Qtel rebrands as Ooredoo in Qatar
Muscat, 17 March 2013 – Ooredoo, the group of companies formerly known as the Qtel Group, and the majority shareholder in Nawras, recently unveiled the new brand at a spectacular multimedia and theatrical event in Doha. Qatar Telecom (Qtel) became the first company in the group to unite under the new ‘Ooredoo’ identity in a move that will bring a new dimension to communications for the entire group of companies.
Ross Cormack, Nawras CEO, said, “This is an exciting transition that marks the next step in the evolution of our major shareholder and strengthens our position as part of this global brand. The new identity highlights the customer centric values on which the group was founded. Customers in Oman will benefit from the unity of Ooredoo as all operators in the Group share a common goal to enrich the lives of people in the countries where they operate. Nawras is proud to be a part of Ooredoo.”
Speaking at the ceremony, H.E. Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al Thani, Ooredoo Chairman, said, “We have always put our customers at the heart of our business, and this new name shows that we want to be closer to our customers and engage with them in everything that we do. We are proud that Qatar, where the business was born, is the first country in Ooredoo’s international network to integrate with the new global brand. We are not simply about making connections, we are about enriching and empowering the people of Qatar and helping them achieve their goals.”
More than 2,000 people including government ministers, ambassadors, media professionals and customers of the company attended the event, which was broadcast live on Qatar TV. The celebration also featured a specially-branded film and theatrical performances. Concluding the ceremony, a large group of children holding red balloons entered the amphitheatre, treating the audience to an amazing ballet performance.
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.
About Nawras:
Omani Qatari Telecommunications Company SAOG was founded and registered in the Sultanate of Oman in December 2004. It launched its service in March 2005 as the challenger mobile operator in Oman operating under the name Nawras. Nawras was awarded the second fixed licence in Oman in 2009, and launched its international gateway in April 2010, its corporate fixed and broadband services in May 2010, and its residential fixed and broadband services in June 2010. Since 2010, Nawras has been an integrated services telecommunications operator and is currently serving around 2 million customers across the Sultanate. Following a successful IPO, Nawras is listed on the Muscat Stock Market (MSM) under the “nwrs” ticker since 1 November 2010. Nawras is majority owned by Ooredoo, formerly known as Qtel Group, and also has a number of significant Omani shareholders which ensures that the company is strongly integrated into the Omani society. Nawras has won a number of awards including Customer Service Excellence Award in Telecom Sector 2012 from Oman Customer Care Conference, Innovation in HR Strategy 2011 from Asia’s Best Employer Brand Awards, Outstanding Leader from TMT Finance Middle East 2011, Best IPO in the Middle East from emeafinance magazine and Strategic Leadership Award from Global HR Excellence Awards 2011.
About Ooredoo:
Ooredoo, formerly known as Qtel Group, 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 South-East 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 and Indonesia. The company reported sales of $8.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2011 and had a consolidated global customer base of more than 89.2 million people as of 30 September 2012. Ooredoo’s ultimate parent company is Qatar Telecom (Qtel) Q.S.C., whose shares are listed on the Qatar Exchange and the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
