B U S I N E S SSUNDAY, JUNE 15, 2014

KUWAIT: Zain, the leading telecommunicationscompany in Kuwait, announces the completionof the successful launch of the first ever Voiceover LTE (VoLTE) technology in Kuwait over itsadvanced 4G LTE network, in conjunction withits technology partners Huawei and NokiaSolutions and Networks (NSN).

In partnership with its technology providersand getting ready for the future, Zain testedVoLTE in live experiences in order to showcasethe technology’s superior calling capability inpreparation for Zain launching commercialVoLTE in the near future once the handsets arereleased.

The potential of VoLTE has many benefits toZain’s customers as it enhances the customerexperience overall with clear High Definitionvoice and low latency. This technology will resultin the voice quality attaining a superior MeanOpinion Score (MOS), which allows a customerto be able to hear better and feel closer to theperson on the other end of the call. The call set-up of VoLTE takes approximately one second.

Speaking on the back of the latest VoLTE, ZainKuwait CEO, Omar Al-Omar said: “The successful

completion of Kuwait’s first VoLTE call by Zainwith our global technology solution providersHuawei and NSNgives further support to ourstrategy to bring the best technology to thecountry in a timely fashion. This launch in plan-ning for the future is an important milestone,which will translate into providing enhancedmobile broadband services to our customersacross Kuwait, offering them an opportunity toenjoy unparalleled communication services.”

Becoming the first network operator inKuwait to Launch VoLTE reaffirms Zain’s technol-ogy and market leadership, which in late 2012,saw the company also become the first networkoperator in the country to launch 4G LTE nation-wide. At the end of 2013, Zain furtherannounced its intention to launch a commercialLTE-A network in the country.

Zain plans to continue advancing its networkand launching new Services and technologies inorder to sustain its leadership position in theKuwaiti Market. The company expects to moveto commercialize VoLTE in Kuwait in due courseas smartphones and devices that support itbecome available on the global market.

Zain completes successful launch

of VoLTE with Huawei and NSN

First-ever service in Kuwait reaffirms Zain’s technology

Zain Kuwait CEO Omar Al-Omar

KUWAIT: SAMENA Telecommunications Councilwas a key participant at the Global Symposiumfor Regulators (GSR) 2014 held recently inBahrain. The 14th edition of the GSR was organ-ized by the International Telecom Union (ITU) inline with the theme “Capitalizing on the poten-tial of the digital world.”

The GSR is a unique ITU forum which bringstogether heads of national telecom and ICT reg-ulatory authorities from around the world andserves as the global annual venue for regulatorsto discuss the most pressing issues they haveidentified. At the forum, the South Asia - MiddleEast - North Africa (SAMENA) region was repre-sented by SAMENA TelecommunicationsCouncil’s Chief Executive Officer, Bocar Ba, whowas a member of the panelists in the openingday debate session titled “Redefining responsi-bilities in a data driven digital world.”

Commenting on whether regulatory frame-works are evolving in sync and on a timely basiswith the evolution in network technology anddata handling and storage techniques, Bocarsaid, “In many countries in the SAMENA region,regulation has not, so far, kept pace with therapidly changing technical arena. For instance, anumber of telecom regulators are opposed tocloud computing as well as the introduction ofservices such as M2M simply because it means

that data will flow in and out of the particularcountry under the regulator’s jurisdiction. Thereare legitimate concerns about consumer privacyand this certainly needs to be addressed but it isunrealistic to stick to regulation that wasdesigned to address legacy systems andprocesses.”

“In addition, when one looks beyond the tele-com world, at IT companies for instance - theyare using cloud computing without any of thesame restrictions imposed by telecom regula-tors. Therefore, from a telecom regulatory stand-point, the area of data delivery and protectionneeds to be looked at from a fresh perspective,”he added. Speaking about the principal chal-lenges faced by operators in the digital world,Bocar highlighted: “There is a significant shift inrevenue sources driven by the expansion of theInternet, especially mobile applications. In addi-tion, there is an increase in customer networkservice expectations that require national broad-band infrastructure building, which is a costlyproposition. Next, there is a major change inusers and patterns of digital services and prod-ucts, which we at SAMENA Council callDigitization.”

During the GSR 2014, participants includingregulators, policy makers and ITU-D sector mem-bers analyzed and discussed several means to

bring the full potential of the digital world to theconsumers in an informed, responsive and safemanner.

During a meeting of Private Sector ChiefRegulatory Officers (CRO) held prior to the GSR2014, SAMENA Telecommunications Councilstated the importance of bringing in investorsand private equity funds to the discussion, alongwith policy makers and regulators, in order toensure the adoption and development of invest-ment friendly policies and regulations.

SAMENA Council proposes fresh

view on data delivery, protection

ITU’s Global Symposium for Regulators 2014

Chief Executive Officer Bocar Ba

Jazeera Airways reports April

2014 operational performanceKUWAIT: Jazeera Airways released its April 2014Operational Performance Report yesterday, whichshows an increase in flown passengers on routesserving Istanbul, Jeddah, Bahrain, Alexandria, Cairoand Mashhad, and an on-time performance of92.59 percent.

Jazeera Airways issues its OperationalPerformance Report on both a monthly and annualbasis. The Report is based on official figures andstatistics from Kuwait’s Directorate General for CivilAviation (DGCA). On-time performance is reportedbased on results by independent US-based OTPtracker, FlightStats.

The airline continues to lead with a 33 percentmarket share on the Kuwait-Amman route for theeighth month in-a-row against three other carriersserving the route.

Jazeera Airways also saw a 76 percent increasein flown passengers on the Kuwait-Istanbul routefrom April 2013, and grabbed a 7 percent marketshare on the route.

Flown passengers on the Kuwait-Jeddah route

increased in April 2014 by 36 percent from April2013, and by 19 percent on the Kuwait-Bahrainroute. The airline grabbed a 17 percent marketshare on the Kuwait-Jeddah route and a 10 percentmarket share on the Kuwait-Bahrain route.

Jazeera Airways serves six cities in Egypt. Theairline led on the route serving Luxor with a 70 per-cent market share, and grabbed a 24 percent mar-ket share on the Kuwait-Cairo route, an 18 percentmarket share on the Kuwait-Alexandria route, a 42percent market share on the Kuwait-Assiut route,and a 47 percent market share on the Kuwait-Sohag route. Flights to the seasonal destinationofSharm El Sheikh resumed in May 2014.

Flown passengers on the route serving Cairoincreased by 10 percent from April 2013, and flownpassengers on the route serving Alexandriaincreased by 21 percent from April 2013.

The airline saw an 11 percent increase in flowpassengers on the Kuwait-Mashhad route com-pared to April 2013, and grabbed a 21 percent mar-ket share during April 2014.

The April 2014 report also shows that JazeeraAirways grabbed a 29 percent market share on theKuwait-Beirut route, a 12 percent market share onthe Kuwait-Dubai route, a 5 percent market shareon the Kuwait-Riyadh route, and a 39 percent mar-ket share on the Kuwait-Al Najaf route.

April 2014 highlights

Kuwait-Istanbul route: 76% increase inflown passengers from April 2013Kuwait-Jeddah route: 36% increase inflown passengers from April 2013Kuwait-Bahrain route: 19% increase inflown passengers from April 2013Kuwait-Alexandria route: 21% increase inflown passengers from April 2013Kuwait-Cairo route: 10% increase in flownpassengers from April 2013Kuwait-Mashhad route: 11% increase inflown passengers from April 2013.

SHARJAH: Qatalum has participated at the15th GCC Joint Exhibition, held at the ExpoCentre Sharjah from 26 to 30 May 2014.Qatalum was exhibiting and networking atthe Expo GCC event, a great opportunityfor promoting, marketing and introducingGulf products. In addition to serving as alaunch pad for emerging SMEs and seedventures, the exhibition opens up network-ing opportunities with businesspeople andinvestors from across the region, whichserves as a wide potential market for suchproducts - including the massive growth inaluminium.

For Qatalum, this has been a chance tosolidify its position as a regional leaderwhile promoting Qatar within the Gulf. Thecountry currently hums with new infra-structure projects, particularly in the con-text of the hosting of the 2022 FIFA WorldCup and the Qatar National Vision 2030 -the multi-pillar national development strat-egy for economic, social and environmen-tal progress.

Qatalum, as one of the region’s leadingaluminium smelters and a crown jewel inQatar’s corporate landscape, sees its role asimportant in promoting industrial diversifi-cation, supporting downstream industries,

and standing behind the social and envi-ronmental pillars of Qatar’s long-term strat-egy - particularly in terms of Qatalum’s‘Qatarisation’ policy and sustainability ini-tiatives.

Qatalum Comunication’s Officer KhalifaAl-Khuzaei, who attended as part ofQatalum’s delegation, said at the conclu-sion of the conference: “By participating atExpo GCC, we see the opportunity to beinvolved in one of the important economicevents in the GCC region. Expo GCC 2014 ispromoted across the GCC to buyers,traders, manufacturers and contractorswho are interested in products which aremade in the region, and as the centre ofgravity in the aluminium industry shifts toemerging markets, this has been a greatopportunity.

“We have been able to promote ourproducts, ideas and innovations to ourregional friends and partners, while learn-ing from them in terms of regional andinternational Best Practice. The JointExhibition brings together stakeholdersfrom many sectors and all parts of the alu-minium value chain, so it has been aninvaluable chance to leverage this into newpartnerships which can benefit us all”.

Qatalum delegation attends 15th

GCC joint exhibition in Sharjah

KUWAIT: Al-Muzaini Exchange Co, Kuwait’sleading Exchange and RemittanceCompany, announced yesterday the grandprize winner of KD 2,000 and winners of thedaily KD 100 Cash Promo draws. The finaldraw was conducted on 9 June 2014 at theConsumer Protection Andallus Departmentunder the supervision of Abdulaziz Al-Kohrepresentative from the Ministry ofCommerce.

The lucky grand prize winner of KD2,000 was Maher Ahmed. The lucky win-ners of the daily KD 100 cash prize and KD2,000 grand prize for the period of 31 May -6 June 2014 are:Robert Fernandez — MubarakiyaBranch, Sana Mussa Abdulla Aswaq— Al-Qurain Branch, Libnos Gebreslase — MubarakiyaBranch, Andulhameed Al-Rabieai Hateen — Co-op, Mohamad Sobhy — Nugra Branch

Ibrahim Zakour — Salmiya Branch Morzouk Nawar— Bayan Co-op.

Al-Muzaini has launched this promotionwith an aim to offer its customers, extend-ed opportunities to fulfill their dreams in aneasy and simple manner. Al-MuzainiExchange Company, a pioneer and leaderin the foreign exchange business in Kuwaitfor over 70 years now with network branch-es that spans over 60 branches locatedacross Kuwait. To ensure customer satisfac-tion, arrival and departure sections of theKuwait International airport and the SheikhSaad airport guarantee 24 hours 7 days aweek full service.

Al-Muzaini Exchange Company providescustomers a broad range of services thatincludes issuing checks and collection ofchecks drawn on foreign banks and thesale and purchase of foreign currencies andremittances (to all parts of the world), DHLrelated services while also benefitting fromWestern Union’s varied services that are onoffer.

Al-Muzaini Exchange announces

grand prize winner, daily

winners of ‘Cash Promo’ draw

KUWAIT: Gulf Bank held its Al-Danah dailydraws on June 8, 2014, announcing thenames of its winners for the week of June 1 toJune 5. The Al-Danah daily draws includedraws each working day for two prizes ofKD1000 per winner.

The winners are: (Sunday 1/06): Ali Hussain Yousef Al-

Naddaf, Mezyed Abdullah Mohammed Al-Belaihis

(Monday 2/06): Hmoud Abdullah Al AliAl-Shaiji, Mohammad Obaid Mohammad Al-Shammari

(Tuesday 3/06): Bader Saleh Haji Kamal,Mahmoud Khalil Mohammed Shehabuldin

(Wednesday 4/06): Basem AbdelamirMohammed Shehab, Hadeer Abdullah HamzaAl-Bahrani

(Thursday 5/06): Srokal Ghoulam Husain,Mariam Abdulmohsen Jaber Al-Zaid.

Gulf Bank’s Al-Danah 2014 draw lineupincludes daily draws (2 winners per workingday each receive KD1,000). Al-Danah’s 2ndQuarterly draw for 2014 will be held in June(KD250,000, KD125,000, and KD25,000). GulfBank advises all its Al-Danah customers tokeep their money saved in their accounts toenhance their chances of winning one of themajor cash prizes of KD25,000, KD125,000

and KD250,000 in the second Al-Danah quar-terly prize draw for 2014. Any withdrawalbefore the draw in June would reducechances of winning.

Al-Danah allows customers to win cashprizes and simultaneously encourages themto save. Each KD100 gives the customer 1chance daily which accumulates day by day.The more money saved and the longer it is inthe account, the more chances individualsstand to win. Every Al-Danah prize draws willautomatically be deposited into the winner’saccount within two working days. Al-Danahalso offers a number of unique servicesincluding the Al-Danah Deposit Only ATMcard which helps account holders deposittheir money at their convenience; as well asthe Al-Danah calculator to help customerscalculate their chances of becoming an Al-Danah winner.

Gulf Bank’s Al-Danah account is open toKuwaitis and all residents of Kuwait.Customers who open an account and/ ordeposit more will enter the draw within twodays. To be part of the Al-Danah draws, cus-tomers can visit one of Gulf Bank’s 58 branch-es, transfer on line, or call the CustomerContact Center on 1805805 for assistance andguidance.

Gulf Bank announces winners

of Al-Danah daily draws