Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) chairman Dr Mohammed Al Amer has dismissed as untrue reports that it is considering a fourth mobile operator licence in the kingdom.

Bahrain's telecom market is now saturated after the launch of the third mobile operator, VIVA, but a potential demographic growth may require an additional mobile phone company, Dr Al Amer told our sister paper Akhbar Al Khaleej.

The authority is also in the process of working out a system to curb troublesome short messages sent by many companies to their customers at their expense, he said.

A guide book on phone masts will be issued in co-operation with municipal councils to regulate their installation in villages, he added.-TradeArabia News Service