[June 10, 2013] AME Info, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, telecommunications briefs Tweet Jun 10, 2013 (AME Info - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- ETISALAT SAYS BENIN UNIT WON 20-YEAR MOBILE LICENCE: Etisalat has announced its wholly-owned subsidiary in Benin has been awarded a new 20-year Universal Mobile Service Licence in the West African country, Zawya Dow Jones has reported. The licence enables Etisalat Benin to offer mobile services on 2G, 3G, 4G networks and any other mobile technology in the future, Etisalat said. VIBER SAYS 'WILL NOT REST' UNTIL SERVICE IS RESTORED IN SAUDI ARABIA: Talmon Marco, founder and CEO of Viber Inc. has said his company will find a way to avoid Saudi Arabia's ban on its messaging services, Arab News has reported. "We will not rest until the service has been restored in Saudi Arabia," Marco told the daily. "We are developing technology that will circumvent this block. It will be rolled out in phases. We hope to have the first step in a couple of weeks," he said. Last week, the kingdom's telecom regulator blocked instant messaging and VoIP app Viber because "it does not currently meet the regulatory requirements and laws in Saudi Arabia." EGYPT PLANS TO BAN VIBER, WHATSAPP: Egypt's National Telecoms Regulatory Authority (NTRA) has said it plans to block widely-used applications Viber and WhatsApp due to economic and security concerns, Ahram has reported. The regulator has set up a committee to monitor the mobile applications and will decide whether to ban, allow free usage or restrict them, said head of the NTRA, Amr Badawy. "These applications allow subscribers to make free calls, messages and share files while their sources remain unknown. Pre-paid applications will face losses," said Badawy. VIBER BANNED IN SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi Arabia's Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) has said it has banned use of the web-based communication application Viber, Reuters has reported. "The Viber application has been suspended ... and the (regulator) affirms it will take appropriate action against any other applications or services if they fail to comply with regulatory requirements and rules in force in the kingdom," the CITC said. Last March, the regulator issued a vaguely worded directive warning that such tools as Viber, Whatsapp and Skype broke local laws, without specifying how. ___ (c)2013 AME Info (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates) Visit AME Info (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates) at www.ameinfo.com Distributed by MCT Information Services [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]