Businesses
Virgin Mobile Saudi CEO Says Blocking Social Media Costs Revenue, but Child Safety Comes First
08 Sept 2026
Yaarob Al-Sayegh, CEO of Beyond One Saudi Arabia, says the company is willing to sacrifice some data revenue through its Aman child-safe SIM as it pushes a broader model of responsible digital services in the Kingdom.
Virgin Mobile Saudi Arabia is taking an unusual position in a telecom market built around data consumption: deliberately restricting access to some of the services that generate that consumption.
In an interview with Al Arabiya English’s The Riyal Deal, Yaarob Al-Sayegh, CEO of Beyond One Saudi Arabia, the digital services operator behind Virgin Mobile in the Kingdom, said the company’s new Aman service can reduce data usage by blocking major social media platforms. He acknowledged that this can affect revenue, but said the company is prepared to accept that trade-off because child safety is central to the product.
Well, yes, absolutely,
Al-Sayegh said when asked whether blocking social media reduces revenue.
But I think this comes from our brand values and where Virgin can play.
Aman Introduces a Network-Level Child-Safe SIM
Aman is positioned as a network-level parental control service designed for families who want a safer mobile environment for children without relying on apps or complicated configuration.
Unlike many parental-control products, the service operates through the network itself. Parents can provide a SIM to a child for use in a tablet or other connected device, while Virgin Mobile manages the restrictions at network level.
Al-Sayegh described the approach as “zero-touch”, with no additional software or complex setup required. The aim is to simplify online safety for parents who may want stronger controls but do not want to manage multiple settings across devices.
The plan blocks major social media platforms and restricts access to websites that the company considers unsuitable for children. It also offers access to a safer version of YouTube rather than the general public platform.
Child Safety Becomes a Business Decision
For a mobile operator, encouraging customers to use less data can appear counterintuitive.
Data consumption remains one of the core drivers of telecom revenue, particularly as social media, video and streaming account for a large share of mobile usage. By introducing a service that intentionally blocks some of those activities, Beyond One is placing safety ahead of maximising short-term consumption.
Al-Sayegh said the decision reflects Virgin’s wider brand identity around challenging established models and moving into areas where competitors may be less willing to go.
A lot of ventures that happened with Virgin throughout the years come from being brave, challenging the status quo, and providing the service,
The strategy also shows how telecom operators may increasingly compete through trust, safety and specialised digital services rather than through data allowances and price alone.
Government Age Bans Are Only Part of the Answer
Al-Sayegh also argued that regulation alone will not solve the challenge of protecting children online.
Governments around the world have been considering age restrictions and tighter controls on young people’s access to social media, but he said parental education and responsibility remain just as important.
Governments around the world, and we see a lot of regulations, they’re banning social media for certain ages,16 years old and below. So this is one angle,” he said. “The other angle will be the education of parents themselves, where they take the responsibility, the guardianship of their beloved ones.
For Beyond One, the commercial opportunity lies in giving parents tools that make that responsibility easier to manage.
Rather than asking families to configure complex parental controls on every device, the company wants the network itself to provide the first layer of protection.
Saudi Parents Show Demand for Simpler Safety Tools
The company says its decision to develop Aman followed research with existing and potential customers in Saudi Arabia.
According to Al-Sayegh, the interviews revealed a common concern among parents who wanted children to stay connected while reducing their exposure to inappropriate content and unrestricted social platforms.
We saw a common thread of parents who are very, very keen to provide safety tools for their children
Parents specifically wanted a SIM they could place in a child’s tablet and use with confidence when children were outside the home or when parents were unavailable to monitor their activity directly.
That feedback helped confirm what Beyond One sees as a clear local demand for child-focused telecom products.
The Wider Business Opportunity in Digital Safety
Aman also reflects a broader shift in telecommunications.
Mobile operators have traditionally competed around coverage, speed, minutes and data. As those services become increasingly commoditised, operators are looking for new ways to differentiate themselves through digital services, cybersecurity, identity, entertainment and family-focused products.
Beyond One sees child safety as one of those areas.
Al-Sayegh said Saudi regulators have encouraged operators to develop more innovative products and services rather than focusing only on connectivity.
We always see them push us for more innovative products and services, not only to provide data and minutes,
He said, referring to support from the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Communications, Space and Technology Commission.
That environment could create room for telecom providers to build new services around trust and digital wellbeing.
Beyond One Does Not Expect a Major Hit to Overall Data Growth
Although Aman may reduce data usage for customers on the plan, Al-Sayegh does not expect the product to significantly affect broader internet consumption in the Kingdom.
He said the service will not suit every customer and expects social media and general internet usage to continue growing across the market.
I don’t see in the immediate future that this will cannibalise or affect the consumption of internet,
Instead, Aman is being positioned as a specialised offering for families who place a higher value on content controls than unrestricted access.
Virgin Sees Further Growth Potential in Saudi Arabia
Beyond One is also looking beyond parental controls.
Al-Sayegh said the company sees substantial potential for further growth in Saudi Arabia as it develops new telecom products and services. He also confirmed that discussions are taking place around additional Virgin-branded operations in the Kingdom.
The comments follow a visit by Sir Richard Branson to Saudi Arabia last year.
We had the pleasure of Sir Richard Branson visiting us last year and we had a very interesting conversation with him,
Al-Sayegh said.
There is ambition for more Virgin brand operations in KSA.
The expansion would also place Virgin within a much wider wave of private-sector growth linked to Saudi Vision 2030, which is encouraging digital transformation, entrepreneurship and new technology-led services across the Kingdom.
The MVNO Model Creates Room for Experimentation
Al-Sayegh also highlighted the advantages of operating as a mobile virtual network operator.
MVNOs typically avoid some of the capital intensity associated with owning national network infrastructure, which can give them greater flexibility around pricing and specialised services.
The cost structure of an MVNO will be much lighter, which means that we can provide very cost-effective plans versus others,
He added that Beyond One’s strategy is to target communities and use cases that larger operators may overlook.
That approach could become increasingly important as telecom competition shifts away from simple connectivity and towards personalised digital products.
A Test of Whether Trust Can Become a Telecom Product
Aman raises a wider business question: can telecom operators create value by helping customers consume less?
For years, the industry has been structured around increasing connectivity and data usage. Child-safe products challenge that assumption by suggesting that some customers may value control and trust more than unlimited access.
If parents are willing to pay for simpler, safer digital experiences, services such as Aman could create a new category of telecom product built around digital wellbeing.
For Virgin Mobile Saudi Arabia, the strategy is deliberately clear. Blocking social media may reduce some data revenue, but the company believes the trust created with parents could carry greater long-term value.
About Beyond One Saudi Arabia and Virgin Mobile
Beyond One Saudi Arabia is the digital services operator behind Virgin Mobile in the Kingdom. The company operates as an MVNO and focuses on digital-first telecom services, targeted customer communities and new products beyond traditional voice and data packages.
Its Aman service introduces network-level parental controls designed to give families a simpler way to manage children’s access to online content.
About The Riyal Deal
The Riyal Deal is an Al Arabiya English programme presented by Tom Burges Watson. The series focuses on Saudi Arabia’s changing business landscape through interviews with CEOs and business leaders, alongside coverage of major economic and corporate developments in the Kingdom.
About Al Arabiya English
Al Arabiya English is a 24-hour digital news platform covering breaking news, politics, business, features, opinion and lifestyle for English-speaking audiences worldwide. The platform is headquartered in Riyadh and operates with correspondents across the Middle East.
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Sara Srifi
Sara is a Software Engineering and Business student with a passion for astronomy, cultural studies, and human-centered storytelling. She explores the quiet intersections between science, identity, and imagination, reflecting on how space, art, and society shape the way we understand ourselves and the world around us. Her writing draws on curiosity and lived experience to bridge disciplines and spark dialogue across cultures.
