June 23, 2009 (WAM) -- Etisalat has completed the nationwide upgrade of its 3G mobile network to enable mobile broadband download speeds of up to 14.4 Megabits per second (Mbps) across the UAE after three months of successful comprehensive testing in the major cities in the United Arab Emirates.Combined with its nationwide investment in fiber-optic infrastructure, Etisalat is now able to deliver the fastest connectivity and one of the richest mobile browsing experiences in the world using an end-to-end All-IP network. "In other countries where this technology has been deployed, the performance of the wireless network is limited by its reliance on legacy cable infrastructure in the operator's backbone," explained Mr. Ahmad Abdulkarim Julfar, Chief Operations Officer at Etisalat. "Etisalat has completed a state-of-the-art, nationwide fiber optic backbone which is able to deliver much greater capacity than legacy systems. This means that when we promise 14.4Mbps, we deliver." Mobile broadband is the term used for accessing the Internet via a mobile phone, laptop or other, wireless device. In the UAE this is achieved using High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) technology - a packet -based mobile telephony protocol used in 3G UMTS radio networks to increase data capacity and speed up transfer rates.

Etisalat today offers a variety of mobile broadband devices, including mobile routers, modems, data cards and also iPhone and Blackberry devices. Customers can subscribe to a wide variety of different packages, targeted from the casual user to heavy users. Etisalat recently announced new Wasel and postpaid mobile broadband packages offering more than 100% extra bandwidth at significantly reduced costs. With new mobile broadband packages, Etisalat has increased the bandwidth capacity multifold, without altering the price. For example mobile customers can now enjoy 10 MB instead of 2MB, 100 MB instead of 50, and 1GB instead of 120 MB, all at the same price. These packages will provide convenience and flexibility to the mobile users (including iPhone users) to surf the Internet through their cell phones and to enjoy various other applications like music and video downloads, video streaming, YouTube, Face Book, online gaming, navigation, and instant messaging.

In order to benefit from Etisalat's faster broadband speeds of up to 14.4 Mbps, a compatible modem or data card is required. During March this year, Etisalat announced it has successfully completed a key stage in its roadmap to bring HSPA+, the next generation mobile broadband connectivity to the Middle East, that will be able to provide download speeds up to 21Mbps. In trials in the UAE, the telco has recorded average download speeds of 20.37Mbps Etisalat today is numbered amongst the largest operators in the world. It has subsidiaries and investments in 17 countries, and has recorded subscriber numbers of 80 mn.