With barely a week until the 13th annual GSM>3G Middle East – Towards a Broadband World, Ian Hemming, CEO, Informa Telecoms & Media announced, “We have news of very welcome late additions to the panel of speakers: Dr Marwan Al-Ahmadi, CEO Zain Saudi Arabia; Mr. Nasser Bin Obood, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Etisalat; and Mr. Anthony Corbett, Head of M&A. Vimpelcom will add further value to an already strong conference program.”
One of the main themes running throughout GSM>3G Middle East – Towards a Broadband World, 15-16 December, Dubai UAE (www.comworldseries.com/me) is convergence and addressing new revenue streams and technological developments for operators in a market with high mobile penetration.
In a recent interview with Informa Telecoms & Media, Marwan Al Ahmadi, CEO, Zain Saudi Arabia, points to the opportunities created by the combination of Saudi Arabia’s very low broadband penetration and its youthful population, with 50% below the age of 15 and 67% below the age of 25. This is something that number 2 operator Mobily has capitalized on to achieve one of the largest HSPA customer bases in the world at the end of 1Q08, with an estimated 2.64 million subscriptions, according to Informa Telecoms and Media.
“It’s a young nation,” says Dr Marwan Al-Ahmadi. “And these people, their consumption of information and telecommunications services is much higher than older people.”
Dr Marwan Al-Ahmadi is confirmed to speak on day two at GSM>3G Middle East – Towards a Broadband World. His presentation will focus on Building and Growing a New Entrant Mobile Operator to Offer Value and Choice. Given the newness of this business unit, we expect there to a very strong interest from delegates keen to evaluate the progress made by Dr Al-Ahmadi ‘s team in the first few months of commercial operation.
Another group involved closely with this year’s GSM>3G Middle East – Towards a Broadband World conference is Etisalat. The UAE’s leading telecoms service provider, and an endorsing sponsor of the GSM>3G Middle East event, Etisalat has subsidiaries in markets including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Egypt. Representing the group on the panel of speakers will be Mr Nasser Bin Obood, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and Mr Ali Amiri, Executive Vice President Carrier & Wholesale.
A recent mobile market update by Informa Telecoms & Media found that although Etisalat’s net additions were 4.8% lower than in 2Q07, they maintained their leadership with 6.8 million subscriptions by the end of 2Q08. Of these, 1.9 million were 3G subscriptions.
A further addition to the speaker panel from outside the Middle East region is Mr Anthony Corbett, Head of M&A at leading Russian mobile operator Vimpelcom. Vimpelcom has a long-established footprint across a number of less-highly penetrated markets across Central Asia and has more recently been active in SE Asia. Mr. Corbett is therefore well-placed to contribute to a roundtable discussion focused on the exploitation of further growth opportunities in emerging markets, joining co-panelists from Vodafone and Turkcell.
GSM>3G Middle East – Towards a Broadband World will be held 15-16 December 2008, Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre, UAE. Special attendance discounts apply to readers of this publication with free conference and exhibition entry to operators and regulators and free exhibition only passes for all other companies. Please bring a business card and copy of this article with you to register.
For more information, please visit this website: http://www.comworldseries.com/me
About GSM > 3G Middle East
Reflecting the changing dynamics of Middle Eastern telcos and the market place, the 13th annual GSM > 3G Middle East Congress and accompanying exhibition will focus on the opportunities and challenges thrown up by convergence and the evolution to 3G, broadband and beyond. Join them in December to network, learn, and do business with 2,500+ attendees.
The 2-day congress will again comprize a multi-streamed, strategic and technical conference alongside a networking exhibition showcasing the products and services of over 160 international companies.
Hear from our 60 strong panel of expert speakers, including 18 mobile operators and 16 from beyond the pure-play mobile space, comprizing 4 WiMAX operators, 4 incumbent carriers, 4 Other Licensed Operators and 4 MVNOs.
Co-located with the GSM Arab World’s Plenary meeting and incorporating the Middle Eastern Telecom Leaders’ Summit they have brought together an un-beatable line-up of speakers to deliver actionable strategic insights:
*** Abdulaziz Ibrahim Fakhroo, Chairman, GSM Arab World;
*** Ross Cormack, CEO, Nawras, Oman;
*** Hatem Dowidar, CEO, Partner Markets, Vodafone;
*** Tayfun Çataltepe, Chief Corporate Strategy & International Expansion Officer, Turkcell;
*** Stefan Omlor, Chief Commercial Officer, Alfa, Lebanon;
*** Niklas Nielsen, CEO, Majan Telecom;
*** Michael Lai, CEO, Packet One, Malaysia;
*** Maher Maarouf, CTO, MTN Syria;
*** Laith Sadeq, Deputy CEO, MENA Telecom, Bahrain; and
*** Suleiman Lamaani, CEO, Itisaluna, Iraq.
Attendance is free to operators and regulators and exhibition only passes are available.
About Informa Telecoms & Media
Informa Telecoms & Media is the leading provider of business intelligence to global telecoms and media markets.
Their aim is to provide actionable, strategic advice and forecasting on all aspects of converging mobile, fixed, entertainment and IT markets.
Driven by constant first-hand contact with the industry, their team of analysts and researchers produce over 300 annual events and intelligence services including news and analytical products, in-depth market reports and data sets.
They benefit from outstanding people, including 100+ analysts, researchers and journalists across 14 countries. Their customers include major blue-chip vendors, operators, and regulators in addition to key players from the financial and content communities.
They are proud of the role they play in bringing the industry together and keeping 100,000 individuals better informed.