Jordan’s Internet users number 3.535 million

Internet penetration in Jordan stood at more than 55 per cent at end of June this year, according the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC). Figures released by the TRC on its website showed that there were 3.535 million Internet users in the kingdom, representing 55.9 per cent of the population. Internet subscription rate (the ratio of Internet subscriptions to the population) stood at 12 per cent by the end of June, with 743,736 subscribers, according to the TRC. The majority of Internet subscribers in Jordan use mobile broadband, with 427,641 subscriptions by the end of June, followed by ADSL (204,395), WiMAX (96,923), dial-up (10,626) and cable (3,081). The TRC figures also showed that mobile penetration in the country had reached 132 per cent by the end of the first half of 2012, with about 8.340 million mobile subscriptions. Jordan is one of 105 countries where the number of mobile subscriptions exceeded the population at the end of 2011, according to the International Telecommunication Union. A Department of Statistics survey showed that some 98.1 per cent of Jordanian households have mobile phones. Jordan is ranked as the second most competitive mobile market in the Arab world in a study by the Arab Advisers Group released in July. According to Jawad Abbassi, founder and general manager of the Arab Advisers Group, prices of mobile subscriptions in Jordan are “very competitive and among the lowest in the region,”  which encourages Jordanians to hold more than one SIM card. The subscription rate is also high because telecom operators in the country provide extended validity for prepaid SIM cards, unlike other states, he was quoted as saying by the Jordan Times. Abbassi said he expected a boom in Internet subscriptions in Jordan driven by “competitive offers” by Internet service providers. Smartphone penetration in Jordan, which currently stands at about 45 per cent, is expected to reach 50 per cent by the end of 2012. The TRC figures showed that fixed-line subscriptions stood at 6.6 per cent by the end of June, with about 416,512 subscribers. from:Gulftoday