Telecoms & IT
From The Report: Saudi Arabia 2013
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As the largest telecommunications market in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia also stands out as one of the region’s most competitive markets. Mobile subscription penetration rates are among the highest in the world, standing at close to 200% of the population. Furthermore, smartphone sales grew 154% in 2010, bringing their share of the hardware market to 32%, while rising demand for tablet computers has eaten into sales of traditional PCs. This, in turn, is impacting levels of internet use; the proportion of individuals using the internet in the Kingdom stood at 47.5% in 2011, up from 41% the previous year and from 19.46% five years previously. This is boosting government efforts at addressing concerns over the relative paucity of Arabic-language content on the internet. Looking ahead, internet use, as well as the hardware and IT services market, look set to continue to grow, with state investment likely to drive growth in services in particular.

This chapter includes an interview with Ghassan Al Shibl, CEO, Advanced Electronics Company.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Competition calling: Introduction of new offerings expected to improve customer services and push down prices
OBG
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As the largest telecommunications market in the Gulf region, Saudi Arabia also stands out as one of the region’s most competitive markets. Telecoms operators in the Kingdom were the first in the Middle East to launch latest-generation mobile broadband networks. Mobile subscription penetration rates are among the highest in the world, standing at close to 200%. Growth in mobile broadband use is booming and the post-paid market is continuing to see rapid growth. Competition is set to increase with…

Analysis

Long-term revolution?: Although take-up of 4G services has so far been slow, growth may come as speed rises
OBG
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Following a relatively slow start in launching 3G services, Saudi Arabia in 2011 became the first country in the region to launch long-term evolution (LTE) mobile broadband. All three Saudi mobile operators now offer the service, which has been rolled out to most major cities and is expected to cover almost all of the country within two years. Uptake to date has been limited, and at the moment the service offers significantly – rather than radically – faster speeds than the most advanced 3G…

Overview

Increasing opportunities: Public spending, support for SMEs and e-government services drive growth in the sector
OBG
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Infrastructure spending and government investment in health and education are helping to drive growth in the Saudi Arabian information and communications technology (ICT) market, the largest ICT market in the region. Growth is occurring in a number of segments, such as IT services and data centres, as companies and especially government entities often have generous IT budgets. The authorities have launched a range of initiatives aimed at encouraging the development of the market through, for example,…

Analysis

Bringing it home: With a number of providers set to introduce fibre-optic infrastructure, internet speeds should rise dramatically
OBG
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A number of firms are investing in bringing fibre-optic cables all the way to people’s homes – known as fibre-to-the-home (FTTH). An alternative to FTTH is fibre-to-the-building (FTTB), which brings fibre-optic cable to the consumer’s building, but then completes the final distance to individual rooms via copper wire. Although the FTTH/B segment remains small, its expansion is set to radically increase download speeds and have a major impact on the way Saudis use the internet. While fibre-optic…

Interview

OBG talks to Ghassan Al Shibl, CEO, Advanced Electronics Company
OBG
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Interview: Ghassan Al Shibl What more needs to be done to encourage greater depth within the defence, telecoms and manufacturing sectors? How can knowledge transfer be promoted within local industries? GHASSAN AL SHIBL: Increasing the depth and capabilities of high-tech industries is of great importance within any country’s development. These industries are strongly related to national security and defence. Therefore it is crucial to build local capabilities that can give support to the local…