Etisalat launches SMS-based translation service powered by Sakhr

Users send a phrase or word to a number in one of the languages and receive the translations on their phone. This service is offered in partnership with Sakhr Software Co., operators of www.ajeeb.com, one of the most popular online translation resources in the region.

Mohammed Al Fahim, Etisalat's Executive Vice President for Marketing, said: "In this multicultural society of ours, this service should be a great help. People would not need to worry about being unable to communicate with someone who does not speak their language, as they could probably just show them their mobile screen with the required query or message. We are sure that this service will see more success than the online option, and would be of particular use to college and university students for their course-work."

"We are certain of the success of this venture in the UAE due to the excellent reputation enjoyed by Etisalat," said Fahad Al Sharekh, Business Development Manager, Sakhr Software Co. "The quality of the translation provided by this service is the same exceptional high quality translation available at Ajeeb.com for the translation of texts and websites."

The service offers good value. For a message charged at 60 Fils, the user can send 160 English characters and 70 Arabic characters via SMS to 1001. (Messages over this amount will be considered as multiple messages.) Translations will be sent back to the same number. Tarjim will be available to both prepaid and postpaid mobile subscribers.

The website www.ajeeb.com is the premier multilingual portal in the region that provides translation services between English and Arabic. The website processes more than 2 million word requests a day from 0.5 million users. Their records show that over 3 per cent of these requests are from the UAE.