Ooredoo to Launch Business Fibre Service, 'Will Boost SMEs'

Doha, June 18 (QNA) - Small and Medium-sized businesses here will soon receive a big boost when Ooredoo (previously known as Q-Tel) launches its Business Fibre service, the Qatari telecom's senior executive has said. "We firmly believe in the benefits of fibre optic networks," said Ooredoo Chief Operating Officer Waleed Al Sayed. "In January 2012, we commercially launched Ooredoo Fibre, which is Qatar's fastest-ever home fibre optic network. "Our next step will be to launch Ooredoo Business Fibre, with a special emphasis on the country's small- and medium-sized businesses, which form the backbone of Qatars rapidly-growing knowledge-based economy." Al Sayed revealed the expansion plan at an event held here to unveil a new research study by Arthur D Little (ADL) on 'National Fibre Strategies: National economic imperative or just another private industry task?' Lauding Qatar's nationwide fibre network roll-out, the study says this success story "positions the country are as a leading fibre nation". In a global study based on figures from the Fibre To The Home (FTTH) Council, data collected from operators and ADL, estimates "Qatar enjoyed one of the fastest nationwide fibre roll-outs in the world since the start of deployment in 2011, as judged by the average percentage of homes passed by Fibre (33.3% of the total) and the number of homes connected (6.3%) per year." The pace of Qatar's fibre roll out exceeds that of several highly-developed nations and the United Arab Emirates, the ADL study said. Appreciating ADL for sharing the findings of the study, Al Sayed said, "It is a source of immense pride that Qatar has seen one of the fastest-ever fibre rollouts in the world." He praised Qatar's leadership for this landmark achievement. "To have our approach validated by global management consulting firm ADL is a source of pride for us all, and particularly for the teams who have worked so hard to bring fibre to every home and business in Qatar," the COO said. "We have recently passed a major milestone more than 50,000 customers are now connected to Ooredoo Fibre. Currently we have passed 191,000 homes and connected 56,000 homes, and we are continuing to pass thousands of more homes every month," said Al Sayed. Ooredoo Fibre provides connection speeds that are 10 times faster than copper wire, he said. "This not only radically enhances the customer experience, but also complements our 4G Long-Term-Evolution Mobile Broadband network." More network related announcements are on the anvil, he said. (QNA)