The prevailing economic crisis in Lebanon has undoubtedly had dire effects on numerous companies and businesses across various sectors and domains. One of these companies is the very popular Lebanese music streaming platform, Anghami.
Anghami announced Tuesday that it is starting to discontinue its service with Lebanon’s two telecommunications companies, Touch and Alfa, due to “the ongoing financial situation.”
While the company has not, as of the time of writing, set a specific date for the termination of the accounts subscribed via the mobile operators, it is already implementing measures to try and tone down the effects on these accounts.
One of these proactive measures is advising some users to switch to using a Lebanese local credit card, which gives the options to pay in either Lebanese pounds or US dollars, at “way less than market rates.”
The subscription through the aforementioned method will cost $2.5 or 9,500 LBP.
Those who cannot use a credit card have the option of using the money transfer agencies Western Union, OMT, and MoneyGram as alternative payment methods.
Additionally, Anghami specified Virgin Megastore as an additional payment option, while “Anghami Plus” vouchers are still available for purchase from Bob Finance, CashUnited, LibanPost, and Virgin Megastore.
These vouchers are offered in 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month plans.
“We will obviously keep trying to find ways to be local and provide a premium service without asking for credit cards with international limits,” the Lebanon-based company said.
Furthermore, Anghami said that it hopes to “get back to normal service with Touch & Alfa,” noting that it will take time; “we have no idea when this could happen.”
Anghami, which has been offering a wide selection of local and international music since 2012, has been using its partnerships with both Alfa and Touch to offer these networks’ subscribers a reliable, hassle-free payment method for its popular streaming service.
The961 reached out to Anghami but they weren’t available for immediate comment.
