Egypt will cut some mobile services on 15 January for subscribers using Chinese mobile phones, as earlier directed by the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA). The cuts affect mobile phones that don't comply with technical standards, which harms mobile phone companies. NTRA said on its website that about 509 Chinese brands in Egypt that comply with standards will not be cut. The authority called on mobile phone companies to send text messages to subscribers using such phones to inform them of date their service will be cut if they don't change their phones. An official source told Al-Ahram newspaper that cutting the service will take up to two months. He also warned citizens of buying any other devices that don't comply with the standards. The NTRA website has a list of all devices that can be used, the source said. NTRA had earlier warned citizens about buying mobile phones that don't comply with the standards, the source said. Companes that manufacture mobile phones should give different serial numbers to each phone. But phones of unknown origin entered the market with low prices and did not comply with standards, the source said.
