Posts Tagged Middle East
Still no IPO date for Vodafone Qatar
Vodafone Qatar’s CEO Grahame Maher has told the Gulf Times that the start-up is still awaiting approval from the Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA) for an initial public offering (IPO), a pre-requisite for launching services in the country. Vodafone Qatar plans to launch GSM-based mobile services for 1,000 trial users on 1 March, but has not agreed a firm date for an IPO of 40% of its shares, which it previously said should go ahead sometime this month. Maher also told the paper that he was confident that outstanding issues with the state’s current sole operator Qatar Telecom (Qtel), including interconnection charges, would be resolved by the start of March.
Add comment February 4, 2009
Etisalat to sell Apple’s iPhone 3G in UAE, Saudi Arabia
UAE-based operator Etisalat has signed an agreement to sell Apple’s iPhone 3G mobile phone in the United Arab Emirates from later this month. The operator will simultaneously launch the device in Saudi Arabia through its operator there, Mobily. The iPhone 3G, available in 8GB and 16GB models, is already available in some countries in the Middle East, through agreements with Vodafone and Orange affiliates.
Add comment February 3, 2009
Jordan Telecom reports 2008 results
According to the Jordan Times, Jordan Telecom Group (JTG) grew its customer base to 2.52 million subscribers at the end of 2008, up 3.4% year-on-year. The company said the rise was mainly driven by growth from its Orange internet subscriber base, which reported 55.6% subscriber growth to 102,200. The Orange mobile customer base rose by 2.6% to 1.76 million, while the number of fixed line subscribers was up 0.5% to 663,400. The group’s net profit increased 6.1% to JOD100.3 million (USD142.7 million), while EBITDA was up 5.5% to JOD183.2 million. Revenues edged up 0.9% to JOD401.4 million, while JTG’s operating expenses before depreciation and amortisation declined by 2.7% to JOD218.2 million. Capital expenditure in 2008 amounted to JOD55.8 million, 6.7% lower than the JOD59.8 million in 2007.
Add comment February 2, 2009
Etisalat Net Profits Grow 19% to Dhs8.7b in 2008
United Arab Emirates telco Etisalat has announced its consolidated annual net profit rose by 18.7% to AED8.7 billion (USD2.36 billion) during 2008 when compared to its 2007 net income of AED7.3 billion. Mohammed Khalfan Al Qamzi, CEO of Etisalat, said the improvement was due to an increase in subscribers at home and abroad; at the end of 2008, the company’s wireless subscriber base in the UAE increased to 7.3 million, a rise of 14% compared to the end of 2007, fixed line subscribers rose by 3% to 1.36 million and internet subscribers grew by 31% to 1.15 million. The company also reported its 2008 net revenues increased by 22% to AED26.1 billion when compared with the previous year. Chairman Mohammed Hassan Omran said ‘Acquiring new licences in Iran and India provides us with significant growth opportunities, and will support the development of our company for many years to come.’ Etisalat said it plans to invest USD1 billion in its first year of operations in Iran, after winning the country’s third mobile telephone licence in January.
However, while net profit increased when compared to the previous year, Reuters reported the telco’s fourth quarter net profit fell by 19.3% year-on-year to AED1.42 billion. Reuters calculated the quarterly data from previous financial statements, as Etisalat’s preliminary annual report did not provide quarterly breakdowns.
Add comment January 30, 2009
Vodafone Qatar chooses 1,000 users for launch
Mobile start-up Vodafone Qatar has confirmed that it will choose 1,000 people to trial its new GSM network when it is switched on at the beginning of March, reports The Peninsula. The company will conduct a two-month ‘beta trial’, to garner feedback from volunteers ahead of a full commercial launch later in the year. ‘We want a wide sample as possible, reflective of the rich diverse society in Qatar, different ages, men and women,’ a company spokeswoman said.
Add comment January 29, 2009
Derdack wins Qatar mobile banking deal
Derdack, provider of mobile messaging platforms and notification workflow software today announced that al khaliji, a next generation bank based in Qatar, is live on message master(R) xsp. Derdack’s mobile messaging platform has become an integral part of a dynamic and reliable technology base that will support the bank’s strategic business objectives.
Message master(R) xsp met our current and future business requirements better than any other system. We were impressed with its flexibility, ease of use and range of messaging functionality. It has proved to be a reliable and stable system that is easy to configure and maintain, said Ahmad Kandeel, Principal, Information and Communication Technology, al khaliji.
The Qatar Central Bank requires all retail banks to provide SMS confirmations and advices whenever a banking transaction or event takes place. By confirming each element of account activity suspicious transactions can be immediately queried thus minimising the risk of fraud.
Add comment January 29, 2009
Vodafone, Du sign cooperation agreement
UAE operator Du and Vodafone have signed a partner market agreement which will help both companies to better serve the needs of their customers in the UAE. Under the terms of the partnership, Du will have exclusive access to Vodafone’s range of products, devices and services in the UAE. The company will also be able to draw on Vodafone’s experience in supply chain management, technology development, acquisition of enterprise customers from multi-national companies as well as improved inter-working between networks. Vodafone’s CEO for Partner Markets Hatem Dowidar said through this agreement, Vodafone will be able to increase its brand recognition and extend its product range to a key market with a growing population. To be available in phases over a period of time, the partnership with Vodafone will provide Du customers with improved voice and data roaming access across 67 countries. In turn, Vodafone will be able to use Du’s 3G network to offer its customers a full set of services available on home network capabilities and extended coverage within the UAE. The partnership will also enable various multinational companies based outside the UAE and with local operations to meet their needs for unified communication, offer centralized customer care and enjoy Vodafone’s benefits using Du lines. At a later stage, the Du-Vodafone partnership will offer benefits such as mobile broadband connectivity products for PC’s through innovative means, secure remote mobile access for small business users, converged email solutions, faster and exclusive access to new models of handsets.
Source- http://www.telecompaper.com
Add comment January 28, 2009
STC wins Bahrain’s third mobile licence
Saudi Telecom company (STC) has won Bahrain’s third mobile network operating licence with a bid of BHD86.7 million (USD231 million), the country’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) announced yesterday, breaking the duopoly of state-run Batelco and Kuwaiti-owned Zain. According to Reuters, STC plans to launch its Bahraini operations in the second half of this year and aims to acquire a 20% market share in ten years. The Saudi telco has also committed itself to establishing a USD300 million venture capital fund in Bahrain that will nurture communications and IT companies in the region. Three other firms had registered interest in the auction, but did not bid. Mohammed al-Amer, chairman of the TRA, confirmed that these were Bahraini operators 2Connect and Mena Telecom alongside a consortium including France Telecom subsidiary Jordan Telecom. Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have strong links, as several million people cross a causeway linking the two kingdoms every year.
Add comment January 23, 2009
Etisalat to launch with HSDPA in Iran
Etisalat has said that it expects to launch mobile services in Iran within six to nine months. Etisalat holds a 49% stake in the consortium that acquired the country’s third mobile licence for USD399 million. Its local partner is Tameen Telecom, an Iranian public sector investment fund. Although the licence was relatively cheap, Etisalat has said it plans to spend USD1 billion on its Iranian network. The operator also secured the right to be the exclusive 3G operator for two years, and according to company executives it is likely to offer HSDPA services from the outset. Etisalat will capitalise on its ability to offer data services without any competition from Iran’s other two mobile operators and aims to take significant market share within a short period of operation.
Add comment January 23, 2009
Vodafone Qatar to launch mobile services on 1 March, plans cable landing station
Vodafone Qatar, which is set to launch pre- and post-paid mobile services nationwide on 1 March, says it will establish an international cable landing station in the Middle East country. Vodafone Qatar chief executive officer Grahame Maher told Gulf Times: ‘We have identified some sites in coastal areas to locate Vodafone’s new international landing station in Qatar…to improve international access and redundancy in the country.’ Maher added, ‘There are several organisations looking to bring new cables to Qatar in a joint venture with our partners Qatar Foundation. Having Vodafone in Qatar improves the attractiveness of these cable ventures given the volume of our international traffic and size of our international footprint.’ Initially, the operator will be using the existing landing stations established by incumbent Qatar Telecom (Qtel). Fixed line and mobile licensee Vodafone Qatar plans to offer high speed internet and data communications to mobile customers from the outset.
Add comment January 6, 2009
Zain remains upbeat amid financial crisis
The Kuwait-based international cellular group Zain says it expects net profit to increase by over 30% in 2009, with EBITDA predicted to rise by around 40%. A report, which quotes local newspaper al-Watan, adds that Zain is expecting total subscriber numbers at its 22 operations in the Middle East and Africa to reach more than 94 million by end-2009, up from 64 million currently. Zain CEO Saad al-Barrak told al-Watan that the cellco’s financial situation is healthy despite the current global financial crisis.
Add comment January 6, 2009
Zain expects 30% profit rise in 2009
Africa and Middle East mobile operator Zain expects net profit to rise by more than 30 percent in 2009. The firm’s CEO Saad al-Barrak told al-Watan newspaper that EBITDA would rise by around 40 percent this year. A spokesman for Zain, which operates in 22 countries in the Middle East and Africa, confirmed the comments.
In October, Zain said it expected 2009 net profit to rise to around KWD 413 million, or by about 30 percent, buoyed by its overseas expansion strategy. Zain’s financial situation is very healthy despite the global financial crisis; Barrak was quoted in the newspaper, adding the firm had paid back obligations worth USD 1.8 billion in December. This represents about 25-30 percent of the company’s total debt, he told the paper. Zain sees its customer base rising to more than 94 million at the end of 2009, up from 64 million last year. For 2009, Zain would have a cash flow of USD 5 billion, Barrak said, without giving a comparison for last year.
Add comment January 6, 2009
Mobile Connections Reach 4 Billion Worldwide
3G Americas, a wireless industry trade association representing the GSM family of technologies including LTE, today announces that a historic milestone was achieved for the wireless industry in December 2008 with 4 billion connections to mobile devices worldwide. This estimate by Informa Telecoms & Media represents 60% of the entire global population today. In some countries, millions of people are now experiencing connectivity to the world for the first time through wireless and changing their economic, social and political fortunes forever.
The Latin America and Caribbean region continues to show steady consumer growth with 16% year-on-year growth as subscription numbers are expected to reach in excess of 440 million, equating to 76% penetration, noted Marisol Gomez, Americas regional analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media.
Add comment December 26, 2008
Etisalat wins Iran’s third national mobile licence
The government of Iran is thought to have awarded the country’s third national mobile licence to a consortium headed by UAE-based telco Etisalat. A report from CellularNews which cites Iran’s semi-official news agency FARS says that Etisalat has beaten off rival bids from the likes of Omantel of Oman plus MegaFon and Vimpelcom of Russia. The government has said that the new cellular operator is expected to attract investment of around USD3 billion. Iran currently has two national cellular networks run by state-backed operator TCI and private firm MTN-Irancell, which have around 40 million customers between them. Another operator, Taliya, operates a sizeable regional network which serves around 1.5 million users, while there are also at least two other localised mobile networks with only a few thousand subscribers each.
Add comment December 26, 2008
Zain reaches the million mark in first month (Saudi Arabia)
Zain Saudi Arabia, the cellular operator which launched the country’s third national mobile network in August, says it had signed almost a million subscribers by the end of September. ‘Things are moving much faster than expectations,’ company executive Marwan Al-Ahmadi told Reuters. Around 90% of Zain’s subscribers have signed to pre-paid packages. The firm says it expects to turn its first profit in its second full year of operation and it aims to have networks covering up to 95% of the population within two years, up from 55% currently. ‘Our ultimate aim is to get a third of the market,’ Al-Ahmadi said. ‘This is definitely not going to happen in the short term… I believe we should be able to achieve it in the range of five years.’
Add comment December 18, 2008
Zain launches 3.5G network in Ghana
Kuwait-based telecoms group Zain yesterday launched a 3.5G network in Ghana, having invested more than USD420 million in the country to realise the speedy deployment of the technology – a first for sub-Saharan Africa, excluding South Africa. Reuters reports that Zain sees potential on the continent where it already has 40 million customers. ‘Although penetration is very, very low, we see it as having very huge potential. A lot of people say Africa penetration is almost saturated, but we don’t because we see that we can optimise our business on the continent,’ Chris Gabriel, Chief Executive Officer of Zain Africa said. Zain, which already operates in 22 countries across the Middle East and Africa, is looking to become one of the world’s top ten operators by 2011 and has already set its sights on four of five acquisitions in the region which Gabriel says will be closed ‘in the next twelve months’.
Add comment December 17, 2008
