Gulf telecommunications companies are lining up to roll out 4G mobile networks, following the launch of the high-speed services in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
High-speed mobile internet - which allows for the streaming of videos and viewing high-definition YouTube clips on the go - is tipped as a key source of income for telecoms companies, given the declining revenues from voice calls reported by the industry as a whole.
Ringing the changes:Discover what the region's telecoms have planned
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At least four regional operators are considering the launch of the next-generation services, which provide mobile download speeds of more than double the best connection offered by existing 3G networks.
Many more Middle East operators are in talks with infrastructure firms over the launch of "long-term evolution" (LTE) networks, which are sometimes referred to as "4G" for marketing purposes.
Qatar Telecom (Qtel) yesterday said it was investing 200 million Qatari rials (Dh201.7m) to launch a 4G network. Its network of 900 base stations will "deliver the fastest and largest 4G network in Qatar", the firm said. Qtel said it completed a nationwide trial of LTE technology over the summer.
In the UAE, du yesterday confirmed it was also in the race to sell next-generation services. Rival operator Etisalat said last month it had launched the UAE's first 4G broadband network.
"We are planning to introduce our 4G and LTE network hopefully before the end of this year," said Hatem Bamatraf, the senior vice president of network development at du.
Ross Cormack, the chief executive of the Omani telecoms operator Nawras, said the company also intended to test the technology.
"We absolutely have plans with trialling LTE at the end of this year," he said. "We're focused very much on delivering as fast a service as we can."
Scott Gegenheimer, the chief executive of Wataniya Telecom, said the Kuwaiti telecoms company was also considering 4G - but hinted that he saw the technology as more of a marketing tool at the moment.
Mr Gegenheimer acknowledged telecoms companies faced declining average revenue per user (arpu) from calls. "The voice is dropping off," he said. "Maybe my voice arpu has dropped 10 per cent, or 15 per cent, but I'm making it up on the data side."
He said Wataniya made more than 20 per cent of its revenue in Kuwait from data.
Infrastructure providers said there was strong interest in 4G among regional telecoms firms. Ericsson, which has worked on 4G networks in Dubai and Saudi Arabia, has conducted about 10 trials of the new technology in the region.
"We're talking to everyone. When it comes to the mobile broadband development, fortunately all operators are interested to talk to us," said Anders Lindblad, Ericsson's president and chief executive for the Middle East.
"We have quite advanced discussions with most of them, and we have trials with many operators in the Middle East."
Last month three operators in Saudi Arabia - STC, Mobily and Zain Saudi - claimed the crown for launching the region's first high-speed 4G network.
At the moment, consumers in the region can access 4G networks only by using a "dongle", which plugs into the USB port of a computer.
Mr Lindblad said he expected it to be a few years before 4G-enabled smartphones were in widespread use in the Middle East region.
"Today, no country is ready to deliver it on a large scale, because the consumer devices are not really readily available," he said.
"Give it at least two to three years before they start to become available in volume."
