Mobile operators in more mature markets will need to adopt radical new business models over the next five years if they are to protect their profit margins, analysts have warned. Researchers at telecoms.com parent, Informa Telecoms & Media, said that while mobile operators in emerging markets will continue to enjoy strong revenue growth in the [...]

When you hear of a company that provides service to 185 million cellular customers, your thoughts turn to large international carriers like Vodafone and Telefonica, or maybe a major market giant operating in China or India. In fact, 185 million is the number of subscribers supported by Swedish vendor Ericsson through its portfolio of managed services contracts, according to the firm’s own figures.

For years the ranking of global handset vendors was a fairly predictable exercise. Nokia was a number one, trailed by Motorola in second place and Samsung in third. Then Motorola’s persistent bout of ill health shook things up a bit, allowing Korean manufacturer Samsung to claim second position last year.

United Arab Emirates carrier Etisalat this week posted fourth quarter net profits of Dirhams1.76bn ($479.3m), up 19.7 per cent from a year earlier. It’s an impressive return for a carrier that is operating in the newly competitive, highly saturated markets of the UAE. The company posted profit attributable to shareholders of Dirhams7.297 bn in 2007 [...]

It’s a happy new year for Nokia, as the Finnish vendor said Monday that it has bagged a $1bn contract to deliver kit and services to Saudi Arabian operator Zain. Nokia Siemens Networks said it has been tapped to supply a full turnkey 2G and 3G mobile network, including core and radio networks, operations and [...]

Zain, the Kuwaiti operator formerly known as MTC (Mobile Telecommunications Company), announced on Saturday that it will buy Orascom Iraq-based subsidiary Iraqna Company for Mobile Phone Services for $1.2bn. In August 2007, Zain’s existing Iraq-based subsidiary, MTC-Atheer, made a successful bid of $1.25bn to secure one of three 15-year nationwide licences awarded by the Iraqi [...]

October could be the end of Qtel’s 20 year monopoly on the Qatari telecoms sector, as the country’s regulator prepares to auction off the country’s second mobile licence. Final bids for the country’s second mobile license are due in September, with the winner of the second licence to be announced in October. Qatar is the [...]