Tag Archives | ministry of telecommunications

Dual SIM Phones and Mandatory IMEI Registration in Lebanon

By Rami on September 13, 2018 in Telecom

Earlier this month the ministry of telecommunication brought back the mandatory IMEI registration as an attempt to keep dealers from smuggling mobile phones into the country without paying any customs duty. In principle, buyers are not required to do anything when buying a legal phone from the local market, but they will of course have to pay the due tax when getting a phone from abroad.

Before this new mechanism became effective, the ministry asked people to insert a SIM card in their old devices in order for the cellular networks to recognize them as “legal” devices in the future. I imagine the majority did it, but some people who use dual SIM phone might have missed to insert a card into their second SIM slot (I know I did!) since each slot has a different IMEI number that should be registered with one of the available networks.

My friend who uses a supposedly legal Sony XZ1 recently tried using a second line in his second SIM slot and received the below SMS from MoT.

Funnily enough, when he contacted 111 to ask about the issue they literally answered “el SIM mish mjamrak” instead of explaining to him that he should have inserted a card into that second slot prior to the first of September. The guy also went to LibanPost to inquire about the fees he should pay in order for his phone to work properly and they had absolutely no idea what should be done in his case!

So in brief, in case you have a dual SIM phone and also forgot about that second slot you have in you device, then you should know it will only function for 90 days when you need it.

Lebanon To Introduce Biometric Verification for SIM Cards?

By Rami on December 6, 2017 in Telecom

Registration of SIM cards and mobile handsets is nothing new in Lebanon as you are currently required to present your ID card and have a photo of you taken on the spot when buying a new SIM, and handsets registration was introduced back in 2013 before getting canceled a year later.

However, it seems like the ministry of telecom is looking to up their standards of verifying SIM cards by planning to soon introduce biometric information which I find to be quite weird. I mean I totally understand using biometric checks for ID card or passports, but why would you want to do the same for something that is “mobile” in nature and can easily transferred from one person to another? The only logical explanation is that someone is simply arranging yet another corrupt deal. We’re nearing the end of year and they probably need to have their budget fixed… but then again, who are we to doubt their intentions! 😀

Anyway, what concerns me the most is why should we be forced to provide these critical information to two private companies who’s networks have been infiltrated by Israel a few years ago? (Anyone recalls the cases of Charbel Qazzi and Tarek Rabaa?) Such information about us should only be possessed by the government. And whoever thinks such measure will easily help identify suspect terrorists in the country is probably missing the fact that there a million other way to communicate securely other than using a SIM card…

In all cases, you can check this report by LBCI about the matter. If this thing gets into effect, you will be given a deadline to register your SIM at authorized centers, otherwise your phone line will be deactivated.

Mandatory IMEI Registration is Coming Back – Mobile Phones to Get More Expensive

By Rami on September 11, 2017 in Telecom

I was at a mobile phone shop in Beirut yesterday when I heard some people claiming that the Ministry of Telecommunications is bringing back the mandatory registrations of mobile phones IMEI in a new attempt to fight smuggling of mobile devices. (*ahem* Amhaz…)

As soon as I came back home I searched a bit and found that the thing is unfortunately real as per the below report by MTV (thanks Techie Dad), and it is quite surprising that the ministry didn’t bother alert the subscribers yet about the new decision!

For those who don’t know, a similar decision was taken in 2013 by the telecommunications minister back then Nicolas Sehnaoui and was cancelled by Boutros Harb in 2014 due to how complicated the registration process was. However, unlike now, the ministry back then launched an awareness campaign to let people re-activate their old handsets in order to keep them from being banned on the network once the registration process is put into work.

The MTV report mentions the risks of duplicate IMEIs but the ultimate purpose for enforcing IMEI registration will definitely be fighting smuggling of mobile phones, all at the expense of making our lives harder with the registration process and of course increasing the mobile phone prices (since they will all be subject to import tax and VAT), instead of tightening the controls at the customs.

It isn’t clear yet though when this thing will be put into effect but this guy on Facebook claims it will be as of September 15th. Still, let’s cross our fingers and hope the ministry thinks it over!

Lebanon Is Finally Getting The Much Needed Internet Infrastructure Upgrade

By Rami on June 23, 2015 in Lebanon

lebanon internet speed june 2015

I just stumbled upon this really good news about the Ministry of Telecommunications’ plan to upgrade the internet infrastructure by using fiber-optic cables to connect Ogero switching centers to residential and business premises.

The current infrastructures utilizes a fiber-optic network to connect centers together but relies on old copper wires to carry out internet data to the subscribers. The problem with these old wires is that they can handle transferring a maximum of 8Mbps depending on how close to the switching center you live. That’s why 1/3 of internet users in Lebanon cannot get more than 2Mbps to their homes since they simply live too far away from a central office!

The upgrade project will take 5 years to finish as per minister Harb and should allow internet speed to reach 100Mbps. So until that time, expect to encounter a lot of digging around the streets and just pray for the whole thing to finish on time without any major interruption.

Why is our internet getting worse?

By Rami on July 18, 2014 in Lebanon

Following the ministry of telecommunications’ announcement two month ago about the broadband internet packages upgrade and price reductions, you would expect the average speed across the country to be significantly better and our global ranking to improve a bit. But unfortunately, this doesn’t seem like the case since a lot of ADSL subscribers are complaining about their connection!

netindex lebanon

The chart above from netindex.com proves people are right. While July was supposed to witness the new plans taking effect, it is instead turning into the worst month for our internet with the lowest speed in over a year!

If Boutros Harb knew the upgrades were not feasible then he should have simply just reduced the prices instead of messing the speeds for the sake of coming out better than his predecessor Nicolas Sehnaoui.

It’s very clear that the top priorities for the minister right now is to work on upgrading the infrastructure to provide households with better speeds as well as supplying internet providers with more E1s to cater for their subscribers.

Slashing internet prices in Lebanon is still not enough

By Rami on July 1, 2014 in Lebanon

Following the announcement of the ministry of telecommunications on their plan to lower internet prices and boost speeds last month, we all thought it would now be affordable for us to get the high speed connections we always wanted, and this was proven true after some ISPs started rolling out their plans with 4Mbps subscriptions for as low as $19.

However, it doesn’t seem like this sufficient for us to enjoy the newly offered packages. According to this excellent article by Matt Nash from Executive Magazine, the real problem now lies in the copper wires connecting our homes to the central offices. Apparently, these wires can handle transferring a maximum of 8Mbps given that you live near the central office in your area, and the speed of course decreases as the distance to your home increases.

This is in fact so bad that basically around 1/3 of internet users in Lebanon cannot get more than 2Mbps to their homes since they simply live too far away from a central office!

So I believe the biggest challenge facing the ministry right now is upgrading the existing infrastructure which can cost up to $1 billion if we decided to go for optical fiber. And until then, the maximum speed we are able to get will remain much less than what average users enjoy in other countries of our region.

ISPs started rolling out their new DSL plans

By Rami on June 24, 2014 in Lebanon

I’ve been waiting for the new DSL plans to come out ever since the ministry of telecommunications announced the price reductions last month, and I finally got an e-mail from IDM this morning informing me that my subscription has been upgraded from 1Mbps / 10GB to 2 Mbps / 50GB for the same price ($27.5).

This was indeed some great news since my speed has doubled and my quota has increased five times, however, I found it odd that users were not given the liberty to choose among the offered plans but will instead have to wait till the 1st of July to place their change requests. For example, I could have chosen to settle for the same quota I had before for $12 only, but IDM and other providers definitely look to keep their revenues the same so they are subscribing us to the plan that matches whatever we’ve been usually paying.

A friend of mine is also subscribed to IDM’s 4Mbps / 25GB plan at $77 and was upgraded to the unlimited 4Mbps plan at $82, whereas he could have simply chosen to settle for the same quota he previously had at $27.5 and spared a whole $55 a month!

So make sure not to proceed blindly with whatever your ISP gives you next months, but rather take a look at all their offered plans to choose what suits your needs, and chances are you’ll definitely end up saving some good money.

Lebanese Bloggers Reinvent the World: Virtual Personas

By Rami on March 2, 2013 in Lebanon

Don’t mind this wild post as it is just my submission to the “Lebanese bloggers reinvent the world competition” competition run by the ministry of telecommunications in Lebanon, and I’m making use of the extended deadline to submit it.

The competition is calling for Lebanese bloggers to come up with some creative invention that might change humanity, and mine is a network device that takes controls of all your senses the second you are born and allows you to be part of the internet, as in living inside it.

With this device you will neither have to go to school to learn new things, nor travel to new places to live different experiences. There will just be a virtual persona of you living on the internet where you don’t only get exposed to unlimited amount of information, but these information can speak to your senses too.

Unlike what we do now, our virtual personas will never have to wake up early to get things done because the internet doesn’t operate from 9 to 6 only. On a typical day, your brain would wake up with that device being online by default, and you would spend an hour with that Korean guy you met the other day at Coursera.org. Next, you’ll have to see how well is your startup doing by checking your revenues and making sure other virtual personas are satisfied with your service. Once you’re done, you might like to click-away to Australia and experience how does it feel to swim with the dolphins. And finally at night, you can take a stroll round ~~Amsterdam red light district~~ YouTube, and learn an additional thing or two about information security from the newly published videos before putting your brain back to sleep.

Your whole life and experiences will of course be recorded and archived on the internet for future generations to be able to travel back in time by watching them.

Now don’t tell me this post in not feasible because you probably would have thought this is the real future if it were coming from some Hollywood movie!

MoT to start collecting all mobile subscribers information

By Rami on December 7, 2012 in Lebanon

I just heard an announcement on the radio that all mobile subscribers will be soon required to submit their personal information (a copy of their ID + a recent photo) to the ministry of telecommunications in order to keep track of who’s using each an every mobile number in Lebanon.

Mobile shop owners will be responsible for collecting the information of those who buy new phone lines, while existing subscribers will have to submit their information within a few months from now, and their lines will be automatically deactivated if they failed to comply with the deadline (I’ll update the post with the exact date as soon as I know it).

I guess this will be so annoying especially when you decide to sell your phone line, since you will have to make sure the buyer registers it under his name so that you don’t hold responsibility of anything he/she does with it!

Cedarcom wants to suspend 3G in Lebanon

By Rami on September 28, 2011 in Lebanon

Do you remember back in March how the guys at Cedarcom pretended to be fighting for a faster internet in Lebanon and gathered more than 40,000 fans around them?

The same guys are now working hard to take us back to state zero by suing the Ministry of Telecommunications for launching 3G! And it might be just a coincidence that the new service can go much faster than their Mobi, which they themselves have admitted it cannot go beyond 1Mbps, at a cheaper price. You can read more about the issue in The Daily Star and Al-Mustaqbal.

Now can someone tell me what were the real goals of their campaign for a faster internet?

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