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I
N THE
M
IDDLE
East, there is a revolution going on. We are
not talking about massive political change, or western
oligarchs taking over – we are talking about a change of
business and private lifestyle through the development of niche
opportunities and markets. The small niche suppliers that can
adapt quickly to the local markets are starting to gain momen-
tum. Some local telecoms companies are revolutionizing the
second tier telecommunications supplier landscape in the
Middle East region. Through a strategy of sourcing value-adding
service providers in Europe, Africa, Asia and America, impres-
sive portfolios of suppliers are being built that will change the
current telecommunications paradigm in the Middle East region.
The aim is to follow the European market in providing data
products to the mobile telecommunications operators across
the region.
The major difference between the European market and the
Middle East is simple – common language. From Morocco to
Oman, the common language is Arabic, compared with the
multilingual environment of Europe. This has a major impact
on the economies of scale that can be driven in the technology
and telecommunications world. If one looks at the value-added
services that are offered to mobile customers, the use of the same
applications can be replicated across the region with the same
technology deployed in many countries to multiple operators.
One strategy that has been adopted is to source leading edge
technology providers from the USA, Europe, Africa and Asia to
develop a portfolio of value-adding managed services across the
region. The key requirement for such a strategy is that the supplier
should be flexible enough to respond to the finer differences in
each market or each operator and be able to build services that
are tailored to meet their individual demands. In order to do this,
a thorough understanding of the local markets is essential, and
the only way to do this is through local partners.
Many companies have had their fingers burnt through enter-
ing markets without a clear comprehension of how to operate,
and this has led to expensive mistakes and has left a bitter taste
in the mouth. Over-promising and under-delivering is common
feedback from international players, and successful regional
players have decided to reverse the situation through such
mechanisms as a network of operational businesses reporting to
a single entity. The key to success is to retain highly experienced
managers from world-leading telecommunications companies,
who have a thirst for the dynamic interaction with small- and
medium-sized suppliers, but who can interact at authority and
large incumbent levels.
As competition sweeps through the Middle Eastern mobile
operator community, there are now at least two players in each
market. They could compete solely on price, but a better solu-
tion would be to find differentiators in order to build a more
competitive offering for the customers, be they consumers or
commercial clients.
Key areas are consumer content – the range of wallpapers,
logos and ring tones are wanted by young consumers worldwide,
and commercial applications which are easily managed over a
mobile device and are within the budgets of every size of business.
In addition, technology solutions can enable mobile users to enter
the semi-converged space.
Whilst many markets across the world are regulated with a light
touch, the Middle East is still heavily regulated. This is as a result
of the recent introduction of competition in many markets, where
a ‘referee’ is now required to manage the relationships between
the end customer and the multiple operators, and the operators
themselves. Before liberalization, the consumer had to live with
the prevailing conditions, whereas today they can make choices.
Regulators are giving incumbents, second and third operators the
chance to realign or build their businesses before the free market
flourishes, and so some of the technologies that are deployed
across mature markets would not succeed in the Middle East.
As the regional maturity of the mobile market is a few years
behind the markets in Europe, East Asia and the USA, the level
of technical expertise has yet to catch up with other regions. As
Bringing value added services to new markets
Sara Holding
The new paradigm in mobile retail experience – moving away from the
souk to the service orientated model