In the UAE, services offering voice communication over the Internet via VoIP protocol were banned.
UAE’s major telecommunications companies, Etisalat and Du, said services offering VoIP services will be suspended until they receive licenses.
According to Etisalat, "access to the Skype application is blocked due to the fact that this program offers unlicensed Internet communication services via VoIP, which is contrary to the laws of the UAE."
Du’s official tweet also said the UAE "banned any application or service offering a VoIP service."
Such comments from the two largest telecommunications companies in the country were caused by numerous complaints by Skype users in the UAE about the inability to use the program.
The statement notes that all companies that have received the appropriate license will be able to offer users voice services over VoIP.
"Companies wishing to provide such services must be licensed for this."
Du and Etisalat, as an alternative, offer Botim and C'Me enabled VoIP applications, which are part of the Unlimited package and allow you to make voice and video calls. For the right to use such applications, operators charge an additional fee of 100 dirhams per month (approx. 27 US dollars).
In April, the media reported that a member of the UAE’s Federal National Council, Saeed Al Remeiti, urged TRA to lift the ban, calling it a “shame” for the UAE, prompting TRA Director General Hamad Al Mansouri to note that VoIP services are being blocked for security reasons due to turnovers of cybercrime.
It is worth noting that in September, Saudi authorities announced that voice and video calls will be available to residents of the kingdom in the near future, which will reduce operating costs and stimulate the development of entrepreneurship in the field of digital services.
