Feature
Accelerating Mobile Broadband and Smartphone Adoption across Arab States Mobile operators investing in networks, jobs and innovation throughout the Arab States according to new study.
Mobile broadband networks will support more than two-thirds of all mobile connections across the Arab States of the Middle East and North Africa by 2020, according to a new GSMA study published at the GSMA Mobile 360 Series – Middle East conference being held in Dubai this week. The new study, ‘The Mobile Economy – Arab States 2015’, finds that there will be 350 million 3G/4G mobile broadband connections in the Arab States by 2020, accounting for 69% of the region’s total connections by 2020, up from just 34% at the end of 2014. This rapid migration to higher-speed mobile networks is being driven by operator investments in 3G and 4G networks and rising smartphone adoption. The number of smartphones connections in the region is forecast to almost triple between 2014 and 2020, reaching 327 million. “The mobile landscape in the Arab States varies considerably in terms of market maturity, ranging from the fast-developing North African markets to the highly advanced Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, but the entire region is benefiting from the shift to mobile broadband networks and devices
triggered by rising mobile operator investment,” said Alex Sinclair, Acting Director General and Chief Technology Officer at the GSMA. “We encourage governments in the region to adopt policies that will further accelerate mobile broadband adoption, for example by releasing more internationally harmonised spectrum; introducing incentives that encourage the deployment of infrastructure in remote and economically challenging areas; and revising taxation and regulatory policies that can negatively impact uptake of innovative new mobile services.”Over the last four years, mobile operators across the Arab States have spent more than US$40 billion on capital investments, or approximately 18% of total revenue. Investments have focused on improving network coverage, increasing network capacity, and deploying 3G/4G mobile broadband networks. According to the report, 3G networks are now live in every country in the region except one, while there are 23 live 4G networks in ten countries in the region and 4G launches planned in a further eight markets.
Page 8