The long-standing ban on Internet calls will soon be lifted in Saudi Arabia, the kingdom's minister of Communications and Information Technology announced on Wednesday.
Within one week, Internet voice and video calling apps such as Skype, Viber and WhatsApp will be unblocked in the kingdom.
Minister Abdullah bin Amer Al-Sawaha announced on Twitter that the ministry is in talks with Saudi telecoms partners to lift the ban on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services, digital telephone services in which calls are made over the Internet through apps.
"This fruitful cooperation between the Kingdom’s telecoms partners comes under the umbrella of ‘Customer First,’ a policy in which everyone works in order to give all telecom subscribers in the Kingdom the best services that meet their expectations and satisfy their needs," he wrote, as translated by Arab News.
Al-Sawaha added that the Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission will work with telecom companies and review regulatory compliance requirements to enable the VoIP services, starting next Wednesday.
The authorities responsible for implementing the decision have emphasized that all customers, both Saudi nationals and residents, will be able to make voice and video calls at "the highest quality."
The decision comes in line with the objectives of the kingdom's Vision 2030 and will reportedly be followed by several initiatives that aim to enhance both the telecom sector and customer experience.
Will the UAE follow suit?
With the kingdom deciding to lift the ban on VoIP services, people are wondering if fellow Gulf state, the United Arab Emirates, will follow suit.
Such services are restricted in the Emirates, and only licensed providers are authorized to offer such services.
In June, UAE residents got a glimpse of false hope when WhatsApp voice and video calls were briefly available in the country due to a technological glitch.