Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) has signed an agreement with UAE-based next-generation ICT provider Smartworld to provide desktop solutions to customers. The new deal is aim to specifically help smaller companies as opposed to corporate giants, smaller enterprises that don't necessarily have the immense budgets needed to build large internal technical structures, the Dubai-based Gulf News daily quoted Mustafa Kaddoura, CEO of Smartworld, as saying. "Small and medium enterprises are set to benefit the most from this partnership due to the fact that SMEs don't have the same in-house capability or capacity to manage their IT infrastructure as large enterprises," Kaddoura said. "For example, SME's usually don't pay much attention to their IT security and this can jeopardise the whole SME business itself. Also there is a commercial advantage by moving to managed services or IT outsourcing by reducing their initial capital investment," he added. Kaddoura said the deal was sealed in mid-September and will forge a new partnership between his company and Mobily for some time to come. "Smartworld has signed a strategic agreement with Mobily to provide its business customers with the latest managed desktop solutions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia," Kaddoura said. "Smartworld's Smart Desktop product will be offered to Mobily business customers along Mobily data services as a bundle for small, medium and large enterprises." Clinching a large-scale agreement with Mobily is an accomplishment for relative newcomer Smartworld and will reflect well upon the company. "Mobily's value propositions to Saudi market always proved to be superior and attractive. Our partnership agreement with Mobily is based on a frame contract across all their business segments. We are expecting great potential from this partnership which could easily reach multi-million dollars deal in the first few months of the year," he said.
