Developing Telecoms | 2007 will be watershed year for Egyptian communications

17 May 2012

Regional Trends

LATEST NEWS:

Thai operator secures wireless distribution agreement Financial services project reaching out to millions of Africans Fibre investment on the way in Algeria Android tablets gaining popularity in Southeast Asia Bharti seeking JV takeover as profits slide Solar-powered learning initiative takes off in Uganda GSMA voices criticism of Indian licensing proposals Enhanced mobile broadband deploying across three Baltic countries Market developments lay the foundation for future growth in Iraq India Feels More Shockwaves from the So-called ‘2G Scandal' Overpriced broadband faces fibre challenge in Angola First commercial 4G services go live in Croatia VimpelCom sells Vietnamese assets TRAI advocates new operators entering 2G auctions Romania’s first MVNE launching imminently Indian tax change could provoke legal action from Vodafone Mobile growth slows in Iran as penetration reaches saturation point Thailand close to finalising 3G auction process Internet Exchange Points Spur Internet Growth in Emerging Markets Incoming fibre boosts investment prospects for Burundi 3G on the way in Djibouti, but competition is required Saudi incumbent looks abroad amidst heated domestic competition Orascom serves Algerian government with arbitration notice Kenya’s mobile sector recovering from slump Download deal aims at attracting Indian Android users Bangladesh set for mobile & internet growth as Indian relations improve Android takes the lead in China by doubling market share Liberalisation driving growth for Bahrain’s broadband Partnership agreement drives roaming costs down across nine African countri... Indian 2G licence cancellations affirmed by Supreme Court TeliaSonera in talks over MegaFon’s future HSPA+ upgrade for Thailand’s state operator Growth set to continue in the Philippines despite looming saturation

2007 will be watershed year for Egyptian communications

Monday, 15 January 2007 01:00 | Alec Barton

Attention: open in a new window.

Egypt's telecom market is fairly liberalised, declares the Arab Advisors Group. By December 2006, the regulator (NTRA) had issued more than 200 telecom licences, three cellular licences, two payphone licences, two prepaid calling card licences, four VSAT licences and four international GMPCS operators.

The regulator had also issued four carrier Internet licences (Class A) and eight data service provider licences (Class B), in addition to more than 200 service-based ISP licences (Class C), as well as many other types.2007 will usher in the Etisalat-led third cellular operator, while international service liberalisation is slated to start in 2007 as well. The Arab Advisors Group expects the total number of cellular subscribes in Egypt to reach 34.8 million subscribers by 2010, with a penetration rate of 44%.

On December 31, 2005, Telecom Egypt's monopoly over international voice and data services ended. Until then, the whole PSTN market in Egypt was a monopoly market served by the government-owned Telecom Egypt. The incumbent operator was also the monopoly operator for international connectivity. Egypt's regulator, the NTRA, is slated to grant two new international services licences in 2007.

Anyone with an interest in this exciting period in Egyptian telecoms may wish to read a new report called the Egypt Communications Projections Report. It can be purchased from the Arab Advisors Group for US$950. The 105-page report, which has 91 detailed charts and figures, provides a detailed analysis of the Egyptian fixed and cellular markets and profiles the major players in the country. The report includes five-year historical analysis and also five-year projections on fixed and cellular uptake, revenues and CAPEX. The report provides, moreover, a detailed and comprehensive picture on the fixed and cellular markets' strategies and regulations (the investment can also count towards attending the Arab Advisors fourth annual Media and Telecoms Convergence Conference on June 4-5 2007).

More info: