Dubai: The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) said yesterday it would allow internet telephony, or Voice over Internet Protocol technology, but only for local calls within the UAE.
Long-distance calls using VoIP will continue to be prohibited for the time being to protect the revenue telecom operators receive from international calls.
"The policy by the TRA is to allow only etisalat and du to provide VoIP service in the local market," said Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Government Sector Development.
VoIP has proliferated in recent years with free-to-consumer VoIP providers like Skype and Net2Phone.
These popular VoIP services are actively blocked in the UAE, where an overwhelming majority of residents are expatriates from Asia and the West who make frequent calls back home. The TRA has not indicated if it will ever allow consumers to use Skype or Net2Phone legally.
As for allowing long distance calling with VoIP, Al Mansouri said the government was reviewing its telecommunications policies and would eventually permit international VoIP calls.
The news comes as a half-reversal of its announcement in October, when it said it would allow VoIP from the two licensed operators, etisalat and du.
"We are taking it step by step," he said. "At some point VoIP will be liberalised. As for when, I cannot give you a date. We do not want the quality of service to be lacking or the revenues of the operators to be hurt."
The TRA believes 60 per cent of the telecom revenues in the UAE come from international calls, and that allowing VoIP calls could severely hamper the financial performance of operators.
