Telecom Egypt (TE), the state-owned landline monopoly, has become the first to sign fourth generation mobile licence. Egypt's telecoms industry regulator, the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) held a press conference on Wednesday to announce Telecom Egypt as the first to be awarded a unified licence to provide 4G mobile services. This would officially turn the state-owned company into a mobile network operator. Minister of communications and Information Technology Yasser El-Kady was present during signing the 4G licence agreement. BoD of the NTRA had decided on Aug 16 to send the regulatory framework to licensee companies (Vodafone Egypt, Orange Egypt, Etisalat Misr and TE) giving them until Sept 22 to pay all due sums to buy the licence and sign contracts. The Egyptian Cabinet previously approved ensuring licences for new 4G frequencies in accordance with NTRA's standards. The NTRA will be responsible for the preparation of licences including the financial and technical commitments in compliance with rules and regulations of Communications Regulation Act No. 10/2003. This comes within the framework of telecommunication sector development plan that is expected to put Egypt on top of countries providing 4G telecommunications services. The decision aims to increase government resources and improve services provided to citizens.
