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4G service fast enough to download a movie in just two and a half minutes,

UAE telecommunications firm plans to charge subscribers Dh555 (US$151) a month for the speedy mobile-data service, which is currently available through a USB modem.

which offers speeds of 100 megabits per second

Of the nearly $90bn expected to be spent on ICT infrastructure in the Kingdom by 2012, $67b is projected to be spent on telecommunications.

Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) has posted impressive numbers – both in subscribers and profits – and 2009 was no exception

Mobily’s services revenues rose 21 percent to reach SR13.06bn ($3.48bn) versus SR10.79bn ($2.88bn) the previous year.

increased 10.5% to over 1.3 million, showed the figures. The percentage of Internet subscriptions connected by fibre technology increased by 70.8% as customers were migrated from copper networks to new advanced networks.

In 2011, it contributed nearly 4.9% to UAE Gross Domestic Product and provided employment to 10,798 people.

Analysing the present scenario of mass migration, the report explains that the number of 3G mobile subscribers will reach 2.4 million by 2012

Strengths of UAE market- With its rapidly evolving ICT infrastructure, the UAE is considered a regional hub for ICT in the Middle East and North Africa - Immense support from the UAE Government, including tax holidays for software companies, the easing of export and import regulations and training programmes are an added advantage- Extending infrastructure, attractive zones and technology parks such as Dubai internet City, Dubai Media City and Knowledge Village- Higher level of mobile penetration than other Middle East countries - The UAE remains ahead among the Arab nations in embracing newer ICT technologies, such as 3G, WiMax and mobile TV

The UAE has been slow to reform its telecom industry – clear evidence of this is that etisalat still accounts for more than 80 per cent of the market - The high cost of PCs and internet access has hindered the potential growth of the internet market- Piracy levels remain high

Fixed telephone customers meanwhile increased 13.3% y/y, from 191,000 to 217,000, whilst fixed broadband customers increased 25.3% y/y from 104,000 to 130,000.

obile data now accounts for 15.5% of the whole of du's mobile revenue, compared to a year ago when it accounted for 9%.

The continuing development of products and services will therefore be crucial in order to maintain its mobile data growth. The operator is aiming to commercially launch LTE services this year, though will enter the market trailing its rival Etisalat, which launched its LTE network in September last year.

he market for traditional telephony, whether fixed or mobile, is so saturated that it can no longer be a viable exclusive source of growth.

Market liberalization, increased competition and the introduction of new network technolog

As the wave of sector liberalization continues, telecom operators are facing increasing competitive pressure. On one hand, the market for traditional telephony, whether fixed or mobile, is so saturated that it can no longer be a viable exclusive source of growth.

However, greater availability of and demand for digital content, a growing youth market and the increase in prosperity in the region are also significant drivers behind the observed boost in demand for broadband

revenues of AED8.01 billion

Mobile data has also been vital to du's mobile revenue growth and its importance is set to continue in its future strategy; in the third-quarter of 2012, revenue generated from mobile data totalled AED323 million, up 93.4% y/y. Mobile data revenue now accounts for 16.7% of du's total mobile revenue,  up from 9.8% at the same time last year. The continued growth of mobile data revenue will be crucial, particularly as voice revenues come under pressure, whilst the country's large foreign workforce increasingly utilise internet-based services, to the detriment of international call and text services.

y 7% y/y to 1.1 million, though this decline was due to customers migrating to the company's double-play and triple-play services, which totalled 0.48 million, up 61% y/y

end users more interested in buying devices and apps than services, and limited customer appetite for usage-sensitive billing.

more telcos outsourcing parts of their network and IT management to vendors.

Indeed, network and IT operations account on average for 18% of telco operating costs, of which 60%, or $126bn, is for spending internally, mostly using salaried staff

machine-to-machine (M2M) trend, which the operator feels will play a major part in what is now being called the "industrial Internet".

After several years of promise, M2M has now become a hot topic for business because of a number of trends in the market

Falling hardware costs, cheap and reliable mobile communications networks, new regulations, innovative applications and solutions, and technological developments are behind the latest uptake of M2M

The study further points out that at the end of 2010, there were around 10.9 million mobile phone subscribers in UAE, giving the market penetration rate of 231%. The mobile phone handset penetration is estimated to grow from 238% in 2011 to 257% in 2015 while sales revenue of personal digital assistance (PDA) and smartphones is projected to surge by 139% during the same period.

The number of mobile subscribers in the UAE is likely to increase by 16.6% from the anticipated subscribers of 11.4 million in 2011 to 13.3 million by 2015

He said service tariffs have remained relatively stable in the UAE, and both operators have resorted to strategies such as service bundling and sachet-based tariff models to stimulate usage and thereby earn higher revenue.

The UAE had 199.3 mobile subscriptions per 100 inhabitants and 31 fixed lines per 100 inhabitants as of last December

TRA in its endeavour to stimulate competition as demonstrated by its efforts to introduce mobile number portability and to open up the fixed-line services market.

They included around 12.3 million mobile phone users and the rest were subscribers to fixed telephone lines and internet.

restructuring operations and outsourcing jobs

may see its earnings suffer as a result of the UAE government raising the percentage of royalty fees

percent share of the UAE mobile phone market

In its home market, the kingdom's former monopoly is facing increased competition from Mobily and Zain Saudi and handed the reins to a new chief executive last year to renew its focus on domestic operations, which account for two thirds of the company's revenue.

Between 2006 and 2011 STC suffered a 40% drop in annual profit, after the market was opened to competitors Mobily (in 2005) and Zain (in 2008).

fixed-line offerings by packaging phone, TV and Internet services

Second-ranked operator du concluded trials on its 4G LTE network in October 2012; in the same monthEtisalat launched its first 4G LTE Mobile WiFi device. .

October 2012, the regulator, TRA, announced that it was extending the deadline granted to subscribersto register their mobile phones. Originally set to expire on October 16, 2012, the regulator has givenunregistered phone users in the first phase of registrations an additional three months to submit theirdetails.

Competition in the market is limited as there are only two mobile phone operators in the country, with thegovernment owning shares in both of them. In October 2012, the regulator confirmed that there are noplans to for a third operator to launch services. Fixed-line services continue to post single digit growth,although we forecast that this will taper off during the course of our forecast period, while broadband isanother strong growth area.

doubled its profit after royalties during the fourth quarter to $270m, compared to the same period in 2011, according to the company.

revenues and profit, with du recording a net profit after royalties of $540m, up from $300m in 2011.

market segmentation to identify and meet the differing needs of our customers, successfully launching a number of market-leading propositions to address the diverse value and service capability requirements of our prepaid, postpaid and enterprise customers

received US$700m in finance during 2012, allowing it to invest US$468m in the network and IT