After meeting technical and financial requirements set by the Algerian telecom regulator ARPT,  Algerie Telecom Mobile (Mobilis), Wataniya Telecom Algerie (Nedjma) and Orascom Telecom Algerie (Djezzy) have been awarded with 3G licenses.

The three have received licenses on a provisional basis and await the regulator’s word on the next phase in the process. The three submitted their bids for 3G licenses before the September 15 deadline which were examined and accepted by the ARPT.

By the end of the fourth quarter the firms are expected to be rolling their network equipment for 3G services in the country. Algeria has a population of around 38 million, over 5 million of whom use internet and over 3 million on Facebook. Introduction of 3G will see a spike in the numbers as some analysts say.