Now is not suitable for offering a new mobile license in Egypt, Hany Mahmoud, minister of communications and information technology, said on Thursday.

The ministry is currently studying the maximization of the services offered by the three mobile companies in Egypt's market in addition to Telecom Egypt, he added.

The National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority is currently revising and evaluating all the offered services in addition to studying the expansion in 3G services, the minister said at a press conference held at the cabinet of ministers' headquarters.

This conference followed the meeting of Prime Minister Hisham Kandil with president of France Telecom Stephane Richard.

Egypt has three companies for mobile phone services which are Vodafone Egypt, France Telecom's Mobinil and Etisalat Egypt. Telecom Egypt is the only company in the country offering landline services.