Setting yourself up with Internet services in a foreign country can be a daunting task, but most schools are more than willing to help out. Please refer to the information below to make the process simpler for setting up services for the Internet in the UAE.
Providers
There are two main Internet service providers in the United Arab Emirates: ‘Etisalat’ and ‘du’.
Cost
The cost of Internet in the UAE depends on what package and speed you want.
For just Internet:
8 Mbps AED 449
16 Mbps AED 549
24 Mbps AED 749
For Internet, home phone and TV package:
8 Mbps AED 279
16 Mbps AED 339
24 Mbps AED 429
So you can see that it works out to be a lot cheaper to get the full package.
(Prices based on the internet provider du)
Censorship
The internet in the United Arab Emirates is something of some minor controversy in relation to its censorship issues. Although the average expat will be able to access the internet and most of the websites they usually access, censorship is still evident.
Most VOIP sights have been banned, this is said to be for security reasons however there is a wide belief that it is to prevent a dip in profits amongst national telecom businesses. Up until 2013 Skype was on the list of banned VOIP sights, however you will be happy to know that the ban has been lifted and you will be able to have those late night chats with family back home.
Other restrictions do apply with certain types of websites that could be seen as offensive to the traditional culture of the UAE. The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) was established by the UAE federal law to monitor and censor content on the internet in the UAE.
Websites which contain pornography are banned, questions over the level of enforcement of this have been raised, for example certain men’s magazine sites have been banned, yet they sell the same magazines in many stores.
For political reasons any website with the Israeli domain (.il) have been completely banned, whilst even parts of Wikipedia have been banned. You can still access most social networking sights however some such as hi5 and Friendster have been banned whilst all dating sights such as Match.com have been banned.
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