Omantel to introduce IP telephony soon

Oman Telecoms Company (Omantel) is looking to introduce voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) telephony for its subscribers, thereby reducing the price of international calls for Oman residents. ‘We are working on all the aspects, including tariffs for [VoIP] to be introduced,’ Omantel CEO Dr Mohammad Bin Ali Al Wohaibi told a news conference the company HQ in Muscat. He said that the tariff would be much lower than the current PSTN charge, but the migration from PSTN to VoIP would not happen overnight, and the price would not be dramatically reduced, ‘otherwise Omantel revenues will show a sharp drop.’ He acknowledged that several cybercafes in the country were offering VoIP illegally. ‘The Telecommunication Regulatory Authority deals with them but we do monitor the culprits and bring [them] to the TRA’s notice,’ he said.