Saudi Arabia set to lift ban on video calling apps Skype and WhatsApp

Saudi officials say the move aims to boost economic growth in sectors apart from oil

All online voice and video call services that satisfy regulatory requirements will become accessible at midnight local time (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 local time, said Adel Abu Hameed, spokesman for the telecoms regulator CITC, on Twitter.

The lifting of the ban could pinch Saudi Arabia’s three main telecoms operators – Saudi Telecom, Etihad Etisalat and Zain Saudi – which earn substantial revenue via 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 kickstarters 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.

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) mostly managed to avoid the “Arab Spring” mass protests – often organised over the Internet – which roiled much of the region in 2011.

They also avoided the civil wars which largely followed; however, they face deadly bombing attacks by Islamic State and militancy by fringes of their Shia Muslim population which 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.

Reuters