Saudi Arabia is one of the largest and most developed Value-Added Services (VAS) markets in the Middle East. Driven by high smartphone usage, widespread internet access, and the Kingdom’s ongoing digital transformation under Vision 2030, the demand for digital content and mobile subscription services continues to grow. The market offers strong opportunities for operators, aggregators, merchants, and content providers while placing increasing focus on transparency, compliance, and consumer protection.
The Kingdom has a population of over 35 million people, with internet penetration exceeding 99% and one of the highest smartphone adoption rates in the region. These factors, together with a well-established Direct Carrier Billing (DCB) ecosystem, have created a strong foundation for the continued growth of VAS services.
Mobile Operators
Saudi Arabia’s VAS market is supported by three main mobile operators: STC, Mobily, and Zain KSA. Together, they account for the majority of mobile subscribers in the Kingdom. Virgin, Lebara and Redbull also offer carrier billing services, providing additional opportunities for merchants and content providers.
Although all operators support Direct Carrier Billing, each has its own compliance requirements. Landing pages, ad banners, and customer consent must all meet the specific guidelines of the operator, making compliance an important part of launching and maintaining VAS campaigns.
VAS Services and Payment Methods
The Saudi VAS market offers a wide range of digital subscription services, including videos/streaming, gaming, education, kids, and AI-powered content. As consumer demand continues to grow, providers are introducing new services to meet changing interests and digital habits.
Header Enrichment is not permitted in Saudi Arabia. The main payment method is MSISDN + OTP, allowing users to confirm their subscription securely before charges are applied through Direct Carrier Billing.
Daily subscriptions typically range from SAR 1.15 to SAR 4.025, while weekly subscriptions generally range from SAR 7.50 to SAR 23, depending on the operator and service.
Compliance and Fraud Trends
As the Saudi VAS market has grown, operators have introduced stricter compliance requirements to improve transparency and protect consumers. While overall compliance has improved, a number of issues continue to appear across digital campaigns.
One of the most common issues is misleading subscription journeys, where campaigns do not clearly present the subscription process. A deceptive technique that has become increasingly common involves asking users to enter their mobile number on a landing page under the pretext of confirming they are not a robot or verifying their age before redirecting them to a subscription flow.
Other common issues include content locking, where users are promised access to videos, sports content, or prize giveaways before subscribing, adult flows, where misleading adult-themed content is used to encourage users to enter subscription journeys, and brand passing-off, where well-known brands and Saudi mobile operators are impersonated to make campaigns appear legitimate. Fraudsters have also been observed impersonating popular influencers and members of the Saudi Royal Family to increase user trust and encourage engagement with deceptive subscription campaigns.
Auto-subscription campaigns, particularly those promoted through in-apps, are most commonly detected on the Mobily network. More recently, auto-click incidents have also been identified, where users are redirected automatically or actions are triggered without their knowledge, resulting in unintended subscriptions.
As fraud techniques continue to evolve, ongoing monitoring and close cooperation between operators, aggregators, and merchants remain essential to maintaining a safe and transparent VAS ecosystem.