Dubai: The UAE can see the first of the iPhone 3Gs from du on October 27, Osman Sultan, chief executive of the company, told Gulf News. The operator has opened bookings for the smartphone.
He said that it would offer "attractive" data plans "in order to promote the iPhone to a larger audience", while the price of the device is expected to be the same with both operators.
Etisalat, the bigger player in the UAE's telecom market, said that it would also be bringing the phone to the market at the end of this month but did not specify the exact date.
As part of its long-term goals, customers can expect Du to step up efforts in broadband and related software and applications.
"In the last decade, the focus was on mobility. Now, and in the coming many years, broadband is the name of the game," Sultan said, adding that "the next big thing is to be able to offer our triple play offering nationwide".
The company is in discussions with the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and competitor etisalat to expand its reach to bring its triple play services of landline telephone, internet and television across the UAE.
Currently, its full spectrum of services is limited to certain residential clusters and real estate developments that are still under construction.
New target
"We are hoping to see something happen in 2010," Sultan said, referring to discussions with the authorities.
"We are insisting on broadband. We have the fastest internet speed for the residential market [at 24Mbps] and we would like to provide this nationwide," he said.
Sultan said that the company would soon be setting a new target for mobile market share, having gained 30 per cent ahead of schedule.
"We are doing well and continuing our growth," he said. At the end of the second quarter, the operator had 2.9 million mobile customers, generating Dh882 million.
"We are still investing in mobile infrastructure and will continue to do so in the coming years," he said.
