smattering of iDEN throughout the
region and a handful of analogue
customers remain in Turkey.
3G has yet to establish a genuine
foothold in the region and is available
in only five markets; Bahrain,
Israel, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and
the UAE.
Kuwaiti carrier MTC is the leading
cross-border player in the region.
The firm operates through various
partnerships—and under various
brands—in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan,
Kuwait and Lebanon. It also has
a substantial portfolio in Africa
through its acquisition of pan-African
carrier Celltel, completed earlier
this year.
It is MTC that is to launch Saudi
Arabia’s third carrier early next year,
a right for which the firm paid substantially.
At US$6.1bn for a licence
to operate in a country with 86 per
cent penetration, some observers
felt that MTC paid over the odds for
market entry. But the firm is confident
that it’s GSM to HSPA operation
will pay dividends.
Saudi Arabia has the strongest
economy in the Middle East and when
viewed in the context of penetration
rates elsewhere in the region
that have reached well in excess of
100 per cent, potential for growth
remains solid.
The Middle East has
been less of a target for
international investors
than other potential high
growth regions
Mobile Communications International | First for news, best for business
FACTFILE Data provided by WCIS | For related regional data: www.wcisdata.com email: telecoms.enquiries.com
COUNTRY SUBSCRIBERS 2Q07 (MILLIONS) PENETRATION 2Q07 (%) YEAR ON YEAR GROWTH (%)
Afghanistan 2.256 7.07 72.6
Bahrain 1.084 152.9 21.5
Iran 20.533 29.6 112.8
Iraq 10.732 37.7 54.8
Israel 8.722 135.7 8.7
Jordan 4.561 75.4 20.6
Kuwait 2.619 104.5 4.6
Lebanon 1.14 29.1 9.2
Oman 2.085 65.1 33.3
Palestine 0.868 21.6 24.3
Qatar 1.095 120.7 35.0
Saudi Arabia 23.966 86.8 40.8
Syria 5.299 27.4 42.3
Turkey 55.446 77.9 17.1
UAE 6.490 152.3 29.9
Yemen 3.530 15.9 33.6
As part of the licensing agreement,
MTC will reduce the 50 per cent
stake it holds in the licence-winning
consortium to 25 per cent through a
Saudi IPO sometime after the operation
launches.
The Middle East has been less of
a target for international investors
than other potential high growth
regions. As well as its wholly owned
operation in Turkey, Vodafone is
present only in Bahrain and Kuwait—and
only through MTC, which
is one of its partner networks. In
these markets MTC offers service
under the MTC-Vodafone brand but
the two firms’ partnership arrangement
is soon set to end.
With the experience it has gained
through the MTC-Vodafone arrangement,
the UK carrier could be looking
to make a more permanent move into
the region. It is one of 12 companies
lined up for participation in the auction
for Qatar’s second mobile licence,
where it will be bidding against MTC.
Verizon and AT&T of the US, Caribbean
player Digicel and Indian pair
Bharti Airtel and Reliance Telecom
will also be taking part.
A third licence, meanwhile, is
being made available in Kuwait,
MARKET ANALYSIS
Source: World Cellular Information Service
where the incumbent players, MTC
and Wataniya are barred from the
auction process. It is anticipated that
overseas interest in the licence will
be high, both from regional players
and those based further afield.
As in Saudi Arabia, the new operation
will be required to stage an
IPO following launch. In Kuwait,
50 per cent of the company will
be sold off. The aspiring investors
will be competing for a 26 per cent
stake in the new operator, scheduled
for launch in January 2008,
as the Kuwaiti Government will be
retaining a 24 per cent stake in the
carrier. The auction winner will be
selected in November this year, and
the competitors for the stake will be
announced after the bid deadline of
September 7th.
While much of the world focuses
primarily on the conflicts and disputes
that have kept the Middle East
in the headlines every day for years,
the region’s mobile market is growing
healthily. That major Western players
are showing a marked interest in
the region as markets are liberalised
underscores the potential that established
players in the Middle East
have long recognised. �
35
To view a Ceros magazine you need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser and have the flash player 8 or higher installed. To install the latest flash player, click the icon above, install the flash plugin and then click here to refresh this page.