Telecom Egypt, the country’s monopoly fixed-line operator, will be able to offer both landline and mobile services by June, following the introduction of a new single telecoms licence.

Egypt’s Telecommunications Minister Atef Helmy has said the long-awaited legislation will come into force in three months’ time, according to reports from local newspaper Ahram.

The new licence is expected to generate increased revenues for Telecom Egypt, which has seen its revenues decline as customers increasingly use the internet and mobile phones rather than fixed line phones.  

In 2013, the company saw a 1.1 per cent fall in revenues from its fixed-line services and its home services subscribers fell from 6.24 million to 5.72 million.

The licence will also allow Egypt’s other telecom operators, Mobinil owned by France Telecom and UAE-based Etisalat’s subsidiary Etisalat Misr, to offer fixed-line services.

Telecom Egypt does have some share of the mobile phone market through its stake in Vodafone Egypt.

The licence has been much anticipated, but has faced numerous delays due to political uncertainty following the removal of former president Mohamed Mursi last July.