Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
03AMMAN1544
2003-03-13 15:12:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Amman
Cable title:  

JORDANIAN TELECOMS PREPARED FOR CONFLICT PRESSURES

Tags:  ECPS EINV BEXP JO 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 001544 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

COMMERCE FOR 4520/ITA/MAC/ONE/COBERG

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECPS EINV BEXP JO
SUBJECT: JORDANIAN TELECOMS PREPARED FOR CONFLICT PRESSURES


UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 001544

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

COMMERCE FOR 4520/ITA/MAC/ONE/COBERG

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECPS EINV BEXP JO
SUBJECT: JORDANIAN TELECOMS PREPARED FOR CONFLICT PRESSURES



1. (SBU) SUMMARY: In recent meetings with Jordanian telecom
operators, we were assured that fixed-line and wireless
telecom networks were prepared for pressures on their systems
in the event of a conflict in neighboring Iraq. Plans have
been made to protect physical infrastructure, fleets,
offices, and equipment, and officials fully expected their
networks to be able to handle any strains on the system
brought on by heavy call volume. END SUMMARY


2. (SBU) There are but two major players in the Jordanian
telecom sector: Jordan Telecom (JT),(owned by the Jordanian
Government--41.5%, France Telecom--40%, the Social Security
Corporation--13%, and miscellaneous investors--5.5%) and
parent company of mobile provider MobileCom, and Fastlink,
recently purchased from Egyptian Orascom by the Kuwaiti
Mobile Telecommunications Company. JT currently has 650,000
land-line subscribers. Fastlink dominates the wireless
market, however, with 700,000 subscribers to MobileCom's
300,000. More rapid than expected growth in Fastlink's
client base last year put a strain on the company's
infrastructure, resulting in occasional periods of system
failure, most notably during a snowstorm in January, 2002.

--------------
FASTLINK IS FINE
--------------


3. (SBU) On March 12, Fastlink CEO Michael Dagher told us
that since last year, the company has spent $120 million
upgrading its infrastructure, and he was confident any surge
in traffic could "smoothly" be accommodated in the event of
conflict. He pointed out that there were no system outages
during the late February blizzard in Amman, when the city was
carpeted with 28 inches of snow, likewise during the recent
Eid holidays when the network was handling twice the normal
local traffic. He attributed the increase in capacity to the
upgrades, and expressed confidence that Fastlink could, at
present, handle 1.5 million customers at any given time.
Dagher said he was more concerned about international calls,
given what he said was limited capacity on the part of JT,
currently the only legal provider for international traffic
in and out of Jordan.


4. (SBU) Dagher also said that the company is working with
the Ministry of Information Communication and Technology

(MOICT) regarding security of Fastlink buildings and
infrastructure, which is largely located within the Amman
headquarters. Fastlink also has towers spread out throughout
the country, and those will be guarded as well. Dagher added
that Fastlink will depend on cameras, alarms, and a large
(100 person) security force to protect company assets,
including Dagher's private home.

--------------
JT READY
--------------


5. (SBU) Olivier Faure, JT Director of Marketing, told us
March 9 they had "no worries" about the system's ability to
handle either heightened domestic volume or international
calls. He said that 70% of Jordan Telecom's traffic is
within the Middle East and that the network is fully equipped
to handle it. Faure said the company also had no strong
concerns about international traffic backing up. He said
additional switches recently added by JT should help the
network accommodate calls from Jordan to the United States.
He added that JT "can not control how traffic comes in," and
fell back on the familiar JT refrain about long distance
traffic bypassing JT's infrastructure via low-cost foreign
carriers or pirated by illegal voice over IP operators.
Faure said that MobileCom recorded no outages during the
recent snowstorm, and that only a few of JT's fixed-line
customers lost service due to phone lines downed by trees or
heavy snow.


6. (SBU) Regarding JT's infrastructure, Faure said that the
company's concerns were twofold: collateral or intentional
damage to infrastructure, and interruption of fuel/energy
supplies. Regarding the former, he said JT was working with
the government to get extra police and military protection
for buildings, switches, and towers. Faure said the bigger
problem could be servicing the network should either the JT
maintenance fleet be unable to move due to a cutoff in fuel
stocks, or equipment suffer damage as a result of an
interruption in energy supply or flow. On the whole,
however, Faure said both the wireless and the fixed-line
networks would be "okay."

--------------
COMMENT
--------------


7. (SBU) Unlike the 2001 snowstorm, when the Fastlink
network went down for a number of hours, Jordanian telecoms
seem well-prepared for any surge in volume due to possible
conflict in Iraq. If last month's blizzard, which
effectively shut down the city for almost four days, was a
test-run of sector infrastructure's ability to handle an
increase, it appears that the confidence of Jordanian telecom
officials may not be misplaced, absent any serious and
long-term damage to infrastructure or equipment. On the
other hand, problems--unrelated to military operations--with
poor quality inbound voice and fax service can be expected to
persist until the GOJ takes decisive action to address the
regulatory and pricing issues that are their core.
GNEHM