Etisalat Academy's Fixed-Mobile Convergence conference opens

The event is being held at the Etisalat Academy in Dubai between the 22nd and 24th of May 2006.

Chief Executive Officers, Technical Managers, Professionals, and Senior Engineers from Etisalat, the UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, Ericsson, Alcatel, Siemens, Huawei, Nokia, Juniper, Lucent Technologies, the International Telecommunications Union attended the conference. Delegates from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and Nigeria also took part in the conference.

Fixed-Mobile Convergence aims to empower consumers with a consistent communications experience whether at home or on the move. FMC combines the convenience, freedom of movement and personalized services of the wireless world with the high quality and speed of fixed-line communications. Some benefits that consumers could look forward to are one handset, one phone number, and better quality of indoor calls.

Mohammed Hassan Omran, Chairman of Etisalat, said:

'Etisalat constantly works towards bringing varied modern aspects of technology to the region and especially to the UAE. This conference brings together the dedicated international experts in this field to update the region and share their experience on FMC being implemented internationally.'

He also added, 'We are very pleased that Etisalat, represented by Etisalat Academy, organized such a distinguished conference for the first time in the region.'

Dr. Doaa Fares, General Manager, Etisalat Academy, said: 'The Academy's initiative to organize this conference is part of its strategy to draw attention to the latest developments in the field of telecommunication in the world. Fixed-Mobile Convergence focuses on increasing revenues while at the same time reducing expenses. Our aim is to explain and highlight technical and business issues related to FMC and we are happy to see the enthusiasm with which the conference has been received.'

The first day of presentations covered various topics related to the current business, technical, policy, regulatory and service aspects of FMC. Industry leaders and operators shared their experiences in technologies and services they have used till date. Mohsen Malaki, Senior Program and Consulting Manager, IDC Consultant CEMA Region, was the first to take the stage and presented 'Implications of FMC on different players in the telecommunications market.' He concluded the discussions with his presentation on 'Marketing strategies for emerging applications and revenue increase.

Other international professionals also offered their expertise on FMC. Christine Sund, Policy Analyst, International Telecommunication Union, spoke about 'FMC competition policies and regulatory parameters.' Ilka Lakaniemi, Senior Manager, FMC, Nokia Networks, discussed 'Gains from FMC.' Chandra Tekwani, VP, Mobile, IMS/FMC Solutions, Juniper Networks, spoke about 'Secured and assured solution for FMC.' Taqi Baig, Technical Sales Manager, Lucent Technologies, discussed 'IMS - Core Infrastructure.' Hamadi Baklouti, Head of Technical Sales Core Departments, Siemens Communications, presentation was about 'Wireless technology networks integration and their impact on FMC.'

Akif Azmirat, Technology Training Manager, Etisalat Academy, said: 'The conference covers 4 main aspects of Fixed-Mobile Convergence- the convergence of handsets, access technology, backbone network, and services. Etisalat has already implemented parts of the convergence of backbone network with the Next Generation Network for fixed-lines and third generation (3G) mobiles.'

To conclude the conference, on the third day there will be a half day workshop to examine the international FMC service launches and different FMC- enabling technologies.