Telecom Egypt's chairman, Akil Beshir, said that the state-owned monopoly is discussing obtaining a Mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) license with the national regulatory body that oversees telecommunications according to Reuters news agency. An MVNO license would enable Telecom Egypt to operate a mobile carrier, but without its own radio spectrum. Telecom Egypt would have to utilize an operator who already has a spectrum to broadcast mobile signals. Depending on which type of MVNO is licensed, Telecom Egypt could market any combination of its own brand name, SIM, roaming plans, and billing plans. Currently Mobinil and Vodafone dominate the market. Telecom Egypt has a 45% stake in. Vodafone and offered to buy the remaining shares, but an agreement was never reached. Telecom Egypt is 80 percent state owned. Beshir said the state was not considering selling off shares to lower its stake to the legally mandated 51 percent. The revolution does not seem to have slowed Telecom Egypt's expansion drive. It sold two billion Egyptian pounds ($346.6 million) worth of corporate bonds in February 2005. That bond drive was the largest in Egyptian history. Beshir also cited the revolution's benefits for the country, specifically a heightened consumer interest in internet services given the role of Facebook and other social media networks that played a large role in the 18-day uprising that forced former president Mubarak to resign. BM
