Zain creates single Middle East network

by This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it on Tuesday, 15 April 2008

Kuwaiti telecom Zain has introduced a new service which will enable 14 million mobile customers to call and text at local rates across four Middle Eastern countries, it announced on Monday.

The ‘One Network’ allows customers in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan and Sudan to make calls and SMS at local rates, and receive calls free of charge while continuing to use their home network service, the company said in a statement.

Zain’s Saudi Arabia operation is set join the network on commencement of commercial services in the coming months, while other regions are awaiting governmental and regulatory approvals, the statement said.

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The service, which is automatically activated when customers cross borders, includes free calls to a customer care service via home network short codes. Top-up cards will be available at more than 200,000 points of sale across the region.

The operator has already launched a similar service across 12 African countries through its subsidiary Celtel.