ZTE Corp identifies revenue potential in offering computing services to carriers (China)
According to reports, Shi Lirong, President, ZTE Corp, has said that there is big potential in offering customer services to mobile-phone companies. He said that the company has tie-ups with telecom operators China Mobile Ltd and China Unicom Ltd for a virtual office, with as many as 8 million users for its unified communication systems.
As per sources, Shi added that selling computer services will give ZTE a new source of revenue from existing network-equipment customers who seek ways to generate more sales from the pipes that carry phone calls and data. Further, he believes that cloud computing could account for one-third of the Shenzhen- based company’s sales within three to five years.
Industry analysts claim that ZTE has its work cut out for itself in order for it to be considered globally competitive with other players such as Huawei Technologies Co. and Cisco Systems Inc.
3G Subscribers in Egypt to Grow Five Fold Till 2012
Egyptian 3G market, which is mainly operated by three operators, possesses huge potential for future growth. Currently, the penetration level is very less with number of 3G subscribers estimated at less than 1 Million at the end of 2009. According to our research report Booming Egypt Telecom Marketâ€, countries 3G market is expanding at a significant rate since 2007 and is projected to grow five fold by the end of 2012. Moreover, operators are making huge investment to upgrade existing technology with an aim to increase their ARPUs.
Our report finds that the main reasons for huge investments in the 3G infrastructure by the three mobile operators in the country, is the saturation in existing 2G networks and declining ARPU in the 2G segment. Operators are trying to convince their customers to move into the new 3G services as a way of freeing up 2G capacity and halting the steady erosion of the ARPUs. Besides, aggressive marketing strategy is being adopted by all the three operators to lure subscribers in Egypt.
According to our research report, various equipment manufacturers are playing an important role in developing Egypt’s 3G network. Nokia Siemens Networks and Huawei have been developing Mobinil’s 3G networks while Alcatel-Lucent and Motorola are cooperating with Mobinil to establish its 2G network. Furthermore, Cisco Systems and Ericsson have had their part in the development and enhancement of the company’s network infrastructure.
Apart from 3G, we have found that Egypt’s mobile market has been growing at a fast pace and is projected to experience smart growth in the coming years. Growth in mobile telephony has been due to an increase in the low-income customer segment over the years. Additionally, stiff price competition between the mobile operators in the country and availability of pre-paid and installment payment options will fuel the segment.
Booming Egypt Telecom Market†provides analysis of Egypt’s telecommunication industry with detail analysis of future potential in different industry segments. The report includes mobile market, fixed line, internet, broadband, 3G, and WiMax market analysis and examines telecom infrastructure in Egypt. The report aims to provide the most accurate outlook of the telecom industry in Egypt.
Egyptian 3G subscribers to grow fivefold by 2012
A new research report has revealed that the Egyptian 3G market is expected to grow five fold by 2012, as compared to 2007.
According to reports, the 3G market, mainly operated by three operators, possesses huge potential for future growth. The 3G penetration level was less than 1 million at the end of 2009 but operators are investing heavily to upgrade existing technology and increase ARPUs.
Operators are trying to convince their customers to move into the new 3G services as a way of freeing up 2G capacity and halting the steady erosion of the ARPUs. Various equipment manufacturers are playing an important role in developing Egypt’s 3G network. Nokia Siemens Networks and Huawei have been developing Mobinil’s 3G networks while Alcatel-Lucent and Motorola are cooperating with Mobinil to establish its 2G network. Furthermore, Cisco Systems and Ericsson have had their part in the development and enhancement of the company’s network infrastructure. Apart from 3G, the report found that Egypt’s mobile market will also grow strongly in the coming years, boosted by an increase in the low-income customer segment, competition between operators and the availability of pre-paid and installment payment options.
Millions affected as Skype goes down
Internet phone and video service, Skype suffered an outage lasting several hours on Wednesday affecting millions of users of the Internet communications service.
According to Skype’s partly owned by web retailer EBay, some users were having problems signing on. Users in the US, Asia and Europe complained of the outage on social network site Twitter.
In its Twitter feed, the company apologized for the disruption and stated that it was investigating the cause.
Around 3.30pm EST, it alleged that the service was returning to normal, but that it may take several hours for everyone to be able to use it again.
The so-far unexplained outage, just days before the Christmas holiday, marked the latest blow to the service’s reputation.
Dropped calls and service quality have long been seen as a weak point for Skype, which offers free voice and video services between users as well as low-cost calls to landlines.
It now also faces competition from rival online phone providers such as Google, which lets its users make calls through their Gmail accounts, and high-end videoconferencing tools like Cisco Systems’s umi†service.
Omantel’s NGN contract awarded to Huawei
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Huawei, a Chinese equipment vendor has been awarded an OMR10 million (USD25.9 million) contract by Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel) to expand the incumbent fixed line operator’s next generation network (NGN).
Huawei superseded US equipment maker Cisco Systems, French company Alcatel-Lucent and Swedish mobile phone manufacturer Nokia to break the deal.
Jajah to be acquired by Telefonica O2 for USD 200 million
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Jajah, a VoIP services provider, will be acquired by Telefonica O2 in USD 200 million deal. Earlier, Techcrunch reported in the beginning of November that Microsoft and Cisco Systems were also looking to
buy Jajah for a price ranging from USD 200 million to USD 400 million.
Jajah introduced a VoIP service for mobile phone owners using internet in March 2006 and raised USD 28 million in VC funding from investors like Sequoia Capital, Globespan Capital Partners, Deutsche Telekom and Intel.
Currently, Jajah provides calling access to more than 200 destinations globally and serves over 25 million consumers and business callers in more than 122 countries.
Cisco Systems Gulf ranked 3rd fastest growing region in the world
Cisco Systems, the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, has announced that its Gulf operations have delivered 50 per cent growth in fiscal year 2006, establishing it as the company’s third fastest-growing region in the world.
The company also fared well in the Middle East and Africa, with the MEA region delivering 56 per cent growth in FY 2006 over the same period last year.
The announcement, which follows Cisco’s recent international reporting of Q4 and fiscal-year results for the period ended July 29, 2006, is a shot in the arm for the region’s nascent IT industry.
Samer Alkharrat, General Manager, Cisco Systems Gulf, said the company’s human capital is a primary factor in its record growth.
Alkharrat said. ‘The region is in rapid growth mode, and Cisco has responded to this growth with continuous strategic investments in the right people and the right training. This commitment, and the rewards we reap from it, is in sync with Cisco’s operating philosophy around the world.’
The investment in human resources has enabled Cisco to expand rapidly across the region, Alkharrat explained. The company recently opened a new office in Qatar, and additional offices are slated to open in Oman and Bahrain in coming months.
‘Having a talented corps of people suited to the needs of the region has allowed us to get closer to our partners and customers,’ he added. ‘We have now subdivided the Gulf region into three key territories, and appointed country managers for each.’
Cisco Systems Gulf’s investment in its human resources begins at the recruitment level. An entrenched system of continual training ensures that staff is provided with the right focus and direction, and the right tools to operate in this rapidly developing market.
FY06 also witnessed the introduction of Cisco Gulf’s TREC vertical team, an industry first specialty group dedicated to the fast-growing tourism, real estate and construction sectors.
Cisco’s globally recognised Networking Academy Program is also moving at full throttle in the region. Established to address the market’s growing need for training in networking technologies, the program offers structured courses at educational and training facilities around the region. Since its launch in 1997, the NetAcad has enlisted more than 11,000 academies and nearly two million students around the world.
The Fortune Global 500-listed company also concluded several major business deals in the region this year, including a new all-IP network vision for Kuwait-based Wataniya Telecom; an advanced IP call centre (IPCC) solutions for Petroleum Development Oman (PDO); a strategic consultancy agreement with the National Bank of Kuwait and PWC Logistics, and an infrastructure transformation contract with the Saudi Post Corporation.
Source- http://www.ameinfo.com
Technorati : Cisco Systems, Middle East, Mobile
Ice Rocket : Cisco Systems, Middle East, Mobile
