Now, as you know we offer great VoIP services (it’s a humble brag but bear with me) and you as a business also know that VoIP cuts costs and overall helps you and your business. However, not everyone gets the privilege to use VoIP – specifically speaking, our good friends in the UAE.
Due to UAE’s VoIP policy, VoIP apps such as Whatsapp and Viber were and still are restricted via firewalls that restrict traffic. Although users were allowed to use these apps’ messaging features, calls from the apps were blocked.
Why is VoIP blocked in the UAE?
Government-owned telecoms companies such as du and Etisalat want to maintain complete control over UAE’s telecommunications sector, to them, VoIP is a threat.
And what’s the best way to kill competitors? Establish a policy that blocks competitors.
Why is VoIP considered a threat?
VoIP means that residents of the UAE will be able to make low-cost calls internationally. Therefore, by giving residents the ability to use VoIP applications, the revenue of UAE telecoms giants, du and Etisalat will be in jeopardy.
Amongst the VoIP applications in the UAE, one of the few and withstanding apps which could still allow calls was Skype. However, things have changed.
Over the last week, Skype users have noted that Skype which gives the residents the ability to bypass traditional service providers has slowed down.
Why is the slow down an issue?
Well, the slowdown ‘coincidentally’ coincides with the release of regulated VoIP apps from UAE telecoms operators du and Etisalat. The two operators have encouraged users to buy their licensed apps instead of using Skype.
In light of these ‘coincidences,’ Skype users around the UAE have launched a campaign on change.org and have amassed 900 signatures.
However, in response to this campaign, the UAE’s federal telecoms regulator has once more stated that there will be no changes towards UAE’s VoIP applications.
“The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) clarifies that there is no change in the UAE’s Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Policy,” the regulator said in an emailed statement to The National. “TRA reconfirms that any applications or services of this type must comply with the applicable regulatory framework in the country.”
As of this year, Skype calls are now blocked and of course, this has been met with outrage. Businesses that rely on Skype VoIP services are unable to run properly, expats living in the UAE are unable to call their families.
2018 is around the corner and still #UAE has to block/throttle VOIP calls. I’ve had five to six business @skype calls cancelled this week just because of connection issues. Come on guys, this is getting ridiculous. How can we advance if this hasn’t still been worked out?
— Abdulrahman (@Abdi) December 23, 2017
Hi,
The access to the Skype App is blocked since it is providing unlicensed Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) Service, which falls under the classification of prohibited contents as per the United Arab Emirates' Regulatory Framework. Thanks— e& UAE (@eAndUAE) December 28, 2017
https://twitter.com/PlutoPeachie/status/946553182540521473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fs9e.github.io%2Fiframe%2Ftwitter.min.html%23946553182540521473
So as we pay our final respects to Skype, we’d like to wish all UAE users well.
