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Mobile Telecommunications in the Arab World: a paradigm for economic development. The Egyptian Company for Mobile Services (Mobinil) December 16, 2007. Telecom in the Arab world: technological, cultural and regulatory transformation.
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Mobile Telecommunications in the Arab World: a paradigm for economic development The Egyptian Company for Mobile Services (Mobinil) December 16, 2007
Telecom in the Arab world:technological, cultural and regulatory transformation • Arab world far from homogenous: wide disparities in terms of population size, GDP, density, mobile penetration, etc… • The mobile telecommunications revolution has impacted us all … massive growth in mobile subscribers and changes in the way we communicate. • Telecom sector is a model of liberalization and economic reform – showing what can be achieved through effective public/private partnership and market liberalization.
Ranking Country Y2006 penetration 1 UAE 115% 2 Bahrain 107% 3 Qatar 106% 4 Kuwait 91% 5 KSA 76% 6 Tunisia 72% 7 Oman 70% 8 Jordan 70% 9 Libya 65% 10 Algeria 63% 11 Morocco 52% 12 Mauritania 33% 13 Lebanon 30% 14 Iraq 30% 15 Egypt 23% 16 Syria 23% 17 Palestine 22% 18 Yemen 11% 19 Sudan 10% 20 Djibouti 7% 21 Somalia 6% 22 Comoros 3% Spotlight on the Arab world • 22 countries: • some rich; some poor • some densely populated; some sparsely • Total population exceeds 320 million • Over 160M GSM subscribers (2G+3G) (as of September 2007) • Served by over 45 operators (many countries have up to 3 operators) • Already we have emergence of home grown international operators: Orascom, Zain, Etisalat, STC, etc ... ready and able to expand beyond borders of Arab world Sources: WCIS+, ITU
The Arab telecom market has witnessed massive changes within the last decade • Deregulation & liberalization state-controlled monopolies in most countries have been replaced by public/private partnerships • Countries are encouraging open competition between regional and international operators leading to extraordinary prices being paid for license fees • Egypt 3rd license awarded to Etisalat for $2.9 billion – July 2006 • KSA 3rd license awarded to Zain for $6.109 billion – July 2007 • New investment friendly climate that is spurring FDI and local investments in ICT – delivering jobs and other economic value • Telco sector is helping to an environment which encourages innovation, investment, competition and entrepreneurship • GSM has been fastest technology to be adopted in region – dwarfs internet and broadband penetration • Ultimate benefit goes to consumer because of widening access to communication technologies, and more affordability
Mobile subscribers (as of Sept–07) • 61% of Arab world GSM subscribers reside in only 4 countries, nearly 100M subs • Egypt is both the most populous Arab country and has largest number of subscribers …although not the highest penetration rate 4 3 2 1 What do these 4 countries have in common? Fairly liberal regulatory regimes 2 or 3 GSM operators – encouraging competition & smashing entry barriers (cost of ownership) Large populations Source: WCIS+
GDP in comparison to mobile penetration rate • Telecommunication infrastructure development has contributed to economic growth. Some studies indicate that 1% increase in the infrastructure corresponds to 1% increase in GDP. • Teledensity levels are directly correlated with human development indicators such as healthcare, education, and adult literacy. Increasing teledensity bridges the gap between the haves and the have-nots. Wide disparities in penetration and GDP among Arab countries Source: ITU 2006
3G in the Arab World [1 of 2] • 3G introduced in Arab world in only a few countries • There are many barriers to adoption of 3G services: • Low computer literacy rates and low data penetration rates • High handset costs • Lack of transparency on pricing • Lack of compelling Arabic language services and applications • 3G has made only minimal inroads in both Africa and the Middle East – less than 1% of world 3G subscribers Source: WCIS+
3G in the Arab World [2 of 2] According to the latest figures, as of Sept–07, there were around 5M 3G subscribers in the Arab region – mostly in KSA and the Gulf states Source: WCIS+
Socio-economic Indicators (2006) population* 73 M population distribution 43% urban 57% rural < 30 years of age 60% inhabitants around 97% of inhabitants live on 4% of total area adult literacy rate (% age 10+) 57% area (km2) 997,739 GDP (2006 est) 107 BnUSD GDP per capita (nominal) USD 1,454 Current market conditions: developing society with many challenges • Egypt is the most populated country in MENA region • Large disparities in the income distribution – with regional dimension (urban/rural, Upper Egypt/Lower Egypt) • GDP growth% Sources: BMI Forecast, & IMF, Economist Intelligence Unit, CAPMAS 2006 Census (preliminary results)
The Egyptian market is characterized by very wide income disparities • improving economy – but financial constraints remain for many … limiting potential mobile growth. • income disparities have significant impact on telecommunications consumption and habits. • as a result, we need a dual market strategy to meet the very different needs of high end and low end (mass market). • We also need to work on reducing the internal “digital divides” – by working on increasing computer literacy and promoting technology adoption. still room for penetration – but only if affordable Source: Mobinil Marketing Strategy Department
2005 2006 Fixed services Exchange capacity (M) 12.7 13.2 Fixed line subscribers (M) 10.4 10.8 Subscriber waiting list (M) 0.065 0.036 Exchanges in rural areas (1,007 villages) 1,128 1,142 Public phone booths 55,700 56,449 International connecting circuits & links 21,200 25,745 Mobile services Mobile subscribers 14 18 Internet Internet capacity 4.3Gbps 9.9Gbps Internet users (M) 5 6 Subscription cost (EGP) Local call Local call Monthly broadband subscription (EGP) 125 95 IT IT companies 1,716 2,070 IT clubs 1,293 1,442 ICT in Egypt: a success story [1 of 2] • Government of Egypt has positioned ICT development on top of its agenda • increasing infrastructure investment • easing restrictions on FDI • increasing liberalization and • increasing competition • Egypt is North Africa's biggest telecom market making up nearly 3.9% of the country's GDP. • ICT sector is achieving annual growth rates of +20% • Egypt is an important growth market in telecom, IT solutions, and consumer technology • Tremendous potential for Egyptian ICT industry: demonstrated by increasing exports. Source: MCIT Yearbook 2006
as of 3Q-07 mobile subscribers 28 M penetration 38% * fixed subscribers 10.9 M penetration 15 % Internet users 8 M penetration 11 % broadband users 0.36 M penetration 0.5 % Egypt is a high growth telecom market [1 of 2] • Mobile market growth is booming due to increased competition, and lowering of entry barriers (handset cost, minimum monthly spend) • We are witnessing incredible growth rates: • 3 operators together are adding up to 1M new subs per month • As of end of Sept–07, there are nearly 28M Egyptian mobile customers, +55% over end 2006 • Deregulation of telecommunications market is creating the necessary conditions for continuous growth Source: Egypt Telecommunications Report Q3 2007 BMI International & Company information, NTRA Brief on the Egyptian Telecom Sector Structure (Q3-07) - http://www.tra.gov.eg, population calculated at 74M
Egypt is a high growth telecom market [2 of 2] • Egypt has the largest Internet market in Africa – nearly 8M • 53% of Internet users are in Cairo and • 32% are in the Nile Delta and on the North Coast • There is a huge demand for broadband… • In 2005, DSL market grew by 150% YoY, and a further 100% in 2006. Source: Egypt Telecommunications Report 3Q-07 BMI International & Company information