Orange Jordan, an integrated telecom operator, has launched the first 3G+ networking service in the kingdom.

The new network will preliminarily deliver services to select areas in Amman, Irbid and Zarqa and will gradually expand over the next six months to reach the most populated areas in the kingdom.

'The services that will be delivered by Orange's 3G+ network will greatly bolster internet penetration in the kingdom, which conforms to the national strategy that aims at increasing internet penetration by 50 per cent in the kingdom by 2011,' said Orange Jordan's CEO Nayla Khawam.

Khawam also added that, as part of Orange’s commitment to utilising the full scope of content-driven 3G+ services, the company has signed a strategic partnership agreement with renowned Arab television network MBC, whereby several of the network’s popular programs and series will be streamed exclusively through Orange’s 3G+ network directly to subscribers’ handsets. The service is the first of kind in Jordan, he added.-TradeArabia News Service