Middle East & North Africa Telecommunications

The number of Arab internet users will double to around 50m in three years, according to Google chief Eric Schmidt quoted by Gulf News. He said there will be more online content available for non-English speakers in the near future. Schmidt will be addressing delegates at the upcoming Arab Strategy Forum in Dubai.

i2, which claims to be the region’s largest mobile phone distributor and retailer with more than 350 retail outlets, has revealed plans to further boost its presence in emerging markets in Africa, while consolidating its position in the Middle East.
Over the past 12 months, the company has expanded its regional presence to include Morocco, Tunisia, […]

With PDA adoption across the Middle East set to explode, push e-mail will be the killer application that will drive widespread take-up of the devices, according to Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), organisers of Gitex and Gulfcomms 2006, the region’s leading IT and telecommunications exhibition.
Gitex and Gulfcomms will take place at the Dubai International Convention […]

The Middle East is a booming market for handhelds. Even as the PDA market is projected to grow at 40 per cent from 2006, smart phones integrating PDA functionalities will grow faster at 80 per cent driven by business users wanting access to computing and communication functionality - on the go, says a report.
This […]

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c43771) has announced the addition of 2006 Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband in Africa & the Middle East - Vertical Market to their offering.2006 Telecoms Mobile and Broadband in Africa & the Middle East -Vertical Market
With over 800 pages of research, 2006 Telecoms, Mobile & Broadband in Africa & the Middle East - […]

Dubai: A new $75 million private equity fund will soon be unveiled to target the rapidly growing Middle East telecom market.
Dubai-based Delta Capital, will launch the fund in Bahrain pending approval from the regulator, Central Bank of Bahrain.
Delta Partners puts the overall telecommunications market in the Middle East at $50 billion, with double-digit growth rates […]

Information & communications technology (ICT) indicators throughout the Arab region have revealed a two-fold increase in ICT usage, which includes mobile phones and internet penetration.
Although the digital divide between the Middle East and developed nations still exists, Arab governments are rapidly catching up through education, awareness, technical infrastructure and of paramount importance, change management.
Senior IT […]

O2 today announced the upcoming launch of the latest addition to its successful Xda Atom family of PDA phones.
Due in the Middle East end-July, the Xda Atom Exec is geared towards meeting the needs of professionals and high-flyers in the business world, said a spoeksman.
With a new matt “gun metal” finishing and a host of […]

DUBAI: Mobile phone use in the Arab world surged 70 per cent in 2005, boosted by lower prices due to more competition, a study said yesterday.
The study by Dubai-based Madar Research said mobile phone subscriptions in Arab countries jumped to 87.06 million by the end of 2005 from 51.19m at end-2004, equivalent to a pan-Arab […]

While WiMax has been widely touted as a ‘bridging’ technology to help the Middle East catch up with more developed nations, doubts have been raised over its future this month.
In a wide-ranging report, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) — an influential international trade body — has high-lighted spectrum, regulatory, industry and security […]

Hyper-competition is set to dominate the Middle East’s telecommunications and media markets moving forward, driven by strong subscriber growth and the opening up of multi-license markets, according to Arab Advisors Group.
The market is also seeing the emergence of a number of regional ’super-operators’ with operations in multiple markets, including UAE’s Etisalat, Egypt’s Orascom, Kuwait’s MTC […]

The surprise announcement by STC’s Al Jawal last month, of its commercial launch of 3G services in Saudi Arabia is reminiscent of the similar announcement made by MTC Bahrain back in December 2003. MTC Bahrain had been jostling with Etisalat over which of the two operators would become the first to launch 3G commercially in […]

Mobile computing vendor Palm has confirmed ITE Distribution as its exclusive master distributor for the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region. The move comes following a decision from Palm to end its policy of having a company representative in the region. Stuart Maughan, formerly branch manager for Palm’s operations in MEA has now left the […]

New entrants in the Middle Eastern telecommunications industry have been mainly operating in the mobile space, which has witnessed intensifying competition. Existing operators have adopted defense strategies, and as new entrants gained grounds and markets approached saturation, operators have expanded into new markets in search for growth, according to Booz Allen Hamilton.
Changes in technology will […]

The Arab world has witnessed a wave of telecom market liberalisation coinciding with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) accession in the past few years, says a recent study.
New entrants in the Middle Eastern telecommunications industry have been mainly operating in the mobile space, which has witnessed intensifying competition, says the study by Booz Allen Hamilton, […]

DUBAI Infinity TV has recently launched its latest programme titled Street Smarts,which is dubbed as the first reality TV show in the Middle East.

Sixteen Arab contestants, divided into male and female, from 12 countries in the region, will take on various challenges that will test both their creativity and intelligence for a chance to win […]

FVC, a leading 3G technology provider today announced that it expected 3G migration to accelerate by the end of 2006 in the Middle East region.
Speaking on the eve of the 9th Annual Arab International Telecom summit for Arab states, Mr. K. S. Parag, Regional Director, FVC, said:
‘The Middle East region is one of the most […]