Etihad Etisalat (Mobily), Saudi Arabia's leading mobile operator, and Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, have implemented the Middle East's first commercial next generation Service Delivery Platform (SDP) involving landmark advances to nearly every segment of the operator's nationwide mobile network, a company statement said. Amid fierce competition within the Saudi telecom sector, Mobily announced in early 2011 that it would undergo a strategic business transformation that would provide more innovative services to its customers while streamlining overall operations and management processes. The technology behind the resulting SDP platform has been engineered specifically for the operator by Huawei-a leading ICT solutions provider which has successfully deployed SDP solutions across the globe and ranks first in overall market share for SDP delivery. With next generation SDP, Mobily will be able to more rapidly implement new multimedia services collaborating with content publishers, service providers and all other players on the value chain. The platform also allows Mobily to do things like setting up their own app store, integrating with OTT content providers, and developing cloud-oriented services-all part of opening the door to more diverse revenue streams and a healthy business ecosystem. "We are very proud of this cooperation between Mobily and Huawei, the Middle East's first commercial next generation Service Delivery Platform (SDP) is part of Mobily's initiative to enrich the telecom sector and customers," Mobily's CEO Khalid Al Kaf said. Mobily has partnered with Huawei on numerous occasions leading up to the SDP launch, including the initiation of Mobily 4G LTE services in September 2011 which will eventually cover more than 30 cities and towns representing 85 percent of the populated areas in the Kingdom.
