Wataniya in business with Palestinian Authority, not Israel

Yesterday Fuad Al-Ablani, Wataniya Telecom's Deputy General Manager, denied reports claiming Wataniya won Israeli frequencies to operate in the Palestinian territories. He said of the erroneous reports of Israeli-Wataniya business dealings, "That is totally categorically not true. I repeat, what has been reported in the local newspapers is 100 percent not true." Al-Ablani emphatically stated, "All of our dealings are with the Palestinian Authority, not Israel.

Speaking to reporters at Kuwait's International Fair Grounds, Al-Ablani said, "The license that Wataniya has won is fair and international. It was licensed to operate a mobile operation within the territories that are governed by the Palestinian Authority. This is very clear in the conditions of the license." He further stressed the fact that, "The media was well aware of it.

Al-Ablani noted that Wataniya, as a Kuwaiti company, is "very interested in upgrading the infrastructure within the Palestinian Authorities." He further stressed that, "It is part of our role as an Arab country. Kuwait is one of the most stringent countries with regards to boycotting Israel.

Wataniya Telecom, which was the first privately owned telecom in Kuwait, was founded in 1999. Last March, Kuwait Projects Company Holding Company KSC (KIPCO) sold 51 percent of Wataniya to Qatar Telecom. Qtel is the only telecom provider in Qatar and is expanding in the Middle East and North African region, currently operating in 10 countries. Wataniya Telecom currently operates in Algeria, Iraq, Kuwait, the Maldives, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia and is committed to its expansion in the MENA region
.

Yesterday, Wataniya launched its newest service, the WCam at Kuwait's International Fair Grounds in Mishref. The WCam is a unique camera device which enables customers to call from their 3G mobile phones from anywhere within the Wataniya 3G coverage area and be connected to their WCam which must be set up within the Wataniya 3G coverage area.

The connection is a live audio and video feed via the WCam. Whether checking in on the children at home or on a live video conference with a branch office, the WCam fully connects people. General Manager cum Chief Executive Officer of Wataniya Telecom Scott Gelgeinheimer said of the WCam, "We are proud to be the first operator in Kuwait to launch this kind of service." He noted, "It is a great solution that caters to the needs of customers with a busy lifestyle who need to keep an eye on things that matter
to them the most.

Convenience and privacy are key to the WCam's appeal, "We look at helping our customers to have a convenient life, therefore we've developed the WCam as being a typical solution to achieve this goal," said Gelgeinheimer. "The camera is very secure and is only accessible by pin code," said Wataniya Public Relations Manager Abdulaziz Al-Ballool . There is an option allowing the user to approve a wide list of people who are allowed access to the WCam.

Al-Ballool noted that multiple people may use the pin code making it a family friendly device. Addressing the possibility of the camera being hidden, Al Ballool said, "It is very visible (about the size of a baseball)." making it difficult to hide. Features of the device include a zoom in and zoom out capability, volume control, a recording option, and night vision access. The unit price, including service for one year is KD 99 at 75 fils per minute with a second year of service for KD 27 per month.

Al-Ablani said of the fiber optic cables recently damaged in the Mediterranean Sea causing days of glitches in Internet services to Kuwait and much of the Gulf, North Africa, and parts of Asia, "Most companies which provide Internet services through the cable have been affected and we are not isolated.

Source: kuwaittimes.net