Dubai: Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co (EITC), the parent company of telecom brand du, launched its second brand — Virgin Mobile — in the UAE in a bid to strengthen its offerings.
EITC was founded as the second telecom provider in the UAE in 2006, and du launched its services in 2007.
Osman Sultan, CEO of EITC, said that the parent company will fully manage and operate the brand, in line with the regulatory obligations and compliances as set forth by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of the UAE.
Virgin Mobile will not be a third operator, is not a new licence holder and will not operate as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in the UAE.
He said that EITC has acquired the rights of use of the brand in the UAE. No entity other than the EITC has any ownership stake in the operations of the services in the UAE.
“Virgin Mobile will use the network, IT and other infrastructure of EITC. All customer contracts and regulatory obligations will be on EITC,” he said.
He did not give details about the products and tariffs that Virgin Mobile will provide and said the service will be launched within weeks. Right now, the Virginmobile.ae website is only a beta version.
Sultan said the Virgin brand and du will not compete head-to-head.
Virgin Mobile Middle East and Africa, which was first formed in 2006 and is headquartered at Dubai Internet City, operates in Oman, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and South Africa as a MVNO. A MVNO is a wireless communications services provider that does not own network infrastructure. An MVNO enters into an agreement with a mobile operator to obtain bulk access to network services at wholesale rates and then sets retail prices.
It delivers mobile telecom services to consumers across the region through two brands — Virgin Mobile and FRiENDi mobile.
Sukhdev Singh, vice-president for market research and analysis services provider at Kantar AMRB, said that it is good to hear that EITC has created a new brand in the market. Virgin Mobile is operating in major markets as MVNO. Those who are familiar with the Virgin brand will think it as separate brand and will create some pull, he said.
“Virgin Mobile may be able to attract some customers but it will not be able to displace etisalat and du’s share in the market in the medium- to long-term,” he said.
He said that du is expected to position Virgin in such a way that it will take some share from etisalat and will also cannibalise some of its own customers. Du may position Virgin to attract tourists as it is more globally-recognised brand.
Sultan said that launching another brand alongside du will cater to the needs of a segment that will be appealed to a larger segment of the market.
He said that internally, within EITC, a separate business unit has been created to handle matters relating to Virgin Mobile services. This unit will, principally, handle all market facing activities (marketing, sales, customer care, product development and customer experience development).
He insisted that there would be no direct sharing of customer data between du and Virgin Mobile and that all consumer obligations would be maintained.
“We believe that changing the paradigm when it comes to telecommunications will help bolster innovation and creativity throughout the country. Telecommunications has evolved beyond connectivity to becoming a transformative general purpose vehicle in nurturing a seamless socioeconomic framework that is smart and mobile,” Sultan said.
“Our aim at EITC is to firmly establish the UAE’s leadership as a power centre for the region when it comes to telecommunications by introducing innovative brands that will drive the connectivity agenda in new and unexplored directions.”
EITC has named former Virgin Mobile Saudi Arabia CEO Karim Ben Kirane as the managing director of Virgin Mobile UAE.
“We want to bring a differentiated experience, one that truly embraces digitisation. We will have a digital business model and will not target the mass market,” he said.
He said that there is “a niche market that lives on mobile. Virgin will bring something new to the entire telecom industry and this is the right market to be creative and innovative.”
