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	<title>telecoms.com - telecoms industry news, analysis and opinion &#187; Zain</title>
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		<title>Zain records 7% rise in profit</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/35866/zain-records-7-rise-in-profit/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=zain-records-7-rise-in-profit</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/35866/zain-records-7-rise-in-profit/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 01 Nov 2011 10:16:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James Middleton</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News & Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[Kuwait-based operator Zain on Tuesday reported a seven per cent year on year increase in net income for the first nine months of 2011, to reach $762.5m, supported by a 2.2 per cent increase in revenues to reach $3.6bn.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_16386" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 250px"><a href="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2009/11/zain1.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-16386 " title="zain1" src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2009/11/zain1-300x247.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="198" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Zain has refocused its attentions</p></div>
<p>Kuwait-based operator Zain on Tuesday reported a seven per cent year on year increase in net income for the first nine months of 2011, to reach $762.5m, supported by a 2.2 per cent increase in revenues to reach $3.6bn.</p>
<p>The Middle Eastern carrier, which offloaded its extensive African assets in 2010, added 6.1 million customers over the past 12 months, a 17 per cent increase. The company’s total active customer base is now 41.4 million.</p>
<p>Commenting on the results, chairman Asaad Al Banwan said, “These solid results justify the many prudent decisions recently adopted by the board and the executive management that focus on maximising shareholder value. Despite intense competition and the lingering effects of the global economic crisis, the continuous growth in several key financial indicators is indicative of the successful operational efficiency drive implemented by the company.”</p>
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		<title>Airtel and Safaricom clash over MNP</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/26661/airtel-and-safaricom-clash-over-mnp/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=airtel-and-safaricom-clash-over-mnp</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/26661/airtel-and-safaricom-clash-over-mnp/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 18 Apr 2011 09:05:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Pamela Weaver</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News & Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bharti Airtel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bob Collymore]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[communication commission of Kenya]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MNP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rene Meza]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Safaricom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.telecoms.com/?p=26661</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[An increasingly bitter war between Kenyan operators Safaricom and Airtel has spilled into the country’s mobile number portability (MNP) space. Barely two weeks after the country introduced MNP, a war of words has broken out between the two telcos, with each accusing the other of sabotage and the use of nefarious tactics to prevent subscribers from switching providers.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_26662" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 130px"><a rel="attachment wp-att-26662" href="http://www.telecoms.com/26661/airtel-and-safaricom-clash-over-mnp/kenya/"><img class="size-full wp-image-26662" src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2011/04/kenya.gif" alt="" width="120" height="120" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Kenya&#39;s mobile players are locked in a battle for market share</p></div>
<p>An increasingly bitter war between Kenyan operators Safaricom and Airtel has spilled into the country’s mobile number portability (MNP) space. Barely two weeks after the country introduced MNP, a war of words has broken out between the two telcos, with each accusing the other of sabotage and the use of nefarious tactics to prevent subscribers from switching providers.</p>
<p>In an exchange of press releases, Airtel MD Rene Meza accused Safaricom of blocking calls to its network from customers who had switched provider; Safaricom’s Nzokia Waita responded with allegations that Airtel was deliberately confusing customers who wanted to port and delaying applications to switch. By the time Airtel hit back, saying that its rival was refusing to de-activate old SIM cards and engaging in “an act that is anti-patriotic and a gross abuse of dominance”, industry regulator Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK) had had to intervene, calling two meetings in as many days in an effort to defuse the situation.</p>
<p>The regulator is meeting with both CEOS today; in a statement, it reiterated that “the provision of number portability is an obligation under the licence conditions relating to numbering and number portability” and called on the rival telcos to respect their contracts.</p>
<p>The current disputes take place against the backdrop of a cut-throat price war in Kenya’s mobile operator space. Bharti-owned Airtel entered the market last year with the re-branding of Zain – the telco’s fourth name change since its launch a decade ago. Since Airtel’s launch, the telco has engaged in an aggressive play for market share, slashing prices by over 80 per cent in the past year in a bid to take on local giant Safaricom.</p>
<p>Safaricom, which is part owned by the Kenyan government and Vodafone, responded with price cuts of its own but CEO Bob Collymore said that Airtel’s loss-leader tactics were putting the entire cellular industry in Kenya at risk. Through the price cuts, Airtel was able to double its subscriber base to 4 million in the space of six months last year. Informa research estimates Airtel’s market share at over 4.2 million subscribers as of March this year; Safaricom continues to dominate the market with over 17.8 million subscribers.</p>
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		<title>Etisalat officially cools talks with Zain</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/25647/etisalat-officially-cools-talks-with-zain/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=etisalat-officially-cools-talks-with-zain</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/25647/etisalat-officially-cools-talks-with-zain/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 21 Mar 2011 14:39:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James Middleton</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News & Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Etisalat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M&A]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[UAE operator Etisalat has officially called an end to its talks with Zain, despite the fact that the latter may have found a buyer for its Saudi unit. ]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_16466" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><img class="size-medium wp-image-16466" src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2009/11/dice-no-300x247.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="247" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Etisalat has officially called an end to its talks with Zain</p></div>
<p>UAE operator Etisalat has officially called an end to its talks with Zain, despite the fact that the latter may have found a buyer for its Saudi unit.</p>
<p>In a memo to the Abu Dhabi stock exchange, Etisalat said its discussions with Al Kharafi had ended. The firm noted its extensive due diligence, but highlighted political unrest and the failure of Zain shareholders to reach a unanimous agreement on the deal.</p>
<p>Etisalat, which had been looking to pick up 46 per cent of Zain for an estimated price of between $10-$12bn, let the due diligence period expire earlier this month. The delay had been partly caused by Zain’s rejection of three offers for its Saudi Arabian operation. In order for the Etisalat deal to go ahead, Zain is required to offload its Saudi unit, as Etisalat also has a presence in the country via Mobily.</p>
<p>Yet last week the Kuwait-headquartered carrier <a href="http://www.telecoms.com/25522/zain-accepts-offer-for-saudi-unit/">accepted an offer of $950m</a>, from a joint venture made up of Bahrain’s Batelco and Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), for its 25 per cent stake in Saudi’s Zain KSA.</p>
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		<title>Zain accepts offer for Saudi unit</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/25522/zain-accepts-offer-for-saudi-unit/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=zain-accepts-offer-for-saudi-unit</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/25522/zain-accepts-offer-for-saudi-unit/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:35:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James Middleton</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News & Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.telecoms.com/?p=25522</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The on again off again sale of Zain’s Saudi Arabian operation looked a bit more solid on Tuesday, when the Kuwait-headquartered carrier accepted an offer, from a joint venture made up of Bahrain's Batelco and Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding Company (KHC).]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_21740" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><img class="size-medium wp-image-21740" title="deal-agreement" src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2010/07/deal-agreement-300x247.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="247" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Zain has accepted an offer of $950m for its 25 per cent stake in Saudi’s Zain KSA</p></div>
<p>The on again off again sale of Zain’s Saudi Arabian operation looked a bit more solid on Tuesday, when the Kuwait-headquartered carrier accepted an offer, from a joint venture made up of Bahrain&#8217;s Batelco and Saudi Arabia&#8217;s Kingdom Holding Company (KHC).</p>
<p>According to local press reports, Zain has accepted an offer of $950m for its 25 per cent stake in Saudi’s Zain KSA. Yet the Middle Eastern carrier has released a statement saying that it will only determine the percentage of ownership for Kingdom Holding Company in Zain KSA after the due diligence has been completed.</p>
<p>If successful, the acquisition may put UAE operator <a href="http://www.telecoms.com/25049/etisalat%E2%80%99s-zain-ambitions-looking-uncertain/">Etisalat’s move to buy a large stake in Zain back on track</a>. In order for the Etisalat deal to go ahead, Zain is required to offload its Saudi unit, as Etisalat also has a presence in the country via Mobily.</p>
<div class="icit-ranker">
	<h4 class="title">Zain</h4>
	<img src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/plugins/company-rank/images/ajax-loader.gif" class="spinner" alt="spinner" />

	<div class="description"><p>How does this article affect your perception of Zain?  <a href="http://www.telecoms.com/perception-index"><strong>What is this?</strong></a></p>
</div>
	<div class="standings">Zain is <span>55.6% positive</span></div>

	<div class="percent"><span style="left:77.8%"></span></div>
	<div class="count">Total votes: <span class="value">9</span></div>
	<div class="mechanics"></div>
	<div class="data" style="display:none">
		<span class="object-id">41</span>
		<span class="score">7</span>
		<span class="total-votes">9</span>
		<span class="ajaxNonce">0b80d80bdb</span>
		<span class="read-only">0</span>
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</div>
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		<item>
		<title>Exile on Zain Street</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/23895/exile-on-zain-street/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=exile-on-zain-street</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/23895/exile-on-zain-street/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:25:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Matthew Reed</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Friendi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MVNO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.telecoms.com/?p=23895</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[For a long time, Informa Telecoms &#038; Media analysts have felt like lone voices in the wilderness, banging on about the potential for MVNOs in Saudi Arabia, only to be met with apparent indifference and even scorn.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>For a long time, Informa Telecoms &amp; Media analysts have felt like lone voices in the wilderness, banging on about the potential for MVNOs in Saudi Arabia, only to be met with apparent indifference and even scorn.</p>
<p>There is an opportunity in Saudi Arabia for the kind of market segmentation that can be achieved with MVNOs, we said – and the country’s expatriates represent a prime target for such services.</p>
<p>So it was with interest – and perhaps, dare we say, even a little smugness – that we read today that Zain Saudi Arabia, the country’s No. 3 mobile operator, has launched a low-cost international calls plan in partnership with Connect Saudi Arabia, a company that is part-owned by regional MVNO operator Friendi Group. (Dubai-based Friendi has already set up MVNOs in Oman and Jordan and has ambitions to establish others across the MENA region and beyond.)</p>
<p>Zain’s new plan, called Friendi Mobile Package, offers low rates for calls and text messages to destinations including the Philippines, Hong Kong, Singapore, the US, Canada, the UK, Bahrain and the UAE. There will also be international mobile content and credit transfer services.</p>
<p>Now, a statement from Zain about the partnership says that Connect is assisting with the operation and distribution of the Friendi package on an outsourced basis, but it does not describe Connect, Friendi or the new offering as an MVNO.</p>
<p>But Saudi Arabia’s other two mobile operators, STC and Mobily, are likely to take a dimmer view of proceedings and are expected to contest the legality of Zain’s new offering on the basis that it constitutes a form of MVNO, for which there is no mandate within the country’s existing telecoms regulations.</p>
<div class="icit-ranker">
	<h4 class="title">Zain</h4>
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	<div class="standings">Zain is <span>55.6% positive</span></div>

	<div class="percent"><span style="left:77.8%"></span></div>
	<div class="count">Total votes: <span class="value">9</span></div>
	<div class="mechanics"></div>
	<div class="data" style="display:none">
		<span class="object-id">41</span>
		<span class="score">7</span>
		<span class="total-votes">9</span>
		<span class="ajaxNonce">0b80d80bdb</span>
		<span class="read-only">0</span>
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</div>
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		<item>
		<title>Bharti rebrands Zain Africa operations</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/23455/bharti-rebrands-zain-africa-operations/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=bharti-rebrands-zain-africa-operations</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/23455/bharti-rebrands-zain-africa-operations/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 22 Nov 2010 14:16:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James Middleton</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Africa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News & Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bharti]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Branding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.telecoms.com/?p=23455</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[India-based Bharti Airtel, the new owner of Zain’s African assets has begun the re-branding process across the 16 operations in the region. ]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_19537" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><img class="size-medium wp-image-19537" title="brand" src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2010/04/brand-300x247.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="247" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Bharti Airtel has begun the re-branding process across the 16 ex-Zain operations in the region</p></div>
<p>India-based Bharti Airtel, the new owner of Zain’s African assets has begun the re-branding process across the 16 operations in the region.</p>
<p>With the unveiling of the new brand identity, Airtel becomes the master brand for all the group’s 19 operations in Asia and Africa covering over 200 million customers. In Africa, Airtel replaces the Zain brand across the board, with the Zap mobile money service re-branded Airtel Money with immediate effect.</p>
<p>According to Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and managing director of Bharti: &#8221; Our African customers will now be able to enjoy the same best-in-class brand experience as our customers across India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. We remain committed to taking our network deeper into Africa, ensuring our services touch the common man and bridge the digital divide in the continent.”</p>
<p>Zain completed the $10.7bn sale of its African operations (excluding Morocco and Sudan) to Bharti in June of this year, allowing the Middle Eastern firm to will refocus on its “highly cash generative operations” at home.</p>
<p>As part of the unveiling the new brand, Airtel also announced the launch of a new ultra low cost handset package which effectively provides a Nokia mobile phone free of charge to all new subscribers. The package is priced at around $23 and includes a Nokia 1280, Airtel SIM card and the equivalent value in Airtel talk time and text messages.</p>
<div class="icit-ranker">
	<h4 class="title">Bharti</h4>
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	<div class="standings">Bharti is <span>50% positive</span></div>

	<div class="percent"><span style="left:75%"></span></div>
	<div class="count">Total votes: <span class="value">8</span></div>
	<div class="mechanics"></div>
	<div class="data" style="display:none">
		<span class="object-id">23</span>
		<span class="score">6</span>
		<span class="total-votes">8</span>
		<span class="ajaxNonce">8e08be6dbe</span>
		<span class="read-only">0</span>
	</div>
</div>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<media:category>featured</media:category>
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		<item>
		<title>Operator, know thyself</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/22643/operator-know-thyself/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=operator-know-thyself</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/22643/operator-know-thyself/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:55:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The Informer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[A Week in Wireless]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Content & Applications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Etisalat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nokia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Networking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vodafone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.telecoms.com/?p=22643</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[UK-based carrier Vodafone, Big Red as it’s affectionately known, is in a right old pickle. Pieter Knook, the ex-Microsoft man hired to spearhead the operator’s designs on the mobile internet space, has done the Frank with barely concealed glee. Just prior to his exit on Tuesday, Knook had posted his parting shot (since removed) on twitter. “Freedom beckons,” he tweeted as he went skipping off into the sunset leaving the smoking wreckage that is Vodafone 360 behind him. ]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>UK-based carrier <strong>Vodafone</strong>, Big Red as it’s affectionately known, is in a right old pickle. Pieter Knook, the ex-<strong>Microsoft</strong> man hired to spearhead the operator’s designs on the mobile internet space, has done the Frank (<em>Translation: effected a speedy departure</em>) with barely concealed glee.</p>
<p>Just prior to his exit on Tuesday, Knook had posted his parting shot (since removed) on twitter. “Freedom beckons,” he tweeted as he went skipping off into the sunset leaving the smoking wreckage that is Vodafone 360 behind him.</p>
<p>Knook was hired from Microsoft<strong> </strong>in early 2008 to take on Vodafone’s<strong> </strong>internet services division, with the ultimate goal of pumping out the Web 2.0 platform to be known as Vodafone 360. Quite what magic Vodafone was expecting Knook to work remains a puzzle. After all, the chap had spent the last five years as senior vice president of Microsoft’s Mobile business, responsible for strategy, product development, marketing and sales. The Informer doesn’t want to do the man a disservice, but it’s not like Microsoft’s mobile initiative has rocked the boat too much in the past few years. (Watch out Nokia!)</p>
<p>So, for one reason or another, Vodafone 360 turned out to be a bit of a disaster. As the Informer’s chum, Bengt Nordstrom, CEO of independent mobile consultancy <strong>Northstream</strong>, said: “Vodafone 360 is almost a case study of what most major operators are doing wrong. Rather than cooperating with their peers around the world to create a common platform for social media and other services, individual operators instead continue to follow a sub-scale, proprietary approach.” Operator, know thy place.</p>
<p>There is already intense competition in the sector from internet players like <strong>Google</strong>, <strong>Facebook </strong>and <strong>Skype</strong>, as well as device companies like <strong>Apple</strong>, <strong>HTC </strong>and <strong>Nokia</strong>, limiting the potential of operator-branded offerings like Vodafone 360. When Big Red first launched 360, it was available only on a few high-end smartphones that were not attractive enough to compel users to switch. This meant a lack of 360 users on the platform, which further impacted its attractiveness and limited the opportunity to interact with other 360 users. To its credit, Vodafone realised its mistake and in July of this year abandoned the 360 branded handsets idea in favour of pushing 360 as a suite of services and applications.</p>
<p>But few web services are born great. While a few do achieve greatness, there are some, like 360, which are thrust upon users in a desperate bid to achieve that stature. Vodafone compounded the problem with 360 even further by rolling out a software update to Android-handset users, which sneakily included a whole batch of irremovable Vodafone apps, including the 360 suite as well as slapping the big red comma on every available bit of screen real estate. The company was promptly forced to backtrack on its move and give users an option to remove all of the Vodafone-branded offerings they hadn’t asked for in the first place.</p>
<p>Vodafone’s not alone in trying this model – Microsoft shoved IE down users’ throats, Nokia made Ovi a central feature of its devices and even the mighty Apple, which can do no wrong in its users&#8217; eyes, came a cropper with the launch of Ping – a social network that prides itself on exclusivity to the point of crippling loneliness.</p>
<p>The message is clear: you can’t tell people what they want, but you can nudge them gently in a certain direction. “The simple truth is that mobile operators have never been particularly strong when it comes to developing new devices, software and services. Luckily for them, however, their success is not dependent on being strong in these areas. What matters for them are issues like network quality and coverage, customer care and channel strategy,” Nordstrom said.</p>
<p>Being given a not-so-gentle nudge in a certain direction this week were 1,200 employees at the newly formed management company <strong>Everything Everywhere</strong>, which is cutting back on jobs to help the firm operate at “maximum efficiency.” The bulk of the cuts will be felt at head office, with back office and middle management being first for the chop.</p>
<p>The merged mobile operation of UK operators <strong>T-Mobile</strong> and <strong>Orange </strong>reported its first results this week, notching up 27.9 million subscriptions at end June, up 3.4 per cent year-on-year. EBITDA came in at 309m, down from £379m in 2Q09 as service revenues decreased over the same period, mainly due to termination rates. But Everything Everywhere confirmed that it will meet its synergy net present value target of at least £3.5bn.</p>
<p>There’s fresh blood coming in at device manufacturer <strong>HP </strong>however, which is another company (like Vodafone and Nokia) putting its faith in a software executive. Leo Apotheker, has been named as the firms new chief executive officer, bringing two decades of software expertise, most of which was earned at <strong>SAP</strong>.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Nokia’s new software guy, Stephen Elop, another ex-Microsoftee, has caught a break since last week as the Finnish handset giant assured the world that its flagship Symbian^3 device, the N8, has started shipping. Customers who have placed a pre-order for the device will be the first to receive it but market availability “will vary by country and by operator, with broad availability in the coming weeks”.</p>
<p>Another mention for Microsoft now, which is believed to be teeing up a handful of Windows Phone 7-based mobile devices for exclusive launch with <strong>AT&amp;T</strong> in the US. What we’ve seen of the new Microsoft mobile platform suggests that it has some good ideas around user interface, but whether it can turn around Microsoft’s fortunes in the sector remains to be seen.</p>
<p>Not wanting to be left out of the shiny new device action was Canadian vendor <strong>RIM</strong>, which has jumped on the tablet bandwagon with the BlackBerry PlayBook. Initially targeted at the large and small enterprise space (much like the original BlackBerry) the PlayBook panders to the increasingly popular tablet/slate form factor, at less than half an inch thick and weighing less than a pound, with a seven inch high resolution display running at 1024 x 600.</p>
<p>The device also marks the introduction of the BlackBerry Tablet OS, which is built on the <strong>QNX </strong>Neutrino microkernel architecture, described by RIM as “one of the most reliable, secure and robust operating system architectures in the world”. Neutrino has a good reputation as an embedded devices OS and QNX was acquired by RIM in April of this year. An SDK of the tablet OS is planned for release “in the coming weeks,” while the PlayBook itself is expected to be available in the US in early 2011 with rollouts in other international markets beginning in the second quarter of next year.</p>
<p>Moving along to the Australian market now, where local incumbent <strong>Telstra </strong>has upped its game in the machine to machine (M2M) space, introducing a web-based self-service platform, allowing organisations to manage M2M products themselves. To get the Telstra Wireless M2M Control Centre initiative started, the carrier has entered into an exclusive, multi-year agreement with M2M technology provider <strong>Jasper Wireless, </strong>with a platform that does not only cater to business devices such as electronic metering, asset tracking and remote operations but is also expected to accelerate market entry for a new generation of connected consumer devices such as e-readers, picture frames and portable navigation devices.</p>
<p>Over in the Middle East now, emerging markets giant <strong>Zain </strong>is looking to partner, with UAE operator <strong>Etisalat </strong>negotiating for a 46 per cent stake in the Kuwaiti operator, in a deal that could be worth $10.5bn. Zain, like many of its peers, had objectives of building itself into a major player in the Middle East and beyond. But while Zain was the most ambitious of its peers it was also the first to blink, with its grand expansion plans unravelling over the past year or so, leading to the sale of the Zain Africa operations to <strong>Bharti Airtel</strong>.</p>
<p><strong>Informa</strong> analyst Matthew Reed, thinks the proposal from Etisalat makes a lot of sense in terms of advancing Etisalat’s own expansion plans, because several of the Zain units are very successful and attractive assets. In addition, Zain’s operations are now almost entirely in the Middle East, which suits Etisalat as it is also the latter’s home region, yet Zain’s footprint is largely complementary to that of Etisalat, with only one important overlap – Saudi Arabia.</p>
<p>If Etisalat’s offer is successful, the UAE operator will be able to add Zain’s operations in the high-growth markets of Iraq and Sudan – both of which are countries that Etisalat has been targeting for some time. Etisalat does already have a presence in Sudan through CDMA operator <strong>Canar</strong>, but it has been unsuccessful in its quest for a GSM licence in the country. In Iraq, Etisalat has in the past had unsuccessful takeover talks with third placed operator<strong> Korek Telecom</strong>.</p>
<p>That’s all for this week,</p>
<p>Take care</p>
<p>The Informer</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Why Etisalat’s move for Zain makes sense</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/22648/why-etisalat%e2%80%99s-move-for-zain-makes-sense/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=why-etisalat%25e2%2580%2599s-move-for-zain-makes-sense</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/22648/why-etisalat%e2%80%99s-move-for-zain-makes-sense/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:54:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James Middleton</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News & Analysis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Operator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Etisalat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[M&A]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zain]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[UAE operator Etisalat’s offer for a 46 per cent stake in Zain is a move that makes a lot of sense in terms of advancing Etisalat’s own expansion plans, according to analysts at Informa Telecoms &#038; Media.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="attachment_16386" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px"><img class="size-medium wp-image-16386" title="zain1" src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2009/11/zain1-300x247.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="247" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Etisalat is reportedly negotiating for a 46 per cent stake in Kuwaiti operator Zain, in a deal that would be worth $10.5bn</p></div>
<p>UAE operator <a href="http://www.telecoms.com/22632/etisalat-to-buy-46-of-zain-in-10-5bn-deal/">Etisalat’s offer for a 46 per cent stake in Zain </a>is a move that makes a lot of sense in terms of advancing Etisalat’s own expansion plans, according to analysts at Informa Telecoms &amp; Media.</p>
<p>Several of Zain’s units are very successful and attractive assets, and since the disposal of its African operations, are now almost entirely based in the Middle East, which is also Etisalat’s home region. Furthermore, Zain’s footprint is largely complementary to that of Etisalat, with only one important overlap in Saudi Arabia.</p>
<p>The case for consolidation among the big Gulf operators has been building for some time, said Matthew Reed, senior analyst at Informa. But with each player having similar objectives of building themselves into major players in the Middle East and beyond, there wasn’t room for all to succeed. “Zain was the most ambitious of its peers but it was also the first to blink, with its grand expansion plans unravelling over the past year or so, leading to the sale of the Zain Africa operations to Bharti Airtel,” Reed said.</p>
<p>If Etisalat’s offer is successful, the UAE operator will be able to add Zain’s market-leading operations in the high-growth markets of Iraq and Sudan (Etisalat does already have a presence in Sudan through CDMA operator Canar, but it has been unsuccessful in its quest for a GSM licence), as well as those in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait, with a management contract in Lebanon and assets in Morocco.</p>
<p>But it is in Saudi Arabia that things get awkward, as both Etisalat and Zain already have subsidiaries in the country: Etisalat has a 26 per cent stake in second placed operator Mobily while Zain group has a 25 per cent stake in Zain Saudi Arabia. If Etisalat buys into Zain, the CITC – Saudi Arabia’s telecoms regulator – is expected to insist that Etisalat disposes of one of the two assets. Etisalat would almost certainly choose to sell Zain Saudi Arabia, which could be of interest to MTN, for example, as the South African group has been thwarted in a number of its recent M&amp;A ventures, including takeover talks with Orascom. Qatar’s Q-tel might also be interested in Zain Saudi Arabia.</p>
<p>“If Etisalat is successful in its bid for Zain, the UAE operator will also be propelled up the operator-ranking tables. Leaving aside Zain Saudi Arabia, a combined Etisalat and Zain group would be the world’s nineteenth largest mobile operating group in terms of total subscriptions, with about 138 million subscriptions, and the twenty-fifth largest in the world in terms of proportionate subscriptions, with about 62 million subscriptions,” Reed said.</p>
<div class="icit-ranker">
	<h4 class="title">Zain</h4>
	<img src="http://www.telecoms.com/wp-content/plugins/company-rank/images/ajax-loader.gif" class="spinner" alt="spinner" />

	<div class="description"><p>How does this article affect your perception of Zain?  <a href="http://www.telecoms.com/perception-index"><strong>What is this?</strong></a></p>
</div>
	<div class="standings">Zain is <span>55.6% positive</span></div>

	<div class="percent"><span style="left:77.8%"></span></div>
	<div class="count">Total votes: <span class="value">9</span></div>
	<div class="mechanics"></div>
	<div class="data" style="display:none">
		<span class="object-id">41</span>
		<span class="score">7</span>
		<span class="total-votes">9</span>
		<span class="ajaxNonce">0b80d80bdb</span>
		<span class="read-only">0</span>
	</div>
</div>
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		<title>Etisalat to buy 46% of Zain in $10.5bn deal</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/22632/etisalat-to-buy-46-of-zain-in-10-5bn-deal/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=etisalat-to-buy-46-of-zain-in-10-5bn-deal</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/22632/etisalat-to-buy-46-of-zain-in-10-5bn-deal/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 30 Sep 2010 10:55:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>James Middleton</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Newsbites]]></category>
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		<description><![CDATA[UAE operator Etisalat is reportedly negotiating for a 46 per cent stake in Kuwaiti operator Zain, in a deal that would be worth $10.5bn. ]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>UAE operator Etisalat is reportedly negotiating for a 46 per cent stake in Kuwaiti operator Zain, in a deal that would be worth $10.5bn.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The God delusion</title>
		<link>http://www.telecoms.com/20892/the-god-delusion/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=the-god-delusion</link>
		<comments>http://www.telecoms.com/20892/the-god-delusion/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 11 Jun 2010 11:19:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The Informer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[A Week in Wireless]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iPhone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iPhone 4]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MTN]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vimpelcom]]></category>
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		<description><![CDATA[So the new iPhone is here—the iPhone 4. It’s a thing of beauty, no doubt about it—and it has behind it a short but very impressive line of forbears. The iPhone lineage has changed the way that people perceive, define and use mobile phones. It has had more positive impact than any other device on consumer enthusiasm for mobile data. And it has been the interface for one of the most important and influential developments the industry has seen in recent times; the App Store.]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>So the new iPhone is here—the iPhone 4. It’s a thing of beauty, no doubt about it—and it has behind it a short but very impressive line of forbears. The iPhone lineage has changed the way that people perceive, define and use mobile phones. It has had more positive impact than any other device on consumer enthusiasm for mobile data. And it has been the interface for one of the most important and influential developments the industry has seen in recent times; the App Store.</p>
<p>You could argue that there is no overstating the importance of the iPhone, and in years to come the device’s achievements will no doubt grow in stature even further, fed by the fond sunlight of reminiscence.</p>
<p>Surely, though, <strong>Apple</strong> has bitten off more than it can chew with the promise that it has made on behalf of the iPhone 4. Like the adrenalin now fuelling predictions that England can progress beyond the quarter finals of the World Cup, clearly the excitement’s gone to somebody’s head over there in Cupertino. Because with the iPhone 4, Apple is claiming that it can succeed where all others have failed, and entice end users into regularly making video calls.</p>
<p>It beggars belief, doesn’t it? If they’d said they were shipping the phone with an embedded app that proved once and for all the existence of a divine being, it would be more plausible. If they said the phone sported a new function that could cure terminal diseases when waved over the patient, then the Informer would be more likely to take their word for it. Even—and this is really pushing it—even if they said they could make the in-built weather app correctly predict the day’s meteorological conditions, the Informer would be prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt.</p>
<p>But video calling? Ha! Who are they trying to kid?</p>
<p>Video calling is the folly erected by the industry to house its prize white elephant. It came to symbolise with painful accuracy the colossal bungle that was the introduction of 3G. It was at the centre of the promise on which all of those auction billions were staked and the breathtaking anticlimax of its arrival seemed to represent a failure of the industry at large as thousands lost their jobs.</p>
<p>And now Apple has made video calling one of the central planks of its marketing for the iPhone 4. This being Apple it’s not called ‘video calling’, of course, it’s called ‘FaceTime’. And the firm has been cautious enough to work it so that the application only runs over the handset’s wifi connection. Clearly it still doesn’t trust the cellular networks—which have now truly delivered on the promises of a decade ago—to deliver this holy grail of services.</p>
<p>For all Apple’s innovative smarts, though, the scenario-led marketing was the same old guff. Travelling executive Dad in his hotel room gets to see wife and child at home and everyone feels warm and fuzzy. This is what we were being fed ten years back and, while the technology is now proven, the demand is not. Video calling of a decent standard has been available for some time over mobile networks, truth be told, but handset vendors and carriers stopped promoting it in the face of barely lukewarm enthusiasm from the consumer.</p>
<p>The Informer tried it once, some years ago, and succeeding in getting a video call up and running to a colleague who was visiting Japan, and in a bar. Momentarily it felt like living the dream—Japan, after all, was the kind of market where everybody video called one another. It was to prove the briefest of thrills, however. A waiter  appeared in shot and said something to the Informer’s colleague. “I’ve got to go,” slurred the colleague, “You’re not allowed to use mobile phones in here.”</p>
<p>If Apple succeeds it will be nothing to do with technology and everything to do with Apple making the service feel cool to its increasingly widespread fanbase.</p>
<p>Just as interesting as the newest phone are Apple’s plans for the device it replaces; the 3GS. The firm is discontinuing the 16GB and 32GB versions of this handset, and will produce only an 8GB version that it will  knock out for $99. The iPhone 3G will be axed altogether. With this new budget version of the 3GS, Apple is taking its first steps out of the very high end of the handset market, and looking to make some wins in the mid-tier where, until now, it has been content to let others mop up the business. It’s a move that should worry other vendors.</p>
<p>The carriers, meanwhile, are using the arrival of the iPhone next week to usher in new pricing strategies. Last week it was <strong>AT&amp;T</strong>, this week it was <strong>O2</strong> <strong>UK</strong>. And like its US counterpart, <strong>Telefonica’s</strong> British outpost was keen to point out that the vast majority of smartphone users will be unaffected and only the heavy consumers of data will be hit hardest.</p>
<p>Based on current usage patterns, 97 per cent of O2 customers would not need to buy additional data allowances, as the lowest bundle – at 500MB – provides at least 2.5 times the average O2 customer’s current use, said CEO Ronan Dunne. £35/month, for example, gets a user 600 minutes, 500MB of data and unlimited text messages. Up that to £60/month and you get 1GB of data and unlimited everything else.</p>
<p>O2 will not be getting the iPhone 4 on an exclusive basis as it has with previous iterations, and so it is no doubt wary of losing customers whose existing iPhone contracts are almost up to rival networks. It should be worried, too, because its network performance in London, where the concentration of devotees is at its highest, has been woeful of late. So the firm announced this week that it had tapped <strong>Nokia Siemens Networks </strong>to give it the network equivalent of one of those body building shakes in the UK capital.</p>
<p>In the distant future, word of the wondrous iPhone&#8217;s launch may well be passed down to new generations as a bedtime story. It would probably go something like this:</p>
<p>Once upon a time there was an urban princess who, like, so desperately wanted to get her hands and a shiny new iPhone 4, carved as it was out of purest Supremium, which could only be mined in the cloud Kingdom of Cupertino.</p>
<p>So the princess went down to her local operator&#8217;s retail outlet and asked for an upgrade. At the princess&#8217;s request the operator smiled wickedly and agreed to let the princess have an early upgrade to the iPhone 4 but only in exchange for £20 per month on top of her existing tariff for the remainder of her existing contract as well as the price of the new device itself. This might be around £199 for the 16GB model and £299 for the 32GB model, as the evil king of Cupertino, who controlled the operator by a magic link, hadn&#8217;t decided yet.</p>
<p>What&#8217;s more the princess would also have to sign a contract tying her into another 18 or 24 months servitude in the operator&#8217;s kitchens.</p>
<p>At this news the princess broke down in tears. &#8220;Who will help me now?&#8221; she cried. Just then a funny little man jumped in through the window and said to the princess:</p>
<p>&#8220;Why are you crying?&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;Because I want an iPhone 4G and it costs so much,&#8221; she replied.</p>
<p>&#8220;Hmm. How about I get you an iPhone 4G and you do something for me,&#8221; said the funny little man.</p>
<p>&#8220;Ok,&#8221; said the princess. &#8220;I&#8217;ll give you anything.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;I want your firstborn baby,&#8221; said the man.</p>
<p>&#8220;Sure,&#8221; she replied. &#8220;That sounds like a much better deal.&#8221;</p>
<p>And they all lived happily ever after, except for the operator and his cohorts which were vanquished by the mighty <strong>European Court of Justice</strong>, which told them that roaming caps are to stay in place.</p>
<p>Four of Europe&#8217;s largest mobile operators &#8211; <strong>Vodafone</strong>, <strong>Telefónica</strong> O2, <strong>T-Mobile</strong> and <strong>Orange</strong> &#8211; have been whining to European authorities about the <strong>European</strong> <strong>Commission&#8217;s</strong> regulation forcing them to reduce roaming charges by up to 70 per cent. In 2009, the four carriers challenged the validity of the EC&#8217;s Roaming Regulation of 2007 before the High Court of England and Wales. This court then asked the Court of Justice whether the EC&#8217;s regulation was in fact legal.</p>
<p>As it turns out, not only is the regulation legal, &#8220;it is proportionate essentially to the objective of protecting consumers against high charges,&#8221; which in this case saw retail prices more than five times higher than the actual cost of providing the wholesale service. Take that, operators!</p>
<p>The African cross-border One Network from <strong>Zain</strong> was once seen as a blueprint for effective international roaming strategies but came instead to be viewed as one of the reasons why the firm’s African business was unsustainable. Having tied up the sale of that business to <strong>Bharti</strong> <strong>Airtel</strong>, Zain this week announced a reshuffle of its executive management team to take into account its renewed focus on the Middle East, where it has more than 31 million customers.</p>
<p>Whoever was in charge of overseeing the Kuwaiti network won’t have so much to do now that the firm has outsourced the operation and management of its 3G network to <strong>Motorola</strong>. Under the three year agreement, Motorola, in association with Zain Kuwait&#8217;s internal team, will handle the design, planning, support and optimisation of that network, while also looking to improve the firm’s 2G system.</p>
<p>On a similar theme Egyptian carrier <strong>Orascom</strong>, run by billionaire businessman Naguib Sawiris, said this week that it has called off discussions with regional powerhouse <strong>MTN</strong>. The pair had been in discussions for some months over the potential sale of &#8220;certain of Orascom&#8217;s operations&#8221; — thought to be the firm&#8217;s African portfolio — to MTN. But they have failed to reach an agreement, Orascom said on Thursday. This is after Orascom&#8217;s parent company, <strong>Weather</strong> <strong>Investments</strong>, had also failed in talks with MTN over the latter&#8217;s acquisition of the Egyptian carrier.</p>
<p>And now for something completely different: Russian carrier <strong>Vimpelcom</strong> has hooked up with M2M network specialist <strong>Jasper</strong> <strong>Wireless</strong> to launch what the firms claim is the first machine to machine platform in the Russian market. Vimpelcom said it will use the capability to connect and manage consumer electronics devices as well as to build enterprise solutions in a bid to seed the market for a new wave of connected devices, including e-readers, digital photo frames, cameras, PNDs, tablets and gaming devices. It also sees possibilities vertical sectors including transport, banking and e-health.</p>
<p>Vimpelcom CEO Boris Nemsic had nothing to say on the matter, on account of the fact that he has left the building. Nemsic, who joined Vimpelcom from <strong>Telekom Austria</strong> in April last year, resigned with immediate effect, Vimpelcom reported this week, in phrasing that made it sound very much as if Nemsic hadn’t anticipated his own resignation at all. Nemsic was joined in departure (and probably blinking surprise) by general director Alexander Torbakhov, as the firm reorganised itself into four new business units; Russia, Ukraine, CIS and International.</p>
<p>Both Nemsic and Torbakhov were on three year contracts which were only just over a year old when they were given the boot by the man they replaced, Alexander Isozimov, who recently returned to head the firm.</p>
<p>With nearly two years left on those contracts, the payoff should keep things ticking over while they decide what to do next.</p>
<p>Take care</p>
<p>The Informer</p>
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