Roaming: Zain has extended its non-roaming tariffs to include mobile data on one network

[zawya] In another world-first, leading mobile network operator, Zain, announced yesterday that it has launched cross-border data services across the Middle East and in East Africa on its award winning 'One Network' platform. The data service is yet another demonstration of Zain's commitment to expand 'One Network's' revolutionary service in terms of geographical coverage and product offerings, this time by being the first mobile operator in the world to successfully introduce cross-border local GRX-based
data access, an innovative technical solution which ensures faster access speeds at cost effective local rates than traditional internet roaming.

From today, in addition to being able to move freely across geographic borders without roaming call or sms surcharges and without having to pay to receive incoming calls, all Zain customers, both pre-paid and post-paid, either in the Middle East or in East Africa, can easily and quickly access internet, email, MMS, BlackBerry service and other Zain Portals.

In the Middle East the countries that benefit from this data service are Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait (soon), Saudi Arabia and Sudan while in East Africa the countries are Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. By the end of 2009 all other African 'One Network' countries will join and benefit from this data service at which time cross-continent connectivity will be implemented.

The benefits and synergies of having one brand are taking shape as we deliver and fulfil our promise to be first, daring and different," said Dr Saad Al Barrak, Zain GroupZain GroupLoading... CEO. "'One Network' revolutionized and replaced the concept of roaming and changed the way people communicate with its borderless mobile voice service. Including data services will add a new dimension to the customer experience.

The new service will give millions of Zain customers, who regularly use, and benefit from, 'One Network' the opportunity to use additional data services including the newly-launched Zain Create, which enables customers to buy and download the latest music and videos.

For the first time, this data service will soon include and welcome Zain customers in Kuwait to the 'One Network" platform who will also benefit from this specific data offering only when crossing borders into other Middle East 'One Network' countries, (other offerings such as voice calls not yet available due to regulatory issues in Kuwait). Customers travelling to Kuwait from other Middle East partner countries will also benefit from this new data service only. It is planned that Kuwait will commercially launch the service by the end of May 2009.

As with 'One Network', customers do not have to pre-register for the data access service, move to a special tariff, change their handset settings or pay any subscription fees. They simply take their phone to any of the Middle East or East African operating countries they visit, use it as they would in their home country and be charged the same data rates for data access as a local customer in the country they are visiting.

Additionally, at any given point of time Zain customers can credit their accounts with locally purchased top-up cards in any of Zain's numerous points of sale across the region. Zain will continue rolling out High Speed Data Access across the rest of the nations served by 'One Network' during 2009.

Zain launches high speed data access across 'One Network'