10 million new numbers
“We will communicate the introduction of the new range very soon. We are already working closely with TRA to ensure the availability of the new range,” he added.
This will make available 10 million new numbers for mobile phones to accommodate the expected volume of demand in the coming period.
In Oman, there are 6,661,166 mobile subscribers, with a penetration level of 155 per cent.
The country’s population is around 4 million.
Prepaid mobile subscribers by the end of April this year stood at 6,063,434, up from 6,045,312 in March last year, while postpaid mobile connections stood at 597,732 by the end of April, up slightly from 597,558 subscribers at the end of March last year.
TRA said the introduction of the number seven is in response to the growing demand for telecommunications numbers due to the exhaustion of number nine blocks.
“In this context, TRA would like to state that the level block numbers starting with the number seven provide an additional option for mobile phone users rather than an alternative to the currently used level nine,” it stated.
The authority is committed to managing all the telecommunications numbers in Oman to ensure implementation of the National Numbering Plan to meet the growing demand for both fixed and mobile phone numbers, with regards to population growth and the rise in ICT use in business and commercial entities in Oman.
TRA operated closely with licensed operators to launch this level by preparing the technical aspects and the international coordination of the level seven number block with the licensees.