Shahry proves 'smash hit' in Qatar

Launched in December 2008, Shahry - Pay Monthly enables customers to select one free number they can make unlimited calls to, as well as offering a range of call minutes, SMS, MMS and internet download options and potential overall savings of as much as 39% over standard prices.

Shahry One Free Number in particular has proven enormously popular, as the first service of its kind in Qatar to enable people to choose one regular local contact, whether mobile or landline, that they can call free forever.

A major part of the new service's popularity with the public has been the clear and transparent pricing options, which enable people to select the Value Pack that best suits their monthly needs. Customers can also move up or down the different Value Packs as often as they want for no additional charge - the first time such flexibility has been made available in the region.

Shahry - Pay Monthly even actively helps customers to manage their call time, by alerting customers by SMS whenever they reach 80% and 100% of allocated call minutes. Any remaining minutes on a Value Pack are credited to the next month's account, so customers always receive the full value of the pack.

Adel Al Mutawa, Executive Director of Group Communications, Qtel, said:

"Shahry was developed following a major research process that covered all of Qatar, where we asked our customers what they wanted from post-paid mobile phone services. The capacity for customers to tailor their account to match their calling habits was one of the most significant findings."

"Customers were also very clear that they wanted transparency in the tariffs being applied and a firm idea of how much they would need to budget for mobile phone bills every month. Qtel is committed to providing the highest level of openness to our customers, and Shahry is designed to be both flexible and direct in terms of the different plans available," he added.

To meet this market demand, Qtel has released four Shahry Value Packs designed to offer a wide range of choices for the Qatar market, in addition to the standard Shahry plan. Customers can look at their average monthly usage of their mobile phone for local calls, SMS, MMS and Internet, and pick one of five options, each offering a range of call minutes, SMS, MMS, and mobile Internet access.

The Shahry 300 and Shahry 575 Value Pack even enable users to have one free phone number they can select to make unlimited calls to. The free number will enable customers to select a particular friend or colleague they call regularly and never have to pay for mobile calls to that person's number ever again.

The standard Shahry package, which does not have built-in call minutes and 3G services, is still available at its the low price.

All customers no longer have to pay fees for Caller ID and Caller Forward services.

Customers transitioning from the HALA Pay As You Talk service do not have to pay a fee to convert to the Shahry packages, and customers who wish to switch Value Pack Plans can do so every month, at no charge.

At a time when many Qatar residents are keeping a close eye on their family budgets, the combination of value and transparency has proved an attractive combination for many people.

To support new customers for Shahry, Qtel has ensured that the number of free minutes, SMS and MMS corresponds exactly to their billing cycle, so that, in their first month as a Shahry customer, they are billed exactly according to the time available in their account.

For example, customers subscribing to a Shahry Value Pack halfway through a month pay 50% of the first month's fees, and receive half the allocation of minutes, SMS, MMS and Internet access on their account.

The company has also clarified that unlimited free calls on the Shahry One Free Number service means just that for customers in Qatar.

Customers who legitimately use more than 3,000 minutes per month on their one free numbers are not being charged any extra fee. Qtel's Fair Usage Policy, which denotes the maximum number of call minutes, is a legal requirement in line with international standards, designed to prevent abuse and illegal use, such as PRS Revenue Inflation or spamming, and does not affect individual customers' billing.

"We believe that customers have responded so positively to the new Shahry - Pay Monthly service because it really helps them to plan their monthly budgets and maximize the value they get from their mobile phone. Operators have an important duty to be transparent with our customers on all issues - and particularly pricing - and Qtel is encountering a very positive reaction to this policy," concluded Al Mutawa.

The new Shahry Value Packs are part of an ongoing wave of improvements planned for 2009.