Thuraya Signs up Service Provider in Sri Lanka
Abu Dhabi : Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company has scored another commercial milestone in the Asian market with the latest addition of Sri Lanka on the list of countries who have signed Thuraya Service Provider agreements. MTN Networks (Pvt.) Ltd of Sri Lanka has become the twentieth Service Provider for Thuraya’s regional mobile satellite system.
A Service Provider agreement was signed recently with MTN Networks (Pvt.) Ltd of Sri Lanka by Thuraya’s Chief Executive Mr Yousuf Al Sayed and MTN Networks’s Chief Executive Officer Dr Shridhir Wijayasuriya.
Under the signing agreement, MTN Networks (Pvt.) Ltd is granted the rights to distribute and market Thuraya’s mobile satellite services and products in Sri Lanka including user terminals and SIM cards, as well as provisions to oversee service management aspects such as billing and customer care services.
Speaking on this occasion, Thuraya’s Chief Executive Mr Al Sayed said “"The signing of this agreement with MTN Networks (Pvt.) Ltd of Sri Lanka is in line with Thuraya’s strategy to build and expand a commercial infrastructure for its regional mobile satellite system,”
He said Thuraya will work with MTN Networks (Pvt.) Ltd for the introduction of mobile satellite services in Sri Lanka, particularly in providing telephony solutions for areas that are currently not served by existing terrestrial telecommunications networks.
“One of the key advantages of the Thuraya system is that we can provide blanket border-to-border telecommunications coverage to each and every country within our 99-country coverage area from day one of commercial operations,” added Mr AL Sayed.
He also reiterated that the versatility of the Thuraya products which integrate Satellite, GSM and Global Positioning System ( GPS) will be a very practical solution to communities with diverse lifestyles and industries with dynamic activities, adding that the affordability of the products is one of the service attractions.
MTN Networks’s Chief Executive Officer Dr Wijayasuriya voiced mutual feelings on signing the Service Provider agreement with Thuraya, saying that it is an important step in bringing the latest satellite telecommunications technology to Sri Lanka.
“We are proud to have forged this alliance with Thuraya, and we believe that this partnership will play an instrumental role in boosting the Sri Lankan telecommunications sector and keeping it in step with the amazing developments evolving in the telecommunications industry,” he said.
MTN Networks (Pvt.) Ltd., a fully owned subsidiary of Telekom Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., is a regional telecommunication company with an off-shore presence in over ten countries including South Africa and India. MTN Networks operates Dialog GSM, which is a leading mobile network in Sri Lanka. MTN Network’s commitment to its customers has earned the company the distinction of becoming the first telecommunications company in South Asia to receive ISO 9002 certification
Sri Lanka is a tropical island situated in south Asia, which is highly frequented by tourists. In its efforts to provide enhanced telecommunications service to its inhabitants, Sri Lanka has expanded the telecommunications sector with the entry of two wireless operators and privatization of national telephone companies.