Sky Telecom pioneers by mixing digital shoppingand physical retailNew Trusted Stores program addressesa current gap in themarket and adds real telecom value to consumers andretailersSky Telecom, the Dubai-based telecom anddigital enabler for ICT service providers and the consumertechnology industry,has outlined its expansion plans through the MENA region for 2016.

The company, which was launched inDubai in 2014, is unique in offering the ultimate mix of retail anddigitalplatforms to consumers, providing the most complete and comprehensivedigital platform in the regionfor ICT service providers and theconsumer technology industry. Sky Telecom offers a complete setup, bothonline and offline, and has developed a package of services for consumers,which encompasses e-payments, e-services and e-commerce.

Ahead of GITEX Shopper 2016 (SpringEdition), which takes place at the Dubai World Trade Center fromMarch 30 toApril 2, Sky Telecom has announced the introduction of its ‘Trusted Stores’program in the UAE.The program will connect consumers with a wide range ofunique benefits, including mobile money, socialwallet, e-payments, digitalmarketplace and virtual stores. Through the Trusted Stores program, consumersin the UAE will be able to connect, view, interact and transact with thousandsof retail outlets dealing intelecom devices, accessories and services, whilebenefitting from many offers, rewards and an enhancedcustomer experience. TheTrusted Stores program integrates into the company’s existing framework tocreate a bi-directional transaction between retailers and consumers.

A Trusted Stores Partner is acertified physical store that the company has vetted through a strict qualityassurance process, which certifies them to transact through the company’ssecured marketplace,‘Mysky.ae’. Throughthis telecoms marketplace, trusted stores can upload their data and provideaccess totheir own online catalogue of products and services onto the digitalplatform, giving them exposure tothousands of Mysky.ae online users. Trusted storeswill have a package of tools to manage customerloyalty, inventory, e-paymentsand digital marketing in order to ignite their businesses and drive new traffictothe store across all channels.

Trusted stores can be identified bycustomers through Sky Telecom’s Trusted Stores’ label, which will beissued bythe company after a strict quality control process, with Mysky.ae offering information toconsumers on where to locate theirnearest trusted store. Phase 1 of the scheme will function through themarketplace connecting the retailers to consumers, and then a further stage willbe added, includingfacilities to pay bills, top up phone credit and a customerrewards scheme.

TrustedStores will be officially launched during GITEX Shopper, with consumers able toexperience SkyTelecom’s convenient range of e-services first-hand. In 2014, atGITEX Shopper Autumn, Sky Telecomgained 20,000 daily registered customers and a total of 140,000 registrations in 7 days. Sky Telecom areanticipating aneven larger uptake at this year's event, thanks to even better promotions and awider rangeof vendors.

Thepioneering concept will drive the customerexperience based on analytics gathered through thecompany’s marketplace. “SkyDigital Platform is a cloud platform that’s a first regionally,” says AliKassab,CEO of Sky Telecom. “The aim is to bring a lot of flexibility andeffortlessness in the way people will interact

with retail, travel or services,for example. We have a number of planned initiatives that will positivelyimpactthe way people shop or play or manage their lives, and will evolve theconsumer experience. We will beable to adapt according to the circumstances, such as a particular channel or demographic.”

ABOUT SKYTELECOM

Established in 2014, Sky Telecom enables next generation businesses (telecom operators) to increase theirmarket share, reduce customer acquisition cost and improve customer experience. SKY Telecom is a revenueenabler that analyses and understands market gaps and challenges to transform it into business opportunities.The company enables growth by developing new core competencies in business development, marketing andcustomer experience.

About e-finance

e-finance was established as the market leader in the field of electronic payment. Operating in Egypt, e-financeprovides state of the art electronic payment solutions to the government and public sector in a secureenvironment according to national and international security standards. Powered by professional experts withlong years of experience in banking, e-payment, technical and project management, the company currentlyprovides end-to-end e-payment connectivity for the Ministry of Finance and government entities.

e-finance is the first and largest electronic payment and collection gateway in Egypt. As a national company, e-finance’s shareholders are National Investment Bank (70%), National Bank of Egypt (10%), Banque Misr (10%),and Egyptian Banks Company-EBC (10%).

About Mobile World Congress

TheTrusted Store marketplace is part of the ‘Sky Digital Platform’, an in-houseplatform, which enablesrevenue generation, market penetration and increasedmarket share for Sky Telecom partners. Theplatform’s eco-system provides adigital marketplace, omni-channel customer engagement, point-of-salesandretail outlet management, CRM, loyalty management and marketing automation, alongsidecustomeranalytics and profiling based on big data. Sky Digital Platform isunique in that is a unified system thatmanages all chains of customerexperience and engagement across all channels, which includes points-of-saleand kiosks as well as online. Based on a revenue-sharing model, where SkyTelecom builds andoperates the business case, the system is simple to use,transparent and easily applied.

The GSMA Mobile World Congress exhibition features the leading products, services and technologies that areshaping the future of mobile, from handsets and devices to network infrastructure, software and services andmuch more. More than 2,000 companies are expected to exhibit, including global brands such as Alcatel-Lucent,AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, Ericsson, Ford Motor Company, Google, Huawei, Intel, Lenovo, Microsoft, NEC, Nokia,Qualcomm, Samsung, SK Telecom, Sony Mobile Communications, Telefónica, VMware and Vodafone, amongothers. The Mobile World Congress is the cornerstone of the Mobile World Capital, which will be hosted inBarcelona through 2023. The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting nearly 800operators with more than 250 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers,software companies, equipment providers and internet companies, as well as organisations in adjacent industrysectors.

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