The first phase of expanding Etisalat's 3G (Third Generation) coverage in key locales of the UAE will be completed by the end of this month, according to a top official with the telecom provider.

With this phase coming online, the 3G network will be able to support up to 160,000 subscribers. The 3G service was launched in the UAE in late December, with Etisalat becoming the first operator from the Middle East to do so. Full rollout of the service will take between eight and 12 months.

"With the next phase of expansion targeting the more remote areas in the country, we are laying the groundwork for a robust 3G network. We are quite content with the systems that are being put in place.

"As more areas are covered, we are quite confident of meeting the subscriber numbers as well," said Mohammed Al Fahim, executive vice-president for sales and marketing.

Also, sufficient numbers of 3G enabled handsets are expected to be delivered by leading vendors from next month onwards. The paucity of these handsets had been cited as one of the factors holding back faster adoption rates for the new services, which allow faster Web connectivity and data transfers for subscribers over mobile phones.

"We are in constant discussion with the handset manufacturers. By the end of the month, we are hopeful that they will be able to get good quantities of the handsets," said Al Fahim.

"The 3G service is still in its very early stages. We believe that the second half will provide the growth in subscriber numbers that we are aiming for."

On Etisalat's pricing policy for 3G, the official said: "We have benchmarked our rates against those available elsewhere, and believe that ours are competitive. For our subscribers, these rates are transparent and straight forward."