RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia will lift a ban on internet phone calls, a government spokesman said, part of efforts to attract more business to the country.

A woman using an iPhone visits the 27th Janadriya festival on the outskirts of Riyadh in this February 13, 2012 file photo. REUTERS/Fahad Shadeed/Files

All online voice and video call services such as Microsoft’s Skype and Facebook’s WhatsApp that satisfy regulatory requirements will become accessible at midnight (2100 GMT), Adel Abu Hameed, spokesman for the telecoms regulator CITC said on Twitter on Wednesday.

The policy reversal represents part of the Saudi government’s broad reforms to diversify the economy partly in response to low oil prices, which have hit the country’s finances.

“Digital transformation is one of the key kick-starters for the Saudi economy, as it will incentivise the growth of internet-based businesses, especially in the media and entertainment industries,” a statement from the information ministry said.

“Access to VoIP (voice over internet protocol) will reduce operational costs and spur digital entrepreneurship – that’s why it is such an important step in the Kingdom’s internet regulation,” it said.

Saudi Arabia - which introduced the ban in 2013 - and its Gulf Arab neighbours have been wary of secure internet communication, which experts say is harder to monitor, especially by activists and militants.

Gulf Arab states, except the island kingdom of Bahrain, were mostly spared the “Arab Spring” mass protests often organised over the Internet which roiled much of the region in 2011.

Lifting the ban could squeeze Saudi Arabia’s three main telecoms operators - Saudi Telecom Co (STC), Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) and Zain Saudi - which earn revenue from international phone and text calls made by the millions of expatriates living in Saudi Arabia.

Iyad Ghulam, senior analyst at Riyadh’s NCB Capital, said due to the policy change, telecoms operators could be looking at a revenue loss of six to seven percent on international calls alone, but that would be at least partially mitigated by higher demand for data.

“This move is basically telling these companies: You have to move on. Stop protecting your voice segment and move on,” he said.

How these companies respond could generate some changes in market share, he said.

The Saudi authorities will continue to regulate the Internet to restrict content that violates the country’s laws such as extremist material, pornography and gambling sites, the information ministry said.</s>A Saudi man uses his mobile to take pictures during Janadriyah Culture Festival on the outskirts of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 8, 2016. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia will remove its ban on internet phone calls on Thursday, a government spokesman said, in a bid to stimulate online business as the kingdom looks to boost non-oil revenue.

All online voice and video call services such as Microsoft's Skype and Facebook's WhatsApp that satisfy regulatory requirements will become accessible at midnight (2100 GMT), Adel Abu Hameed, spokesman for the telecoms regulator CITC said on Twitter on Wednesday.

The lifting of the ban could pinch Saudi Arabia's three main telecoms operators - Saudi Telecom Co (STC), Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) and Zain Saudi - which earn substantial revenue from international phone and text calls made by the millions of expatriates living in the kingdom.

The policy reversal comes as part of the government's broad reform programme to diversify revenue sources as oil prices have hit the finances of the world's top exporter.

"Digital transformation is one of the key kick-starters for the Saudi economy, as it will incentivize the growth of internet-based businesses, especially in the media and entertainment industries," a separate statement from the information ministry said.

"Access to VoIP (voice over internet protocol) will reduce operational costs and spur digital entrepreneurship – that's why it is such an important step in the Kingdom's internet regulation," it said.

The kingdom and its Gulf Arab neighbours have been concerned by the use of secure internet communication - which experts say is harder to monitor - especially by activists and militants.

Gulf Arab states, except the island kingdom of Bahrain, were mostly spared the "Arab Spring" mass protests often organised over the Internet which roiled much of the region in 2011.

They avoided the civil wars which largely followed but face deadly bombing attacks by Islamic State and militancy by fringes of their Shi'ite Muslim populations they say is fuelled by Iran.

The authorities will continue to regulate the Internet in order to restrict content that violates the kingdom's laws such as extremist material, pornography and gambling sites, the information ministry added.</s>Saudi Arabia is lifting its ban on voice calls on Skype, Whatsapp and other applications in the latest in a series of reforms by the kingdom’s new crown prince designed to make the country more attractive for business.

The conservative kingdom has previously banned internet phone calls - known as Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) - restricting the ability of Saudis and expatriate residents to communicate with the outside world.

The government justified the ban in 2013 as a way of trying to “protect society from any negative aspects that could harm the public interest”.

In the years since internet calls have become ubiquitous in international commerce and this week the Saudi government said it was lifting the ban as a way of stimulating the economy.

"Digital transformation is one of the key kick-starters for the Saudi economy, as it will incentivise the growth of internet-based businesses, especially in the media and entertainment industries," a separate statement from the information ministry said.

"Access to VoIP (voice over internet protocol) will reduce operational costs and spur digital entrepreneurship – that's why it is such an important step in the Kingdom's internet regulation," it said.</s>The announcement comes only days after Snapchat blocked Al Jazeera from its app in the conservative Gulf kingdom.

Saudi Arabia is lifting a ban on voice and video calling apps such as WhatsApp and Skype, in a move aimed at boosting productivity and economic growth.

The ministry of communications said access to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) would be “widely available to users” from Wednesday.

It had previously blocked VoIP apps for failing to comply with “regulations”.

The announcement comes only days after Snapchat blocked Al Jazeera from its app in the conservative Gulf kingdom.

Saudi officials accused the Qatar-based network of being a “harmful, propaganda-pushing channel that supports extremism”.

Al Jazeera, which denies the charge, said Snapchat’s actions were a “clear attack on the rights of journalists and media professionals to report and cover stories freely from around the world”.</s>Saudi Arabia today lifted a ban on services that provide access to calling someone over the internet, part of government efforts attempting to attract more business to the country. This means that "all online voice and video call services," including Apple's FaceTime, Microsoft's Skype, and Facebook's WhatsApp, opened up for user access last night at midnight (via Reuters ).These apps and services previously faced harsh regulations in Saudi Arabia with a ban that began in 2013, due to the government's wariness over secure internet communication. Now, users in the country will be able to FaceTime friends and family members, with the Saudi information ministry stating this should help "kick-start" the country's economy after recently being hit by low oil prices.The Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission also published a press release Google Translate ] on the ban's lifting.According to a tipster's email this morning, because iPhones sold in Saudi Arabia have had FaceTime completely blocked in the past, these devices will need some kind of carrier update in order to enable the feature. In response, local carriers are reportedly saying that this update is Apple's responsibility, so it's unclear when such an update will occur.</s>Saudi Arabia will lift its ban on internet calling applications on Wednesday, authorities said, easing restrictions online as the conservative kingdom faces new criticism over censorship.

Voice and video calling apps such as WhatsApp and Skype will be "widely available to users", a government statement said Tuesday, in a move aimed at improving business confidence as the kingdom transitions into a post-oil era.

"Access to VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) will reduce operational costs and spur digital entrepreneurship," the statement said, citing a directive from the communications and technology ministry.

"Digital transformation is one of the key kick-starters for the Saudi economy, as it will incentivise the growth of internet-based businesses, especially in the media and entertainment industries."

The announcement comes a day after Al Jazeera lashed out at Snapchat for blocking the Qatari broadcaster from its app in Saudi Arabia at the request of Saudi authorities.

Saudi Arabia has long accused Al Jazeera of acting as a mouthpiece for extremist groups, a charge it denies.

Alongside the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain, Saudi Arabia imposed a blockade on Qatar in June, in the worst diplomatic crisis to roil the Gulf in years.

Al Jazeera condemned the blocking as an assault on freedom of expression but the Saudi government vigorously defended its position.

"The recent cooperation with Snapchat to remove Al Jazeera, a harmful, propaganda-pushing channel that supports extremism, should not be considered in isolation or interpreted as a crackdown on free media," the Saudi statement said.

Saudi Arabia, with its bulging youth population, is among the world's top per capita users of social media.

The internet represents a limited space for freedom of expression in a country with strict social codes.

More than half of Saudi Arabia's citizens are under 25, who spend much of their time on social media platforms, away from official strictures and traditions.</s>In the CITC spokesman's words, the ban is being lifted to make way for more business over the internet:

This decision comes in line with the recent trends in the ICT sector; the reliance on data revenues (Internet delivery) and added services is the global trend that operators in the Kingdom should take. He added that the Authority is working with all stakeholders to provide all the telecom subscribers in the Kingdom of the finest services that meet their aspirations and satisfy their needs.

Saudi Arabia originally introduced the ban in 2013 out of wariness for services like WhatsApp and Skype, which have secure communications protocols that are difficult to externally monitor, according to Reuters. Lifting the ban will make it easier for people and businesses to operate, but it will also likely end up cutting into profits of the country's three telecoms (Saudi Telecom Co, Mobily and Zain) which were the only providers of international phone and data calls while the ban was in place.</s>Saudi Arabia lifted its ban on internet-based calling applications such as WhatsApp and Skype on Wednesday, AFP reported. The government said voice and video calling apps will now be “widely available to users”, and that this would help cut costs and promote entrepreneurship in the digital space.

“Digital transformation is one of the key kick-starters for the Saudi economy, as it will incentivise the growth of internet-based businesses, especially in the media and entertainment industries,” the kingdom said in a statement on Tuesday.

The move comes just days after Saudi Arabia asked social media and technology company Snap Inc to remove the Al Jazeera Discover Publisher channel in the country, claiming that it violates local laws. The conservative country has often been accused of censorship.

On September 13, Abdullah Al-Sawah, the country’s minister of communications and information technology had announced on Twitter that the ban would be lifted within a week. He had tweeted that this was “in cooperation with our telecom partners” and in line with “our customer first policy”. “We still strive for more,” he had said.</s>Riyadh: The Saudi government is lifting a ban on calls made through online apps on Thursday but will monitor and censor them, a government spokesman said.

All online voice and video call services—such as Microsoft’s Skype, Facebook’s WhatsApp and Messenger, and Rakuten’s Viber—that satisfy regulatory requirements were set to become accessible overnight.

However, on Thursday morning, Viber appeared to remain blocked inside the kingdom, and WhatsApp worked only when connected to a wireless network.

Adel Abu Hameed, spokesman for telecoms regulator CITC, said on Arabiya TV on Wednesday that new regulations were aimed mainly at protecting users’ personal information and blocking content that violated the kingdom’s laws.

Asked if the apps could be monitored by the authorities or companies, he said: “Under no circumstances can the user use an application for video or voice calling without monitoring and censorship by the communications and information technology commission, whether the application is global or local.”

It was unclear how the authorities can monitor apps such as WhatsApp, which says its messages are supported by end-to-end encryption, meaning the company cannot read customers’ messages even if approached by law enforcement agencies.

Saudi Arabia, which introduced blocks to internet communications from 2013, has along with its Gulf Arab neighbours been wary that such services could be used by activists and militants.

Gulf Arab states, except the island kingdom of Bahrain, were mostly spared the Arab Spring mass protests, often organized over the internet, that roiled much of the region in 2011.

Lifting the ban represents part of the Saudi government’s broad reforms to diversify the economy, partly in response to low oil prices, which have hit the country’s finances.

Yet the policy reversal could squeeze Saudi Arabia’s three main telecoms operators—Saudi Telecom Co. (STC), Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) and Zain Saudi—which earn revenue from international phone calls made by the millions of expatriates living in the kingdom. Reuters</s>Lifting a longtime ban, Saudi Arabia will open up the country to online calling services. Apps like Skype and WhatsApp will become functional in the country on Wednesday at midnight local time. The announcement came from the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), Saudi Arabia’s telecommunications regulatory authority.

In a news release, the CITC explained its decision to reverse the internet and VoIP calling ban, which it implemented in 2013:

“The Spokesman for the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), Mr. Adel Abu Hameed, today announced the lifting of the ban on all applications that provide voice and video communications over the Internet that meet the regulatory requirements in the Kingdom, starting on Thursday… [at midnight]. He added that applications that meet the regulatory requirements will be available to all users of telecommunications services, for example, TimeTime, [Snapchat], Skype, Line, Telegram, Tango and other applications, except those applications that are very limited to meet regulatory requirements. This decision comes in line with the recent trends in the ICT sector; the reliance on data revenues (Internet delivery) and added services is the global trend that operators in the Kingdom should take. He added that the Authority is working with all stakeholders to provide all the telecom subscribers in the Kingdom of the finest services that meet their aspirations and satisfy their needs.”

The change is expected to impact Saudi Telecom Company, Mobily and Zain, the country’s three major telecoms which had exercised control over the market for international calling over the course of the ban.
Saudi Arabia lifts its 2013 ban on internet calls, effective midnight local time (21:00 UTC).