Ooredoo Launches Smart City in the Maldives
Taking the Lead in Smart City Solutions That Will Enrich the Lives of People
Doha, Qatar
Ooredoo recently launched its Smart City initiative in the Maldives, committing to connect the nation with smart solutions aimed at enriching the lives of the population.
To kick start the Smart City initiative, Ooredoo announced the introduction of Ooredoo Wi-Fi Hangout Areas across prime spots in the capital city including hospitals, ferry terminals, youth center and cafés. The company will continue to expand this service across the country, enabling customers to obtain seamless access to a fast, secure and affordable internet connection from any location.
Ooredoo will also be providing free Wi-Fi access at public utility areas such as IGMH hospital, ferry terminals and the youth center. Customers are able to use 50 Mb of data per day with the free Wi-Fi service, giving them the opportunity to catch up on news websites or connect with friends and family via social media, email, and social chat platforms such as WhatsApp and Viber. They can also watch videos, video chats and download content by subscribing to available Wi-Fi hotspots.
As a special promotion to celebrate the launch of Ooredoo’s Smart City, the people of Maldives will be able to enjoy free Wi-Fi access at all Ooredoo Wi-Fi Hangout Areas until the end of September.
Ooredoo has already started using smart technologies to support young people. The company has setup a telecenter at Iskandhar School, enabling free access to a number of educational websites, adding to the interactive learning experience of young students.
As cities across the world deal with a growing range of issues, including over-population, traffic congestion, pollution and high levels of energy consumption, the world is observing a rise in the number of “smart cities” – urban areas which use ICT solutions to address mobile, transport, energy sustainability, infrastructure, governance, and security issues.
Speaking at the launch event of Smart City held in Male’ today, the vice-president of Maldives, Mr. Ahmed Adeeb said: “Ooredoo has played an instrumental role in establishing a world class telecommunication sector in the Maldives. We applaud Ooredoo for their support in bringing our vision of establishing smart cities in the Maldives to life. Connecting our people to smart technologies will instigate innovative solutions that tackle key challenges that are prevalent in an urban society, thus paving the way to a better quality of life”.
CEO of Ooredoo Maldives Vikram Sinha: “We are committed towards connecting Maldives and its people to a smarter future. The smart cities concept is synonymous with our belief that we can leverage technology to stimulate human growth across our footprint. We look forward to building on Ooredoo’s expertise in this area, and providing the Maldivian community with smart solutions that can enrich their lives”.
Chairman of the Board of Ooredoo Maldives and Group Chief Officer Small and Medium Business Unit Khalid Al Mahmoud said:“Globally, Ooredoo is contributing to the development and implementation of smart city solutions and networks, supported by our role as a lead partner in the Smart Cities Council. We believe in the power of emerging smart city technologies to enrich people’s lives, and we are eager to offer our expertise to the people of the Maldives in their efforts to build next generation urban environments.”
As a lead partner in the Smart Cities Council, Ooredoo has the opportunity to aid the direction of the emerging smart cities sector in the Maldives and across the world. The Smart Cities Council is a coalition of thought leaders who are collaborating to accelerate the move to smart, sustainable cities.
The launch event also featured a number of smart solutions that connect Ooredoo customers to Smart Homes, Smart Offices, Smart Schools and Smart Surveillance Systems. Ooredoo also demonstrated the opportunities for growth behind Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine to Machine (M2M) services which allow business to connect business assets with each other or a central command center, thereby enabling the automation of routine tasks and maximizing efficiency with minimum investments in manpower, time and cost. Ooredoo’s IoT portfolio currently includes point to point connectivity for Local Area Network extension as well as Ooredoo Locate – a solution that uses GPS technology to remotely track the location of personal vehicles, sea vessels and even individuals such as snorkelers or young children, in real-time using internet-enabled mobile devices.
In line with Ooredoo’s commitment to support the development of smart cities in the Maldives, the company will continue to expand its smart city portfolio over the coming months, empowering people with smart sustainable solutions for prevalent issues across the nation.
The launch of Smart City initiative in the Maldives represents another milestone in a series of Ooredoo’s group-wide innovations that are delivering better results for businesses. At Mobile World Congress in March 2015, Ooredoo’s Indosat launched Indonesia’s first cloud-based “Machine to Machine” (M2M) platform in collaboration with Ericsson, employing technology to advance the banking, transportation, energy and social services sectors in line with the Jakarta administration’s 2018 Smart City masterplan. The platform supports innovative technologies currently used in market development to provide interconnected solutions for existing problems, demonstrating Ooredoo’s commitment to accelerate user connectedness within a closely watched ‘mobile-first’ nation.
Ooredoo is already working with a number of leading organisations to support the development of smart cities, and has signed a strategic alliance with KT Corporation of Korea to introduce new concepts and innovations.
About Ooredoo
Ooredoo is a leading international communications company delivering mobile, fixed, broadband internet and corporate managed services tailored to the needs of consumers and businesses across markets in the Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia. As a community-focused company, Ooredoo is guided by its vision of enriching people’s lives and its belief that it can stimulate human growth by leveraging communications to help people achieve their full potential. Ooredoo has a presence in markets such as Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Algeria, Tunisia, Iraq, Palestine, the Maldives, Myanmar and Indonesia. The company was named “Best Mobile Operator of the Year” at the World Communication Awards 2013.
The company reported revenues of US$9.1 billion in 2014 and had a consolidated global customer base of more than 114 million people as of 30 June 2015. Ooredoo’s shares are listed on the Qatar Exchange and the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
Twitter: @Ooredoo
Facebook: facebook.com/ooredoogroup
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/ooredoo
YouTube:www.youtube.com/ooredoogroup
About Ooredoo Maldives
Ooredoo Maldives provides a wide range of innovative voice and data services tailored to the growing needs of today’s consumers and businesses. Guided by its vision of enriching people’s lives and its belief that it can stimulate human growth by leveraging communications to help people achieve their full potential, Ooredoo has transformed the telecommunications industry for the people of the Maldives.
Website: ooredoo.mv
Twitter: @ooredoomaldives
Instagram: @ooredoomaldives
YouTube: www.youtube.com/ooredoomaldives
