Telecoms & IT
From The Report: Myanmar 2018
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The expansion of Myanmar’s telecoms market continues to live up to its early promise, with industry reform viewed as the most significant economic success since the military ceded power in 2011. In the relatively short period of time since, the sector has become an important enabler of socio-economic development, attracting billions of dollars in investment, fostering the emergence of tech start-ups and connecting rural communities to the outside world for the first time. Liberalisation has also seen the IT industry expand at a considerable pace. While it still has a lot of catching up to do with regional peers, local businesses and communities are rapidly adopting new technologies, and the potential for expansion into to new economic segments is clear. This chapter contains interviews with Daniel Michener, CEO, Burst Myanmar; and Liman Zhang, CEO, Huawei Myanmar.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Extended coverage: Network expansion improves services and attracts investment
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The expansion of Myanmar’s telecoms market continues to live up to its early promise, with industry reform viewed as the most significant economic success since the military ceded power in 2011. In the relatively short period of time following this, the sector has become an important enabler of socio-economic development by attracting billions of dollars in investment, fostering the emergence of tech start-ups and connecting rural communities to the outside world for the first time. While the majority…

Interview

Favourable conditions: Daniel Michener, CEO, Burst Myanmar, on the Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and attracting investment
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Interview:Daniel Michener, CEO, Burst Myanmar What are the strategic advantages of conducting business in the Thilawa SEZ? DANIEL MICHENER: Thilawa offers unique conditions for investors looking to expand their businesses in Myanmar. First, the SEZ boasts very solid infrastructure, which was built with Japanese construction standards as its guiding principle. Given the high standards for which Japanese companies are internationally recognised, the quality of infrastructure in Thilawa is arguably…

Interview

Logging on: Liman Zhang, CEO, Huawei Myanmar, on the digitalisation of the country
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Interview:Liman Zhang What reforms are needed to support the development of the ICT industry in Myanmar? LIMAN ZHANG: Despite the significant progress of the past few years, Myanmar is still considered a starter country in terms of its digitalisation. Different stages of development call for a different set of reforms, and should focus on adopting reforms in three key areas: infrastructure, digitalisation of government and public services, and improving basic digital literacy. Regarding…

Analysis

Venturing fourth: New player launches mobile services and increases competition
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In an effort to further strengthen a formidable telecoms sector, the Posts and Telecommunications Department – under the Ministry of Transportation and Communication – granted a fourth mobile operator licence to Myanmar National Tele & Communications in January 2017 following a period of negotiations. With an initial investment of $2bn, the new player launched operations on February 12, 2018 under the brand name MyTel. The terms of the new mobile licence largely mirror those given to the…

Overview

Need for speed: Smart investments boost network capabilities and open up new avenues for economic growth
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The liberalisation of the telecoms sector has seen the IT industry expand at a considerable pace. While it still has a lot of catching up to do with regional peers, local businesses and communities are rapidly adopting new technologies, and the potential for expansion into to new economic segments is clear. A lack of initiative was a major impediment to the development of the domestic IT ecosystem, while inadequate infrastructure kept prices high and service slow. Since the entrance of international…