RIYADH: Saudi Arabia plans to liberalize its information and communications technology (ICT) sector to encourage the growth of new services like mobile phones, the Internet and wireless communications, Dr. Abdul Rahman Al Jaafari, governor of the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), said in a statement. The plan includes more reliance on local products than only on exports. The move is in line with the Kingdom's objective of becoming a knowledge-based economy. He said a study showed that there are promising investment opportunities in the sector. The CITC governor quoted a recent study by Arab Advisors Group stating that telecom charges in the Kingdom are on par or lower compared with other countries in the region. Al Jaafari said the prices were going down gradually, and added that the CITC was the regulator of competition in the information and communications technology market and it intervenes in the market to protect consumers by monitoring prices, service quality and the development of services. “We also issue licenses for new operators, as well as for new services, and settle disputes between local telecom operators,” he added.
