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Wireless Federation » archive for 'Zain'

Zain still has eyes on foreign expansion (Kuwait)

  • July 5th, 2008
  • 1:20 pm

Kuwait-based operator secures $4.53 billion capital hike green light for overseas investments.
Zain this week said it has been given government approval for a $4.53 billion capital increase in order to fund its foreign expansion plans, reported the Middle East North Africa Financial Network. 

Under the terms of the Kuwaiti mobile operator’s inception decree, it requires the government to OK any capital hikes.

Zain, formerly known as Mobile Telecommunications Company (MTC), has repeatedly stated its desire for inorganic growth, particularly in the Middle East and Africa.

“We are looking at expanding in Africa and in the next six to 12 months we will definitely take on three African operations,” said Zain Africa CEO Chris Gabriel, in recent press reports.

He also said that the company is exploring the potential of becoming South Africa’s fourth mobile provider, a licence for which is set to be made available by the government in 2009.

In the Middle East, Zain bought 100% of Iraqi operator Iraqna Telecom from Egypt’s Orascom at the end of 2007 for $1.2 billion.

Also last year, the operator successfully led a consortium that bid $6.1 billion for Saudi Arabia’s third mobile licence. Reports in mid-June said that Zain was gearing up to launch trial network operations that will run until September.

Recent reports have also linked the telco to a possible merger with India’s Bharti Airtel, a claim dismissed by both companies on Thursday, although Zain has confirmed it is studying growth opportunities in the country.

In fact, as Total Telecom Magazine featured in March, Zain has made 20 acquisitions totalling $15 billion in the Middle East and Africa since April 2003. And it isn’t the only operator in the region aggressively extending its reach.

Qatar Telecom (QTel) this week filed a tender offer for all the outstanding shares of Indosat, having paid $1.8 billion for a 40.8% stake in the Indonesian mobile operator in June.

U.A.E.-based operator Etisalat in May raised its stake in West African player Atlantic Telecom to 82%. Atlantic owns majority stakes in telcos in the Ivory Coast, Benin, Burkina Faso, Gabon and Togo, amongst others.

In the same month the company said it was exploring the possibility of launching a bid for South Africa’s MTN, which is currently in the midst of what has become a complex series of negotiations with India’s Reliance Communications.

What’s more Etisalat this week signed an MoU with France Telecom to collaborate on home services and content, as well as an agreement to put in place preferred international roaming within each other’s footprint.

Meanwhile, the French incumbent is also on the expansion trail, revealing that it has not ruled out the possibility of partnering with Algeria’s Djezzy, owned by Orascom, as a means of entering the north-east African country.

   

Zain interested in SA licence (South Africa)

  • June 9th, 2008
  • 3:05 pm

Kuwait’s Zain Group has said it is eyeing a mobile licence which could become available in South Africa next year. The country already has three established operators – Vodacom, MTN and Cell-C – who were sharing almost 45.4 million subscribers at the end of March 2008. A report from Reuters cites Zain Africa’s CEO Chris Gabriel, who says: ‘We are interested in the South African market and we heard reports about a fourth mobile licence coming up.’ He adds: ‘If there is an opportunity we will definitely consider it.’ Last month, Khotso Khumalo, the chairman of the country’s parliamentary portfolio committee, told journalists at a media briefing that the government will license a fourth mobile operator and a third fixed line operator in 2009 though no further details have been revealed.

   

 

Celtel Malawi to invest USD90 million in network upgrade

  • June 4th, 2008
  • 3:01 pm

Celtel Malawi, a subsidiary of Middle East and African telecoms firm Zain Group, says it plans to invest USD90 million in its financial year 2008/09 to improve its network and extend coverage to all parts of the country. The operator also hopes to use part of the monies set aside to enable it to reduce the cost of its handsets. The decision to cut mobile phone costs is a result of the government’s recent initiative to implement new tax measures, it said. In the 2008/2009 national budget presentation, the government announced it was scrapping a 25% customs duty and excise on imported handsets, but introducing in its place a 10% domestic excise tax on airtime.

   

 

 

Zain to employ Nokia Siemens for expansion work

  • May 12th, 2008
  • 3:05 pm

Zain Iraq, the country’s largest mobile operator by subscribers, has contracted European vendor Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) for a USD150 million job to expand capacity and simplify and modernise the existing core network. Further details were not provided.Zain Iraq was formed at the end of 2007 when cellco MTC Atheer adopted the corporate brand of parent company, the Zain Group of Kuwait, formerly MTC. MTC Atheer won a 15-year national cellular licence in August 2007 for USD1.25 billion. The parent company acquired rival Iraqna from Egyptian group Orascom late last year for USD1.2 billion, and has since consolidated the two networks. The unified infrastructure served well over seven million customers at the end of 2007, a market share of 57%.

   

 

 

 

 

Zain launches network in southern Sudan

  • April 29th, 2008
  • 3:03 pm

Zain Sudan has launched a GSM network in southern Sudan as part of a USD150 million plan to provide services in the formerly embattled region. The cellco has already spent over USD500 million in Sudan, although the bulk of the expenditure has been directed towards the north of the country. ‘We now have a vastly improved service … with 50 antennas across the South,’ said CEO Khaled Muhtadi. He added that the company may have around 150,000 customers in the south, but because lines had been sold on the black market it was difficult to know exactly. Southern Sudan is currently recovering from a long running civil war with the North that has hampered investment in the area.

   

 

Zain interested in Turkish 3G licence (Turkey)

  • March 31st, 2008
  • 1:38 pm

The Kuwaiti telecoms group Zain says it is interested in acquiring a 3G mobile licence in Turkey when they are reoffered by the government. Three UMTS concessions were put up for sale last year but they attracted just one bid, from the country’s largest mobile operator, Turkcell. The government cancelled the sale, saying there was insufficient competition for the process to be legal. Zain’s chief executive Saad Al Barrak recently met with Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan to discuss the opportunity.

   

 

Motorola wins Saudi deal worth $355m (USA)

  • March 3rd, 2008
  • 2:04 pm

Motorola won a $335 million contract with Zain Saudi Arabia to deploy and manage a mobile phone network.

Zain plans to start operations this year after it paid $6.1 billion for Saudi Arabia’s third mobile license.

The contract with Motorola is for 2G and 3G networks, the two companies.

“Motorola is a partner of Zain in many countries, not just in Saudi Arabia,” said Marwan al-Ahmadi, Chief Executive of Zain Saudi Arabia.

Also known as Mobile Telecommunications Co., Kuwait’s Zain is leading the Zain Saudi Arabia consortium, which plans to begin operations this year. Zain operates in over 20 countries in Africa and in the Middle East.

Zain Saudi Arabia gave Nokia Siemens Networks a $935 million order in January for a mobile network.

Ericsson and China’s Huawei Technologies were competing for the two contracts, Ahmadi said.

The two contracts will provide Zain Saudi Arabia with a network capable of managing up to 8 million mobile phone users, Ahmadi said.

   

 

Zain selects Mobily’s network infrastructure (Saudi Arabia)

  • February 18th, 2008
  • 2:37 pm

Saudi Arabian mobile operator Mobily will lend its network infrastructure to Saudi Arabia’s newest market entrant, Zain to use for a few years. Mobily has announced that a number of agreements have been signed with the company, including one for national roaming. According to the agreement, Mobily will provide the necessary logistic assistance for Zain to bring its operations up to speed over the next few years. Zain will use Mobily’s microwave towers, and will utilise its network to plug any holes in its coverage once the service is up and running. Mobily will insure active interconnectivity for voice and video calls and MMS for Zain’s operation in the Kingdom.

   

 

 
 

Zain in Jordan and Jinny Software Announce Successful Trial of Powerful Mobile Advertising Solution

  • February 7th, 2008
  • 6:30 pm

Jinny Software has today announced the successful trial of a powerful advertising solution that will underpin new revenue streams for Zain in Jordan in 2008, and beyond. Installed and tested in a matter of weeks, the solution quickly provided the capability to deliver advertisements over SMS messaging from any advertiser or agency. This solution gives Zain in Jordan the ability to take an early and strong position in an industry that is expected to earn US$18 billion by 201 .

Built on Jinny’s proven technologies in messaging and filtering, the Advertising Engine has the power to deliver tailored advertising in a variety of ways. Whether an advertisement should be inserted into peer-to-peer messaging traffic or as a pre-page video clip, the Advertising Engine – thanks to sophisticated keyword and profile matching – can ensure the advert is relevant and useful to its audience, the consumer. Built to deliver tailored, targeted advertising that consumers want, as opposed to spam, the Advertising Engine is poised to meet the growth and ARPU-increase needs of operators this year and into the future.

Speaking about the successful trial, Zain in Jordan’s Mobile Data Services Senior Manager, Ziad Al Masri, said, “We have been delighted with the results that Jinny’s Advertising Engine has delivered during these trials. They have highlighted the potential gains Zain in Jordan will benefit from as a result of implementing this solution on our network, as well as the benefits that our subscribers will derive from this sophisticated new service.”

Commenting on the ground-breaking trial, Max Wilkie, CEO of Jinny Software, said, “We are once again delighted to be able to deliver a world-class solution to the Zain Group. With the Advertising Engine from Jinny, Zain in Jordan is now able to exploit the expanding business of mobile advertising and take advantage of new and sustainable revenue streams. There is no doubt that both Zain in Jordan and Jinny can build on this success to explore other media and messaging solutions to offer an increasingly powerful channel to advertisers.”

   

 

Zain signs up Nokia Siemens for Saudi network (Saudi Arabia)

  • January 7th, 2008
  • 2:33 pm

Mobile operator Zain has awarded a contract worth USD 935 million to Nokia Siemens Networks to build its mobile network in Saudi Arabia. The greenfield project includes the roll-out of 2G and 3G networks, including HSDPA and HSUPA technology and base stations based on the latest 3GPP release 4 standard. Nokia Siemens Networks will supply core and radio networks, operations and business support systems, applications and a full suite of services, including managed services for five years from a local network operations centre. Nokia Siemens Networks will also provide Zain with its convergent prepaid system, charge@once select, for voice and data. Nokia Siemens Networks is the sole supplier of Zain’s core network, including its MSC Server mobile softswitch and IP Multimedia Subsystem. Zain, formerly known as MTC, was awarded the third mobile operator licence in Saudi Arabia last year.