MTC-Vodafone - main sponsor for 'Hala February' festival

The prime organizer of the festival, Ahmad Al Mishari, presented a special "plaque" as a symbol of appreciation from the festival's management to Dr. Saad Al Barrak, Director General for MTC, in recognition of the role the company plays in the Kuwaiti market, as well as its effective contribution to the bond within the Kuwaiti society and for its encouragement of the initiative taken by the private sector.

As a main sponsor of the Hala February Festival, MTC-Vodafone will also be present in the First Gulf Anthem on February 6, followed by a celebrity performance, starring Samir Ghanim in "Do Re Mi Fasolia" on February 15 and 16. Sheikh Amro Khalid will also lecture at the festival on February 6 at the Hala February Theatre. Finally, the official opening of the Hala February Carnival will take place on February 22 starting at 10:00am.

Al Barrak declared that "MTC will be the main sponsor to "Hala February" festival, which is becoming a prominent mark and attribute for Kuwait since it was first launched four years ago."

He added "Since MTC is one of the largest establishments in the country, it is aware of the need to participate strongly in such a big event, which has become correlated with the country; especially that it embodies the preeminent advertisement of the economy, tourism and media."

Al Barrak further explained that not only does the "Hala Febrayer" festival reflect an awareness of economic factors that affect the country, but also a represents a social event. He elaborated that it holds special importance to families and societies, and offers many citizens, expatriates and visitors an intense dosage of culture, sports and arts.

Al Barrak stressed that Kuwait's position and capabilities allows it to regain its commercial position through such festivals that reflect the country's qualities and potentials. He also pointed that the "Hala Febrayer" festival holds an exceptional place in the Kuwaiti's hearts since it coincides with Kuwait's National and Liberation Days. Al Barrak clarified that such festivals represent a means of significant marketing, tourism and commercial awareness to many countries, and that they help revive the commercial aspect within. They also aid to increase retail sales as well as the number of visitors that come into the country. Hence, MTC's sponsorship of the festival.

Al Barrak said "MTC represents today a unique model in its field" stating that it has achieved several accomplishments in more than one aspect: the company's clear vision to define proper expansion plans in order to enhance the chances of its presence and good execution.

Kuwait
Al Barak said: "MTC has maintained its leading position in Kuwait with regards to market share and profitability levels, indicating that the company did not stop at this point of success but strived to offer its customers the latest services and technology, which has helped increase its customer base to 1.2 million customers. Al Barrak revealed that during the past year MTC has achieved an unsurpassed accomplishment by increasing its market share by 82% in comparison to the previous
year, explaining that the company is heading in the right direction towards using the latest technologies in transferring information.

Jordan
Al Barrak said that MTC has structured itself in the regional markets and has increased its international presence through introducing sophisticated mobile technology with international standards."The company has set a strategic plan to achieve profits for its shareholders and increase their overall satisfaction with the general work done, indicating that the first step was acquiring the most shares of the stock in Jordan's FastLink, the leader of mobile technology in Jordan.

He has disclosed that FastLink is one of the leaders in providing advanced mobile technology and informational equipment signifying that its customer base has reached 1.1 million subscribers with a market share reaching 70%.

Bahrain
Al Barrak unveiled that MTC- Vodafone Bahrain acquired 20% of the local market share within the first year of operation, specifying that the company's launch in the Bahraini market was accompanied by the introduction of "EDGE and 3G in the Middle East.

He revealed that the actual results exceeded the company's expectations for the Bahraini market, and is anticipating the same progress this year, considering that the company is striving to work on all facets of the services offered, network capacity and introducing the latest existing technology.

Iraq
With regards to the latest results of the Iraqi Atheer network that the company holds 50% of its shares, Al Barrak explained that the company was able to supply the Iraqi people what they needed in mobile services in record time, which was a real challenge in light of the hostile environment in the country which everyone is aware of.

He mentioned that Atheer network covers the south border in Iraq along with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia reaching up to the county's center, and indicated that the company is executing a clear strategy of establishing a wide and independent network that covers the largest possible area, one that can accommodate up to 300,000 subscribers. In the meantime the company is investing $120 million which helps in supporting and reviving the engineering, commerce and sales sectors.

Al Barrak added that the company covers all the areas required from it, serves 60,000 subscribers, and is getting ready to expand on the promising market.

Lebanon
Al Barrak went on elucidating the company's accomplishments and expansions in the past two years and the achieved successful growth saying "After the success realized in the Jordanian, Bahraini and Iraqi markets, the company decided to be present in Lebanon and obtained an official license to manage one of its two cellular companies and changed its trademark to MTC Touch.

He indicated that the cellular market in Lebanon is promising and one of the most important markets in the region, adding that starting with this aspect, the company will expand its presence by offering and advancing its services with the hopes that the company will be able to gain a larger market share. He expressed the company's goal to exceed it's current market share of 23% and try to attain 40% in record time by acquiring an extra 160,000 subscribers to reach a total of 560,000 subscribers for a client base.

Al Barrak spoke of the company's new and innovative ideas about to be jointly offered by its partners in Lebanon and abroad. At the same time, the company is mutually working with the Lebanese Ministry of Communication to add 250,000 lines to its network in the coming two years in order to expand the services offered to its clients.

5 Million subscribers
Al Barrak confirmed that the company has plans to reach 5 million subscribers by the end 2005, pointing out that the company is working to achieve this goal by searching for opportunities in new markets and by acquiring shares in existing and established
companies.

He declared that the company has 2.8 million subscribers and it will continue to seek out more opportunities in the region to achieve its strategy. In turn, it will move to a new strategy that will cover the markets in the outer region.