Operators in the United Arab Emirates focusing heavily on 5G

Sydney, May 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Just released, this edition of Paul Budde Communication’s focus report on United Arab Emirates outlines the major developments and key aspects in the telecoms markets.
Read the full report: https://www.budde.com.au/Research/United-Arab-Emirates-Telecoms-Mobile-and-Broadband-Statistics-and-Analyses

Operators in the United Arab Emirates focusing heavily on 5G

The UAE has a very strong mobile market and it is closely guarded by the two major operators of Etisalat and du. Both operators are majority owned by the government. In 2019 both Etisalat and du are demonstrating keen interest in developing 5G technology and are strongly supported by the TRA which has allocated spectrum bands.

The first two MVNOs began offering services in the UAE in 2017 – however this has not impacted upon competition in any significant way as both are wholly owned either by du and Etisalat. The operators however are facing challenges with the saturated mobile market stifling voice growth.

Etisalat and du have deployed sophisticated HSPA+ and LTE networks that cover most of the population, underpinning growth opportunities centred on mobile broadband, content and applications. Smart phones are becoming increasingly popular, accounting for the majority of the mobile handsets. The growing availability of low cost smart phones has driven mobile broadband penetration up sharply in the last couple of years. Both Etisalat and Du launched 5G capable handsets in 2019.

The well-established fibre-broadband network in the UAE is providing the operators with opportunities to grow new services and offerings such as triple-play.

BuddeComm notes that the outbreak of the Coronavirus in 2020 is having a significant impact on production and supply chains globally. During the coming year the telecoms sector to various degrees is likely to experience a downturn in mobile device production, while it may also be difficult for network operators to manage workflows when maintaining and upgrading existing infrastructure. Overall progress towards 5G may be postponed or slowed down in some countries.

On the consumer side, spending on telecoms services and devices is under pressure from the financial effect of large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes. However, the crucial nature of telecom services, both for general communication as well as a tool for home-working, will offset such pressures. In many markets the net effect should be a steady though reduced increased in subscriber growth.

Although it is challenging to predict and interpret the long-term impacts of the crisis as it develops, these have been acknowledged in the industry forecasts contained in this report.

The report also covers the responses of the telecom operators as well as government agencies and regulators as they react to the crisis to ensure that citizens can continue to make optimum use of telecom services. This can be reflected in subsidy schemes and the promotion of tele-health and tele-education, among other solutions.

Key developments:

• The UAE boasts mobile penetration levels that are among the worlds’ highest;
• Recently the TRA was encouraging affordable roaming rates within GCC countries;
• In 2018 Etisalat sold its 28% share of Thuraya;
• The UAE has attracted international interest from data centre operators.
• Assessment of the global impact of COVID-19 on the telecoms sector.

Companies mentioned in this report include:

Etisalat; du; Thuraya; Yahsat; Virgin Mobile; Swyp.

• Key statistics
• Country overview
• COVID-19 and its impact on the telecom sector
  • Economic considerations and responses
  • Mobile devices
  • Subscribers
  • Infrastructure
• Telecommunications market
  • Historical overview
  • Market analysis
  • Key recent developments
• Regulatory environment
  • Historic overview
  • Regulatory authority
  • Draft bill for new authority
  • Telecom sector liberalisation
    • Second operator
    • Third operator
    • Satellite licence
  • Interconnect and access
  • Fibre access
  • Number Portability (NP)
  • Royalty payments
  • Censorship
  • Roaming tariff reduction
  • VoIP
• Fixed network operators
  • Emirates Telecommunications Corporation (Etisalat)
  • Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company/du
  • Yahsat
• Telecommunications infrastructure
  • Overview of the national telecom network
    • Fixed-line statistics
  • International infrastructure
    • Submarine cable networks
    • Terrestrial cable networks
    • Satellites
  • Data centres, cloud computing
  • Smart infrastructure
    • Smart grids
    • Smart cities
    • Connected homes
• Fixed broadband market
  • Introduction and statistical overview
    • Market analysis
    • Broadband statistics
  • Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP) and Fibre-To-The-Home (FttH)
  • Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) networks
  • Other fixed broadband services
    • Fixed wireless (WiFi, WiMAX)
• Mobile market
  • Market analysis
  • Mobile statistics
  • Mobile broadband statistics
  • Mobile infrastructure
    • Brief intro analogue networks
    • 5G
    • LTE
    • GSM, 3G
  • Major mobile operators
    • Etisalat
    • du (Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company)
    • MVNOs
  • Mobile content and applications
    • M-commerce
    • M-payments
  • Mobile handsets
• Appendix – Historic Data
• Glossary of abbreviations
• Related reports

List of Tables

• Table 1 – Top Level Country Statistics and Telco Authorities – United Arab Emirates – 2019
• Table 2 – UAE – GDP and inflation – 2014 – 2019
• Table 3 – UAE – telecommunications revenue – 2007 – 2017
• Table 4 – Etisalat group revenue and net profit – 2008 – 2018
• Table 5 – Etisalat – UAE fixed broadband subscribers – 2010 – 2018
• Table 6 – du revenue – 2008 – 2018
• Table 7 – UAE – fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2009 – 2024
• Table 8 – UAE – internet penetration – 2008 – 2018
• Table 9 – UAE – fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2009 - 2024
• Table 10 – UAE – international internet bandwidth – 2008 - 2018
• Table 11 – UAE – subscribers to FttH/FttB – 2012 – 2017
• Table 12 – UAE – Operators fibre broadband market share – 2015 - 2017
• Table 13 – UAE – DSL subscriptions in decline – 2008 -2017
• Table 14 – UAE - mobile subscribers and penetration – 2009 – 2024
• Table 15 – UAE – prepaid subscribers – 2009 – Q1 2019
• Table 16 - UAE – mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2010 - 2024
• Table 17 – UAE – mobile operators’ market share by subscribers – 2010 – 1H 2018
• Table 18 – Etisalat (UAE) mobile subscribers and blended ARPU – 2011 – 2018
• Table 19 – du mobile revenue – 2017; 2018
• Table 20 – du mobile subscribers and ARPU – 2010 – 2018
• Table 21 – Historic - UAE – fixed lines in service and teledensity – 1995 – 2008
• Table 22 – Historic - UAE – internet users and penetration – 1998 – 2008
• Table 23 – Historic - UAE – fixed broadband subscribers and penetration – 2001 - 2008
• Table 24 – Historic - UAE – domestic and international voice revenue – 2008 – 2015
• Table 25 – Historic - UAE – international telephone revenues – 2008 – 2015
• Table 26 – Historic - UAE – monthly fixed-line ARPU and MOU – 2008 – 2015
• Table 27 – Historic - UAE – mobile revenue and ARPU – 2008 - 2015
• Table 28 – Historic - UAE - mobile subscribers and penetration rate - 1995 - 2008
• Table 29 – Historic - UAE – prepaid vs postpaid revenue – 2008 - 2015
• Table 30 – Historic - UAE – prepaid subscribers – 2005 – 2008
• Table 31 – Historic - UAE – SMS and MMS sent – 2007 - 2015
• Table 32 – Historic - Etisalat group revenue and net profit – 2005 – 2007
• Table 33 – Historical - du mobile minutes of use (MOU) – 2010 – 2014

List of Charts

• Chart 1 – Growth of fixed-lines in the UAE – 2009 – 2024
• Chart 2 – Growth of mobile subscriptions in the UAE – 2009 – 2024
• Chart 3 – Mobile broadband growth in the UAE – 2009 – 2024

List of Exhibits

• Exhibit 1 – UAE – submarine cable networks

Read the full report: https://www.budde.com.au/Research/United-Arab-Emirates-Telecoms-Mobile-and-Broadband-Statistics-and-Analyses