohar Municipality, in addition to mobile service operators in the Sultanate,” he said.

“The team seeks to develop a road map to introduce 5G services in the Sultanate before 2020, in addition to preparing a comprehensive plan for the systems. The team is making great efforts to enhance joint cooperation among the different stakeholders to ensure the success of the 5G technologies in the Sultanate at the earliest,” he added.