GSM Association announces 2002 Annual Awards nominees

The Awards will once again honor those behind the very best products and services that support and continue to build the global market for the GSM family of technologies.

Fastlink was one of only three GSM operators worldwide to win more than one nomination, with the company reaching the final shortlist for the two categories: Wireless in the Community/Wireless Accessibility Award and Marketing and Promotion/Best Television Commercial. Competing against Fastlink in the first category will be Telia Mobile of Denmark, and MTN Networks of Sri Lanka, While Mobitai Communications Corporation of Taiwan and Sonera Corporation, Mobile Operations of Finland will race Fastlink for top position in the second category.

Fastlink won the first nomination on account of its Hard of Hearing and Deaf (HH&D) package launched last September. The company was the first GSM operator in the Middle East and North Africa area, and amongst the first in the world, to launch such a dedicated package for persons with special needs. It followed and extensive survey of HH&D institutions to identify the concentration of HH&D persons and to determine their socio-economic conditions. Fastlink provided basic training in sign language to its shop reps. The training was carried out by a deaf woman, who during the one month of training provided support to shop reps who would be servicing the Hard Hearing and Deaf.

The second nomination was given on account of the well-known EZSuper commercial that made its debut on the Jordan TV screen last August.

'The awards program for 2002 includes a much stronger emphasis on the consumer and corporate benefits of wireless technology, to reflect the increasingly widespread acceptance of mobile communications for both voice and data in the domestic as well as the business world,' commented Rob Conway, CEO of the GSM Association.

'As well as honoring companies who contribute to the growth of the wireless economy, the awards highlight the importance of the GSM family of technologies in the general community, demonstrating how wireless connectivity can improve, enhance, and even save lives,' added Conway.

'We received with great pleasure and pride news of our nomination for two of the GSM Association's prizes. The fact that we were nominated for both the marketing and community categories reflects Fastlink's balanced approach between establishing a profitable business that appeals to its customers and shouldering its social responsibilities as an exemplary corporate citizen of Jordan. I personally believe that our nomination today is not only an achievement for Fastlink but rather a significant milestone for the telecommunications industry in Jordan that now beginning to garner international acclaim.'

Now in their seventh year, the Awards recognize excellence and innovation across the wireless communications industry, and are open to companies whose products and services support and continue to enhance the global market for the GSM family of technologies.

The panel of judges for the GSM 2002 Awards comprises professionals from a range of areas within the wireless industry, and includes representatives from the research arena, GSM operator community, media, business-to-business and commercial concerns.

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