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Movie legend Omar Sharif is the voice of the new advertising campaign for Zain, the new global brand for MTC, the region's leading mobile telecommunications operator.

The 60 second television and radio spot brings to life the Zain brand values of radiance, heart and belonging, inviting viewers to look at the bigger, brighter picture through dazzling imagery.

Building on the Zain brand theme - A Wonderful World - the campaign suggests the richness of life. The night sky is portrayed as ‘my roof', fields of flowers as ‘my perfume' and the ocean as ‘my pool'. The television spot ends with the words, ‘It's not what you look at, it's what you look for.'

Dr Saad Al Barrak, Zain Group's chief executive officer, said: "The campaign captures the spirit of our brand values and invites the audience to look at the world around them with a fresh perspective. We want the brand to ignite and enrich the lives of our customers, driving them towards a brighter future and helping them to realise their aspirations.

"This is a bold move away from conventional product, service and commodity branding to a position where the brand makes a positive impact and real contribution to the lives of our customers."

"The brand theme of ‘A Wonderful World' captures the energy, inspiration and diversity of the Group's customers, employees and other stakeholders. The new logo and its colourful identity reflect Zain's freshness, boldness and vitality.

The ‘swirl' communicates the idea of an aura, something important to human life echoing growth, progression and diversity.

To add depth to the message and the global scope of the brand, Zain asked Omar Sharif to narrate the voiceover. The movie star recorded three voiceovers - in Arabic, English and French - in a studio in Paris.

Produced by Saatchi & Saatchi in Beirut, the TVC was directed by internationally acclaimed German director Matthias Zentner with Torsten Lippstock as director of photography. The film was shot on location in Dubai, South Africa and Milan, with post-production in Munich.

Launched during the Holy month of Ramadan, the campaign is being aired on many regional and local TV and radio networks across the Middle East.

The new global Zain brand for the MTC Group was launched in early September, 2007. The Group currently has operations in 20 countries across the Middle East and Africa and plans to start operations in Saudi Arabia next year under the Zain brand. Four country operations in Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan and Sudan have immediately re-branded to Zain with the remaining operations re-branding in the future.

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About Zain

Effective September 8, 2007, Zain is the new corporate master brand name for the Group (formerly MTC), the leading mobile telecommunications provider in the Middle East and Africa. The company operates under the Zain brand in Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain and Sudan. In Iraq it is currently known as mtc-atheer, in Lebanon as mtc-touch and in 14 sub-Saharan countries in Africa as Celtel: Burkina Faso, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

Zain plans to commence operations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in early 2008 and with the recent award of an extended 15 year nationwide licence in Iraq, mtc atheer will soon rebrand to Zain. All new and acquired operations will be branded Zain in the future.

In January 2007, the Group launched the ACE (Acceleration, Consolidation, Expansion) strategy to realize its 3x3x3 vision of becoming a top-ten global mobile operator by 2011. The Zain brand is wholly owned by Mobile Telecommunications Company KSC and is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (Stock ticker: ZAIN). The company's market capitalisation at 6 September, 2007 exceeded US$ 30 billion.

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