Up until a few years back Qtel held a monopoly on mobile networks in the small and extremely rich Arab emirate of Qatar. That monopoly was broken up by the state recently enough, though Qtel is still the big man on campus. However, the company is very eager to retain its customer base in the face of increasing competition. And so we see deals like the one it just announced – where owners of Nokia devices will get 1GB of free mobile internet every month until the end of March.
What’s the deal?
Nokia is partnered with an IT and telecoms company from Qatar called Consolidated Gulf Co. – and this company is teaming with Qtel on behalf of Nokia to offer the service. Only a selected number of Nokia devices will have access to the free data, but the selection comprises some of Nokia’s most popular and net-appropriate phones:
- The N97 and N97 mini.
- The new E72, along with the E75, E71, and E66.
- In the “also ran” category we also have the 6760, 6710 navigator, 6700 classic, 6260 and 5800 XpressMusic.
So if you buy one of those phones you are eligible for the free connection. Not overlooking exisiting Nokia owners, you’re also eligible if you already own one of those phones.
Now, as for the actual free data, you get an allotment of 1GB per month, ending on the 31st of March. Unlike other “free” deals I could mention, this one really does seem to be a completely free mobile internet service with no strings attached. You can browse web pages, download content and send emails, all for free. Quite often these kinds of deal don’t allow downloads, but amongst other things the free data can be spent on streaming videos from YouTube and downloading content from the Nokia Ovi store.
What we think?
Generally when an operator says they are giving you something for free, you better watch your ass. Read the small print and don’t step over the boundaries or you’ll find yourself smacked right over by the huge bill that sails through your door at the end of the month. But it would seem that Qtel actually does want to offer its subscribers completely free mobile internet for the first quarter of 2010 – and once the free stuff has run out, it has a really good selection of mobile internet packages for those that have become hooked. But while the selection is good, the prices aren’t great. You can go straight back to the 1GB option – which will now cost you around $30 / €20 per month. There are other packages, from 50MB per month ($7/€5) up to an unlimited package for $110/€75.
