Vodafone Qatar, a joint venture between the UK’s Vodafone and state-backed charity the Qatar Foundation, received its licence to operate fixed-line services on March 30.
The company, which until now could only offer mobile phone services, will find it…
Vodafone Qatar, a joint venture between the UK’s Vodafone and state-backed charity the Qatar Foundation, received its licence to operate fixed-line services on March 30.
The company, which until now could only offer mobile phone services, will find it easier to compete with the former monopoly Qtel.
Vodafone Qatar declined to say when it would launch fixed-line services. It won the licence in September 2008 in a competition against Jordan Telecom and a joint venture between Hong Kong-based PCCW and the Qatar Investment & Projects Development Holding Company.
The operator had 353,580 mobile phone customers at the end of December. Vodafone Qatar won its mobile phone licence in December 2007 with a bid of US$2.1bn.
Qatar Foundation paid US$1.7bn towards the licence leaving Vodafone to pay just US$400m even though both investors have equal equity stakes in Vodafone Qatar.
