Hessa Al-Jaber

The Supreme Council of Information and Communications Technology (ictQATAR) today announced the issuing of the Telecommunications Executive By-Law No. (1) of 2009, published in the Qatari Official Gazette and effective from 26 July 2009.

The Telecommunications Executive By-Law includes regulatory procedures, rules and instructions that must be followed by telecommunications service providers in Qatar, including licensees such as Qatar Telecom (QTel) QSC and Vodafone Qatar QSC.

Qatar's people, institutions, and government have made steady progress in adopting ICT into daily life, according to Qatar's ICT Landscape 2009, the first country-wide, survey-based ICT study released on May 17th, 2009.

This first report provides a good understanding of where Qatar stands today compared to developing and developed countries in terms of ICT adoption by all sectors of the society, including residents, government, and the business community. It also looks at the education, health, and tourism sectors, as well as the ICT job market.

The Supreme Council of Information and Communication Technology (ictQATAR) hosted the "Advancing Arab Women in Technology: Strategy Made Reality" workshop on April 15 and 16 at the Millennium Hotel in Doha. The workshop brought together more than 40 experts on women in technology from the Arab World and the United States and serves as a continuum to the inaugural event held in November 2008 in Dubai. The primary focus of the workshop is to move forward with plans to create the Center for Women and Technology for the Arab Region (CWTAR), a major resource to support women's involvement in the knowledge society.

The Supreme Council for Information and Communication Technology, ictQATAR, today published revised License terms for the second mobile operator, Vodafone Qatar on April 5th, 2009. Under the terms of its license Vodafone Qatar was required to achieve 98% population coverage and launch full services by 1 March 2009. The revised terms require 98% coverage by 1 September 2009 and the launch of services, including two-way phone mobile and SMS, by 1 July 2009.

ictQATAR made the decision to amend the license due to unforeseen delays experienced by Vodafone Qatar such as acquiring sites for mobile base stations. To date, the company has switched on its network, achieved interconnection with Qtel, and has launched a trial service to establish the effectiveness of its network.

Just a week after tallg posted that Vodafone Qatar was having trouble keeping their masts up, ictQatar has revised the licensing terms to accommodate delays. Here are the details from ictQatar:

The Supreme Council for Information and Communication Technology, ictQATAR, today published revised License terms for the second mobile operator, Vodafone Qatar on April 5th, 2009. Under the terms of its license Vodafone Qatar was required to achieve 98% population coverage and launch full services by 1 March 2009. The revised terms require 98% coverage by 1 September 2009 and the launch of services, including two-way phone mobile and SMS, by 1 July 2009.

ictQATAR made the decision to amend the license due to unforeseen delays experienced by Vodafone Qatar such as acquiring sites for mobile base stations. To date, the company has switched on its network, achieved interconnection with Qtel, and has launched a trial service to establish the effectiveness of its network.

Announcing the revised license terms, Dr. Hessa Al-Jaber, ictQATAR Secretary General said ""Despite the fact that Vodafone Qatar has not met the initial target dates set out in its license, ictQATAR is satisfied with the progress that has been made on network development and interconnection with Qtel, and looks forward to the launch of competitive telecommunications service in Qatar in the near future"".

Following amending the license terms, ictQATAR has decided not to cash the performance bonds it holds against Vodafone Qatar's coverage obligations amounting to QAR 110million. ictQATAR will continue to hold these performance bonds as security to ensure the revised coverage obligations are met.

The complete amended license can be viewed on the ictQATAR website: http://www.ictqatar....

Qatar has advanced three places in the Global Information Technology Report 2008-2009 - to 29th. The annual Report, released by the World Economic Forum and INSEAD on March 26th, is the world's most comprehensive international assessment of the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on nations' development and international competitiveness.

This year the Report surveys 134 developed and developing economies that account for more than 98% of world GDP. Last year's report included 127 countries.