JEDDAH: Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) won the SAMENA Telecommunications Council's Best Operator prize for South Asia, Middle East and North Africa (SAMENA) for 2010. The prize was announced at a ceremony during the 3rd GSM Conference in Casa Blanca, Morocco. Mobily was named the winner thanks to its giant projects and initiatives over the last five years, and the impact it made on the region's telecom sector in the region. The company's phenomenal growth during a relatively short period of time, fueled by its huge infrastructure projects and quality coverage of a vast country like Saudi Arabia, gave it an edge. “Being honored by such a distinctive body is an asset for Mobily,” said Dr. Akil Al Akil, Mobily's VP for Regulatory Affairs, who received the prize on behalf of Mobily. “The company is still making headway thanks to a solid strategy that aims at continued growth, efficiency and differentiation. We at Mobily are always proud to be first. We beat others in many services and technologies, thanks to great minds at the helm and dedicated staff.” Bocar BA, the president of the SAMENA Telecommunications Council, praised Mobily for its significant impact on the Saudi telecom market. “Mobily plays a great part in offering solutions and exchanging knowledge in the telecom industry,” said BA. “The company offers the best solutions and the most innovative technologies, and thus deserves praise for its efforts.” The SAMENA Telecommunications Council has more than 80 member telecom companies in the region. Its annual conference is the region's most significant telecom event. Because of the prizes it gives to companies, it serves as a barometer of who's who in the region's telecom industry. Mobily was instrumental in multiplying the Kingdom's internet user base thanks to its modern solutions, making Mobily the Kingdom's leader in data solutions - so much so that the Saudi government chose Mobily to run and maintain its e-government project. Earlier this year, Mobily had won the ITP award in Riyadh as the best telecom operator. Meanwhile, Mobily has announced the completion of its network upgrades for the Haj readiness testing on its network in Makkah and the holy sites. This season, Mobily expanded it's the capacity of its network by adding another 100 fixed and mobile towers, all dialed in to its fiber-optic network to meet the expected increase in demand from pilgrims, Khalid Al Kaf, Mobily's managing director and chief executive officer, said. Mobily's CEO said the company now has a capacity of four million concurrent calls on its network backed by two international switching centers.
