Etisalat, one of the leading telecom operators in MEA, has teamed up with Telefonica to provide world class LTE roaming experience to its customers at GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) this year.

Spain’s Telefonica, one of the largest mobile companies in the world, will open its LTE roaming network to selected partner operators as part of a technology trial of its high speed data services at the event. Etisalat delegates will enjoy a seamless roaming experience during MWC being held between 24-27 February. The event attracts the largest number of attendees from the global mobile industry.

Etisalat SmartHub IPX was selected as a partner for the trial due to its reputation and expertise in providing 4G/LTE roaming services, voice service, signalling, messaging service, GRX data exchange between Mobile Network Operator (MNOs), Fixed Network Operator (FNOs), Application Service Provider (ASP) and Over-The-Top content players through a single connection.

Ali Amiri, executive vice president, Carrier & Wholesale Services, Etisalat said: “It’s a matter of pride that Etisalat was chosen as one of the partner operators for the technology trial at such a global event. This will enable our visiting delegates to have a reliable and high quality LTE experience. Such a global event and visiting delegates from worldwide markets deserve world class services and connectivity. We look forward to working with Telefonica in the future for other strategic projects.”

Marjolein Medendorp, International Roaming, Telefónica Spain said: “The technology trial at MWC is vital to showcase our high speed data services to customers from global markets. We chose to work with selected operator partners to provide exclusive connectivity to their delegates. These partners are leading operators in their countries providing an entire gamut of services and solutions to their large subscriber base.”

Currently SmartHub IPX has established successful partnerships with AMSix, Epsilon, Equinix, PCCW Global, SAP, China Telecom, Tata Communications, Orixcom among others, a statement said. – TradeArabia News Service