Nawras has signed an agreement with Huawei to upgrade its Radio Access Network (RAN) by advancing all sites to enhanced 3G+ and increasing coverage, in-building penetration, capacity and the speed of the entire network. At the same time Nawras will be launching 4G LTE technology.

The Oman operator is launching a LTE FDD 4G network in the 1800MHz spectrum band, and together with the TRA’s release of two more 3G+ frequencies, Nawras is looking to at least triple its mobile broadband capacity. This upgrade programme is due to begin in August in Al Amerat.

Around 30 per cent of sites will be upgraded before the end of the year and customers are forecast to immediately notice the difference as they start to receive fast 3G+ and 4G services. The 4G LTE network will cover all major areas of Muscat governate including Ruwi, the central business district, Wadi Kabir, Muttrah, Qurm, Azaiba, Al Khuwair, Ghala, Baushar, Mawaleh and The Wave, by the end of the year. All major cities will enjoy LTE coverage by June 2013.

In addition to the launch of 4G LTE, 3G+ population coverage will rise dramatically from 53 per cent to 97 per cent over the next three years including greater coverage in remote areas across Oman. At the same time as new 3G+ sites are being introduced, the WiMAX home broadband network will be extended further.

Qatar Telecom (Qtel) has offered to buy the remaining 47.5 per cent stake it does not already own in Kuwaiti unit Wataniya, a Kuwaiti bourse statement said on June 26.

Based on Wataniya’s current market capitalisation of US$3.97 billion, the stake is worth about US$1.9 billion, Reuters data estimates.

"Wataniya shares were suspended from trading temporary based on the financial market authority’s instructions. The authority has received a bid from Qatar Telecom to takeover the entire transferable shares of the company," the bourse statement said.

Qtel is being advised by Barclays Capital and the investment banking arm of National Bank of Kuwait, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

The Qtel offer was submitted to Kuwait’s Capital Markets Authority, which is reviewing the proposal, the source said. Based on the authority’s recommendation, Wataniya can review the offer and appoint financial advisors to evaluate it.

Qtel bought the Wataniya stake in 2007 for approximately US$3.7 billion. Kuwait Investment Authority, the Gulf state’s sovereign wealth fund, has a 23.5 per cent stake in Wataniya and the remaining shares are publicly held.

New Kuwaiti capital markets bylaws, introduced last year, requires any entity that acquires more than 30 per cent of a listed Kuwaiti firm to bid for the remaining outstanding shares within 30 days.

Wataniya, whose chief executive resigned earlier in June, has operations in Kuwait, Tunisia, Algeria, the Palestinian Territories, Saudi Arabia and the Maldives. In April, it reported a 90-per cent drop in first-quarter net profit, with earnings from the prior-year period boosted by a one-off fair value gain.

Qtel has been raising stakes in its subsidiaries recently.

Earlier in June, Qtel agreed to double its stake in Iraq’s No. 2 operator Asiacell to 60 per cent for US$1.47 billion as it seeks to exploit rising demand for broadband.

Qtel also owns a majority stake in Omani telco Nawras.

Huawei is looking to invest around US$2 billion in India over the next four years and is currently setting up a global R&D facility in the country.

The company generated revenues of US$1.5 billion in India during the past financial year. Of that US$1.2 billion came from network infrastructure sales and the remaining US$300 million from handset and modem sales.

"2011 was a good year for Huawei because our revenue in India increased about 20 per cent… Last year we began building a new R&D centre in Bangalore, which will house more than 5,000 people," Huawei India CEO Cai Liqun told local media.

The Bangalore facility is estimated to be costing US$150 million and will open next June. The company already has a global network operations centre (GNOC) in the city.

Looking ahead though, Liqun said that 2012 will be tough for the industry due to the lack of clarity about regulatory issues.

BlackBerry-manufacturer Research In Motion (RIM) is reportedly mulling a break-up of the company that could see it spin-off its messaging network from the handset manufacturing division.

The Sunday Times reported that RIM is looking to either list or sell the struggling handset unit – with Amazon and Facebook named as potential suitors. Meanwhile, it said that RIM’s messaging network could also be sold, or opened up to rivals such as Apple and Google.

An alternative option being considered, according to the newspaper, would be to keep the company together but sell a stake to a larger technology firm such as Microsoft.

Last month, RIM said it had enlisted JP Morgan and RBC Capital Markets to help it evaluate various financial strategies, including “opportunities to leverage the BlackBerry platform through partnerships, licensing opportunities and strategic business model alternatives."

RIM will report its latest quarterly earnings (ended June 2) later this week. The firm has already warned it will post an operating loss with “lower volumes and highly competitive pricing dynamics in the marketplace” impacting the business.

MTN Afghanistan has paid US$25 million for Afghanistan’s second 3G licence, following the award of a concession to Etisalat in March. A signing ceremony on June 20 was presided over by the Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority (ATRA) and the ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT).

MTN expects to make 3G services available to its customers within 20 days, though it did not comment on the extent of the network’s planned coverage. At launch, rival Etisalat’s 3G footprint was limited to the capital Kabul, though the network was extended to Jalalabad earlier this month.

Still waiting to be awarded 3G licences are Roshan and the Afghan Wireless Communication Company (AWCC). Both companies have previously expressed intentions to add 3G services, but have been awaiting the disbursal of authorisations. The duo are expected to be offered licences in the near future and at the same price paid by MTN and Etisalat.

As noted by TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, with fewer than 5,000 broadband subscribers at the end of March 2012, but more than 18.5 million wireless subscribers at that date, 3G is poised to satisfy Afghanistan’s demand for Internet services by mobilising the nation’s large wireless market, filling the void left by the poor provision of traditional fixed Internet services.