Fastlink becomes Zain as leading operator in Jordan re-brands

Fastlink is one of the first operations to re-brand together with operations in Kuwait and Bahrain, (formerly MTC-Vodafone) and Sudan (formerly Mobitel). All of the Group's operations will be fully re-branded as Zain in due course.

The new brand will have no impact on Fastlink's current pre and post-paid products and services in Jordan, and customers are not required to re-set handsets or other mobile devices. Customers travelling to Kuwait, Bahrain and Sudan should select the Zain network when offered, although some handsets may still show the MTC network name which will continue to function.

"Even before we joined the MTC Group in 2003 in what was then the largest acquisition in Middle Eastern history, Fastlink was widely regarded as a pillar of the Jordanian economy, providing careers, education and training to a large number of our citizens," said Saad Nasir, CEO for Zain in Jordan.

"Today we are the service provider of choice for more than two million customers and, following the re-branding, the Zain family in Jordan will now join an extended community of 32 million giving us even greater opportunity to work together to build a better future for all," continued Nasir.

"Throughout our transformation, we will continue to provide the best possible service for our customers. We are, and always have been, a community-focused company and we will continue to invest in social outreach programs which made Fastlink a role model for corporations in Jordan."

In four years the Group has grown to become a leader in the telecoms sector with seven brands operating in 21 markets and serving more than 32 million customers. The new brand will help harness that growth by passing on the benefits of the depth and breadth of products and services available across all of its operating companies.

"Now is the time to launch a single, unified identity that will propel us towards our goal of becoming one of the world's top ten telecommunications companies during the next four years. We are extremely excited to join the Zain family and to becoming one of the most recognised global Arab brands," said Nasir.

Zain chief executive officer Dr. Saad Al Barrak said:

"The new identity will have a positive impact for customers as they come to experience and enjoy the same quality of service, reliability and standards of excellence wherever they live, work or travel in the Middle East, Africa or globally as we continue to expand our boundaries of operation."

Customers will benefit through synergies of the common products and services that are currently offered and of those that will be developed in the future. For example, Zain Group operations in six African countries have already created One Network, the world's first borderless mobile network.

Covering 160 million people or approximately 20% of Africa's population, One Network gives all post paid and prepaid customers the opportunity to move freely across geographical borders in these six countries without roaming call surcharges and without having to pay for incoming calls.

Customers also receive the same services that they enjoy in their home country; such as airtime credit transfer for prepaid customers. The One Network service is automatically activated upon crossing the geographic border into one of the six countries, with no prior registration required or sign-up fee charged.

"In a region that is historically dependant on freedom of movement across borders, this service fits the needs of our customers perfectly, breaking down barriers and making life better for business, families and individuals," said Dr. Barrak.

The Zain brand and its new theme - A Wonderful World - capture the energy, inspiration and diversity of the Group's customers, employees and other stakeholders. The new logo and its colourful identity reflect the Group's freshness, boldness and vitality with the 'swirl' communicating the idea of an aura, something important to human life echoing growth, progression and diversity.

Zain was chosen for its simplicity, memorability and ease of pronunciation across the global marketplace and, as an added bonus, Zain was found to be rich in positive connotations. For example, in Arabic, Zain means 'beautiful, good and wonderful", in Latin it means 'dark horse' and it has many positive meanings in other cultures found in Africa, Asia, Europe and beyond. It tested extremely well among cross sections of the potential global audience.

With a current market capitalization exceeding US$ 30 billion the Group shares will continue to be publicly traded on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) and the Group's stock ticker code 'TELE' will change to 'ZAIN' with immediate effect.

In July 2007, the group was awarded the third mobile licence in Saudi Arabia and expects to start operations in the Kingdom as Zain in early 2008. This will make Zain the fourth largest mobile operator in the world in terms of geographic footprint. Recently, Zain's operation in Iraq, mtc atheer, was successful in its bid for a 15 year nationwide licence and will re-brand to Zain soon.

In early September 2007 the Group won three prestigious industry awards including Overall Operator of the Year among both fixed line and mobile service operators at the second annual CommsMEA telecom awards for the Middle East and Africa. It also won New Telecoms Service of the Year for One Network and Dr. Saad Al Barrak was also honoured with the Lifetime Achievement award for his pioneering efforts in the industry.