QTEL joint venture company wi-tribe, which will exclusively provide WiMAX services outside Qatar, was launched yesterday. Qatar’s telecom service provider has a controlling stake (70%) in wi-tribe. The remainder is held by Saudi Arabia’s A.A.Turki Corporate Trading & Construction (ATCO). Besides planned WiMAX deployments in Jordan and Pakistan, wi-tribe was also looking at other markets in the Middle East and North Africa to deliver broadband wireless access. WiMAX, the worldwide interoperability for microwave access, is a telecommunications technology aimed at providing wireless data over long distances in a variety of ways, from point-to-point links to full mobile cellular type access. With its regional corporate office in Bahrain, wi-tribe has the licence to launch services in both Jordan and Pakistan creating the opportunity for thousands of individuals and businesses to join the World Wide Web. wi-tribe yesterday said it was conceived to bring people from all walks of life together and create a new interactive online community that lives and breathes Internet. Utilising the latest WiMAX technology, wi-tribe will provide broadband Internet access through a portable wireless modem that simply plugs into the customer’s computer without the need for a fixed telephone line. WiMAX represents the very latest in hassle-free Internet service provider technology taking away the dependency on the traditional telephone line. wi-tribe chairman and Qtel chief operating officer Sheikh Fahd bin Jassim al-Thani said: “This is a very proud day for everyone involved with wi-tribe. Historically, Qtel is defined by its commitment to customers and bringing innovation to telecommunications. Consumer broadband is an important pillar of growth for Qtel to achieve its vision of becoming one of the top 20 operators in the world by 2020. “The main passion of wi-tribe is the care of our customers, who we call wi-tribers. Qtel’s customer care strategy is to provide the best service available and tend to their needs.” wi-tribe group chief executive officer Sami Hinedi said: “wi-tribe is ready to truly revolutionise communications through our core brand values: independence, freedom, individuality, innovation and an obsession with customer satisfaction. Regionally, we are looking at new opportunities and will announce expansion plans later on.” Speaking on behalf of ATCO, Ziad al-Turki said: “wi-tribe benefits from successful online systems and solutions to ensure the highest quality of product is available. ATCO is proud to be responsible for providing this service for wi-tribe customers and the international community who will populate it.” Gulf Tiems

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