Iraq Telecom Newsletter

We are proud to announce that we are launching the only newsletter devoted to the reconstruction of the telecommunications network in Iraq. It has taken a few months for the U.S. and Iraqi officials to get organized but things are now starting to happen. We expect things will be picking up steam in the coming months. Because of the urgency of showing progress, there are going to be some rather unique requirements put on equipment suppliers and carriers to get things up and running. The recent meeting on the RFP for the Iraqi Mobile Telecom Tender in Jordan on July 31 is a good example. At that meeting. the new director General of the Iraq Telegraph and Post Company and his American advisors announced the plans for the Tender which will provide service for 17 million subscribers in three regions, North, Central and South. Responses to the RFP are due in two weeks! It is expected that three competing national mobile networks will result. Each license will be for 24 months. From these requirements, it is evident that the time scale has been compressed compared to normal telecommunications industry timescales.

The new Iraq Telecom Newsletter will be published every two weeks to keep subscribers up to date on the latest news, RFPs, contract awards, conferences and meetings and key contacts in Iraq and the U.S. For late-breaking news on RFPs requiring fast turnaround times, "Information Flashes" will be sent out as soon as they are received.

I hope that you will agree with me that Iraq represents a golden opportunity for the telecommunications industry at a time when a bit of good market news is badly needed.