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O3b Networks bridgesthe Global Bandwidth gapArab Advisors GroupThe Smart Handheld Summit 2011DubaiEricsson has a vision of more than50 billion connected devices by 2020Andres Lindblad(President and CEO, Ericsson ME, NEA)www.teletimesinternational.com

Vol: 06 Issue: 12ABC CertifiedPublisher & Chief EditorKhalid AtharBureau Chiefs:Dubai: Khawar Nehalwww.teletimesinternaitonal.comThe only tri-regional magazine focused towardsthe ICT & Telecom sectorsof The Middle East, Asia and AfricaE-mail: info@teletimesinternational.com6th year of publicationRecipient of“International Arch of Europe Award for Quality”and“Teradata ICTExecellence Award for Media”ADVISORY BOARDDr. Alaa Bader HindawiDr. Zafar Khan MBE Iqtidar ZaidiKhalid KhanProf. Nasreen KhalidHaroon RashidMedia Partner to:Executive EditorRiaz AsherAssociate EditorsIzhar AhmadQutubuddinAssistant EditorsNasir KharlGulraiz KhalidSub EditorMuhammad Awais HanifArt EditorKhurram ShahzadLegal AdvisorHashmat HabibAsia OfficesIslamabad# 6, St - 39, G-6/2, Islamabad, PakistanTel: (+92) 51 2874225, 2279830,Fax: (+92) 51 2272405Cell: (+92) 300 9559879London: Moazzam ShahidIstanbul: Zümrüt TanriövenJeddah: Akram AsadCorrespondents:Abu Dhabi: Bashir AnjumParis: Aslam AnsariBrussels: Nadeem AhmedTokyo: Tanveer QureshiMelborne: Javeria HashmatCasablanca: Dr. Khadija ArabanyKarachi: Syed Babar AliLahore: Azeezur RehmanInternational OfficePost Code: 117 Al-Wadi Al Kabir, PO Box: 148Muscat, Sultanate of OmanTel: (+968) 24503275, Fax: (+968) 24503275KarachiQutubuddin63/1, 6th Commercial Street,Phase IV, Defence Housing Authority Karachi.Cell.(+92) 345 2215050Lahore1st Floor, 43-K,Commercial Area, DHA, Lahore Cantt. PakistanTel: (+92) 42 5709964, Cell: (+92) 300 8106199Regional OfficesKingdom of Saudi ArabiaKing Fahad Road, opposite Kingdom Souqe,RiyadhTel: (+966) 12153200, Fax: (+966) 14606463Egypt5, Tanta St. Al Mohandsein, GizaCell: (+20) 12 2 175 185Sole Distributor for GCC countries:Malik News Agency, P.O. Box. 5449, Dubai.Ph: 04 2659165-9US$ AED PKR € GBPPrice per copy 8 25 300 7 5One year subscription 80 250 3000 70 50UAEBuilding T1, International City,P.O.Box 242512, Dubai.Cell: (+971) 0556396386U.K.235a, Old Brompton Road. London SW5 0EATel: +44 (0)7831418072France7 Rue Ernest Roche, Escalier-C, 75017 ParisTel: (+33) 698990821A PROJECT OF PPA PUBLICATIONS

In this issueInterviews0826Ericsson has a vision of more than 50 billionconnected devices by 2020Andres Lindblad, President and CEO - Ericsson - ME, NEAKhalid AtharGENBAND is the market leader inIP Interconnect solutions with major deploymentsglobally, especially in EMEAMehmet N. Balos, Executive Vice President GENBANDKhalid AtharReports & News16212122222324313236415561TelecomsWorld Middle East 2011Opportunity, innovation and strategy for operators and investorsKhalid AtharGroup CEO of Batelco to chair SAMENA CouncilShaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa electedby the Board of DirectorsPTCL CEO & President Walid Irshaid electedVice Chairman of SAMENAEtisalat’s Group scoop 4 SAMENA Council's AwardsTeletimes ReportPTCL wins global SAMENA Awardas “Best Telecom Operator in South Asia”4G World’s Focus Evolves: It’s Now Apps Over TechnologySandra PalumboKey Telecom developments discussed atCWC’s Iraq Telecoms 2011 in IstanbulMimi OyelanaHuawei concludes 2011 Cloud Computing ConferenceDalia AchourKing Abdullah II of Jordan and Cisco’s Chairman inaugurateJordan’s first Healthcare ICT Task Force at WEF Dead SeaMohammad BaayounIstanbul University team rely on Thuraya Solutionsto finish World Solar ChallengeReham BarakatPCCW Solutions and GS1 Hong Kong launch ezTRACKIvan HoPrime Minister of Pakistan approves 3G policyUSF all set to thrive in Telemedicine Network212104 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

In this issue2232Special Reports14193342O3b Networks bridges the Global Bandwidth gapTeletimes Special ReportGSMA Mobile Asia Congress 2011 concluded successfullyTeletimes ReportAl Daweesh: Achieving synergies with other groupcompanies outside reflected on our services to the pilgrimsSmart Handheld Summit 2011 convenesin Dubai on 5-6 DecTeletimes ReportResearch & Analyses1330354757Africa continues to be the fastest growing mobile market inthe world - GSMA Mobile Observatory Edtion 2011Teletimes ReportManaging technological discontinuitiesHow Information & Communication Technologies can change your businessBlocking porn to safeguard kids:Some interesting recent developmentsNaveed ul HaqThe Next Wave of DigitizationSetting Your Direction, Building Your CapabilitiesRoman Friedrich, Matthew Le Merle, Michael Peterson, Alex Kosterbooz&co.Pakistan Internet TrendsMuhammad Amir Malik26and much more ....December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com05

Letter to readersKhalid AtharChief EditorDear Reader,Welcome to the new edition of TeletimesInternational.We will start by extending a heartiestcongratulation to Shaikh Mohamed binIsa Al Khalifa, Group CEO of BahrainTelecommunications Company (Batelco) andMr. Walid M. Irshaid, President & CEO ofPakistan Telecommunication company (PTCL)on their respective election as Chairmanand Vice Chairman of Board of Directors atSAMENA Telecommunications Council. Wewish them all continued success while carryingout responsibilities under this prestigious role.We proudly like to reveal an exciting newsegment for our online edition. In order toinvite and assess the opinion of general public,an online survey poll has been made availableat our website (www.teletimes international.com). The survey would include closedendedquestions covering various aspectsof ICT (Information and CommunicationTechnologies) services and issues. The analysisreport on the responses gathered would beprepared and published for the interest of thereaders.While we are publishing this edition ofTeletimes International, a sparklinglydevelopment has taken place in Pakistan withregards to 3G mobile networks introduction.It has been learned that Prime Ministerof Pakistan has approved the 3G policyin principle while directing the CabinetCommittee to bring the policy before theFederal Cabinet for its final approval. Ithas been decided that three blocks of 10MHz (megahertz) each out of available 3Gspectrums would immediately be offered forauction and existing operators can participatein this round as well.This December edition highlights the detailedcoverage report for recently held IT & Telecomevents in various regions. Those includeTelecomsWorld Middle East 2011 at Dubai,SAMENA's Convergence to Doha 2011 at Doha(Qatar), CWC's Iraq Telecoms 2011 at Istanbuland GSMA Mobile Asia Congress 2011 at HongKong. Participation was made by TeletimesInternational in first three mentioned eventsas their media partner. Teletimes alsoparticipating as a media partner in upcomingSummit on “Smart-phones and HandheldDevices Ecosystem in the Arab World” on5-6 December at Duabi. The summit is beingorganized by Arab Advisors Group while STCis the strategic partner and Qualcomm issponsoring the event. A post-summit reportwill be provided to our readers in the nextedition of Teletimes International.This edition accumulates exclusive interviewsof Mr. Anders Lindblad, President & CEO -Ericsson (Middle East & North East Africa)and Mr. Mehmet N. Balos, Executive VicePresident, GENBAND Incorporation, UnitedStates. Mr. Anders Lindblad has shared histhoughts on 4G and other mobile trendstaking place in the region. Mr. Mehmet hasbriefed about the services and achievementsof GENBAND Incorporation.The edition also features four research /industry reports titled “The next wave ofdigitization - setting your direction, buildingyour capacities" from Booz&co, compiledby Roman Friedrich, Mathew Le Merle,Michael Peterson & Alex Koster, “Managingtechnological discontinuities” and “the futureof urban mobility” from Arthur D’ Little and"GSMA Mobile Observatory Report 2011” onAfrica region.This month three informative pieces have beengiven by Amir Malik titled "Pakistan InternetTrends" highlighting an interesting study onInternet user’s preference in Pakistan, thesecond article is by Sandra Palumbo - YankeeGroup on "4G World's focus evolves: It's newapps over technology" and the last by Mr.Naveed ul Haq on "Blocking porn to safeguardkids: Some interesting recent developments"presenting some International practicesfollowed to encourage Child Online Protectionin an economy.This edition also covers latest news andreports from STC, Ericsson, Huawei, Alcatel-Lucent, PCCW, MTN Nigeria, Thuraya,Batelco, Nawras and USF Company Pakistan.As a regular feature of Teletimes, this editionalso presents upcoming events calendar forGlobal ICT and Telecom events.We always look forward to receive yourcomments and suggestions as those are agreat source of encouragement for us.Enjoy your reading.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com07

Interview: Khalid AtharEricsson has a vision ofmore than 50 billionconnected devices by 2020Andres Lindblad(President and CEO, Ericsson ME, NEA)Shares his insights on 4G and other trends in mobile sectorin the region with TeletimesTeletimes - Please tell usabout your position atMiddle East Region.Andres Lindblad - WhenEricsson’s new regionalstructure was announced inFebruary 2010, I was namedHead of Region, Middle Eastand North-East Africa, whichmakes me responsible forEricsson’s operations in 22countries. Ericsson has beenpresent in the Middle Eastfor over 120 years and I trulybelieve that we’ve playeda key role in growing anddeveloping the telecommunicationsmarket in the regiontogether with the operatorswhich we work closely with.TT - What are the recenttrends in mobile infrastructureand services at yourregion?AL - We are seeing adefinite convergence ofmedia and telecommunicationsdriven largely bya strong demand for deviceslike smartphones,tablet computers andlaptops. All indicationspoint to further growthin demand and our beliefis that we will have asmany as 50 billion connectionsby 2020. Webelieve that in the futureeverything that will benefitfrom being connected,will be connected.This definitely presentsan opportunity for 4Gin 2011 and beyond andwe expecta transition to 4Gto become a realitysoon and Ericssonas key driver of thistechnology andas a key driver offaster throughput,will help make thisa reality.as the global leaders inthe field we will look atways to make the mostof this demand. So, weexpect a transition to4G to become a realitysoon and Ericsson as keydriver of this technologyand as a key driver offaster throughput, willhelp make this a reality.Some global researchthat we have conductedrecently shows some interestingfindings aroundmobile infrastructurein general and mobilebroadband specifically:• Mobile data trafficwill grow 10-foldbetween 2011 and 2016,mainly driven by video.08 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

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• Mobile broadbandsubscriptions grewby 60 percent inone year and areexpected togrow from 900million in 2011to almost 5 billionin 2016.• By 2016,users livingon less than 1percent of theEarth's total landarea are set togenerate around 60percent of mobiletraffic.TT - How do you foreseethe region in terms of3G and LTE mobilenetworks deployment?AL - Each countryfeatures its ownpeculiarities andinherent challenges;as a result it is difficultto generalizeand think of eachof these countriesas one region, assome countries aremore prepared for3G and LTE thanothers. However, itis clear that there isa tremendous amountof growth taking place andwhile some countries maybe quicker in their adoptionof these new technologies,inevitably weexpect all operatorsacross the region toadopt the technologyas demand fortrue connectivityand hyper-mobilitycontinues to grow.TT - What arethe barriers inyour view withregards to mobilebroadbandadoption inthe region?AL - Smartphoneshavebeen heldback to anextent by thelimitationsof the cellularnetworks; currentsystems in place,while much fasterthan the oldertechnology thatwas available,are still slowin comparisonwith evenrelativelywe strive towork hand in handwith our customersto add value totheir businesswhile introducinginitiatives to provideoptimum benefits toend-users.inexpensivehome broadband optionssuch as cable, and lag far behindfiber optic technologies.In an age where people considerconstant connectivity anecessity, 4G is an inevitablenext step as it will allow usersto communicate more effectivelyand efficiently.TT - How does Ericsson isplanning for the network convergencetrends in the MiddleEast region?AL - Given where our customers(the operators) areheading and their strategy togo there we will take differentapproaches. In short we try tosupport them in three areas:1. Become more operationallyefficient.2. Evolve networks to meetcurrent and future needs.3. Improve net subscriber revenue.TT - In your opinion, whatis the importance of nextdecade in the mobile sector ofthe Middle East region?AL - The region shows muchpromise in the mobile sectorand you’ll find that this is oneof the most stable sectors.We expect demand for connectivityto continue to growat a rate that will push alloperators across the region to10 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Africa continues to be the fastestgrowing mobile market in the worldTeletimes report based on latest GSMA Mobile Observatory Edition 2011According to the latest editionof GSMA Mobile ObservatorySeries, with over 620million mobile connections as ofSeptember 2011, Africa regionhas overtaken Latin Americato become the second largestmobile market in the world,after Asia. The report also ratesAfrica region to be the fastestgrowing mobile market in theworld. Over the past 10 years,the number of mobile connectionsin Africa has grown withan average of 30% per yearwith a forecast to reach 735million by the end of 2012. Datafrom 25 African countries (referredas A25) representing 91%of the total mobile connectionsin Africa has been analyzed byGSMA.The report rates fierce competitionand price wars as the coremotive behind the rapid growth.According to it, there has beendominating; the uptake of dataservices including SMS is increasingrapidly. In Kenya, datarevenues have increased at aremarkable 67% CAGR over thelast 4 years and now represents26% of the total revenue saysthe report.Recent studies by the WorldBank reveal a direct relationshipbetween mobile penetration andGDP. In developing countries,it is estimated as that for every10% increase in mobile penetrationthere is a 0.81% pointincrease in a country’s GDPwhile in developed countries thisit falls to a 0.60% contribution.In context with economical contributions,the mobile operatorrevenues in the A25 contributedUSD 49 billion during 2010,equivalent to 3 % of aggregatedGDP. A sum of USD 15 billionhas been contributed to publicfunding through direct & indi-directly or in-directly with themobile eco-system of Africa.The mobile phones have perceiveda status of an essentialconsumer utility throughoutAfrica. It is bringing new channelsof innovations and develop-While highlighting the mobilebroadband details across Africa,GSMA mobile observatory seriessays that operators are expandingthe mobile broadband accessthrough 3G roll-out. SouthAfrica, with its more developedan average of 18% tariff reductionin Africa region between2010 and 2011. A key share ofsubscription (96 %) representspre-paid service with voicerect taxes, social security andregulatory fee collected throughthe mobile industry. Moreover,the report estimates a total of5.4 Million Africans employedments for the region. Given thepoor fixed-line infrastructure insub-Saharan Africa in particular,mobile phones are the onlymeans of communication inseveral parts. Mobile operatorsare offering innovative mobileservices in the areas of agriculture,banking, education, healthand gender equality. Cisco VNI(Visual Networking Index),February 2011 predicts that sub-Saharan Africa will have morepeople with mobile networkaccess than have electricity athome by 2015.infrastructure leads the way interms of mobile broadband withan estimate of 6% penetrationrate. Some African countrieshave recently awarded the 3Glicenses. In comparison withEurope, Asia and the Americas,African countries had allocatedconsiderably less spectrum tomobile services. To enable thefuture growth and reaping theadvantages of mobile broadbandservices, sufficient spectrumis needed for the provision of3G and 4G technologies in thecontinent.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com13

Teletimes Special ReportO3b Networks bridgesthe Global Bandwidth gapBreakthrough satellite fleet to deliver affordablebroadband to emerging marketsGlobal IP traffic is expectedto increase four fold overthe next five years. O3b is committedto driving down the permegabit cost of connectivity,opening the door to a broadbandexpansion across theemerging markets of Asia, theMiddle East, Africa and beyond.“One of the biggest challengestelecom operators and ISPs facein many developing countries ishow to provide fast, affordableconnectivity in remote unconnectedand underserved regions,”explained Omar Trujillo,O3b’s Regional Vice President inAfrica. “O3b has the high-speedcapacity at lower latencies andcosts capable of making theInternet a truly global experience.”Mobile broadband users withincreasingly affordable smartphones across Africa and Asiaare driving demand for Internetaccess. “Smart phones cost aslittle as $50 in places like SouthAfrica,” noted Trujillo, citingripe conditions for the upcominglaunch of O3b. “O3b’s gatewaysoffer direct connectivity tothe Internet backbone, enablingmobile network operators tooffload a significant portionof their mobile data traffic,reduce congestion across theirnetworks and greatly improvethe consumer’s Internet experience,”added Simon Maher,O3b’s vice president of MiddleEast and major accounts.O3b CEO Steve Collar is leading the Ka-band satellite operatorsmission to connect unconnected and underserved markets“The O3b system will ultimatelyenable emerging market businessesto grow and allow millionsof people to get a bettereducation and enjoy a betterway of life,” Maher added. “TheMiddle East and other emergingmarkets are lands of opportunitiesas diverse as the countriesand cultures that make up thesepromising regions.” Mahercited providers like Soroof andNEDA that are utilizing O3bcapacity to close communicationsgaps. Soroof has securedsubstantial O3b bandwidth todeliver a range of trunking andmobile backhaul services intoSaudi Arabia. NEDA has signedon with O3b to deliver broadbandconnectivity throughoutAfghanistan.More bandwidth, MoreOpportunitiesO3b’s new IP Trunking solution,O3b Trunk is a tiered,bundled offering designed todeliver affordable, fiber-likecapacity anywhere within 45degrees of the equator. “O3bTrunk provides the ubiquitousreach of satellite combined withspeeds ranging from 100Mbpsto 1.2Gbps with very minimallatency,” Trujillo said. “Thearrival of O3b will unleash thefull power of the Internet inisolated inland countries acrossthe Middle East, Asia andAfrica, such as the DRC, whereaffordable access will have a bigpositive impact on business andthe way of life,” he added.In parts of India, a nation ofmore than 1 billion people,Internet access is slowed by acrumbling infrastructure andsluggish broadband speedsof 256 kilobytes per second.Just twelve percent of India’sInternet users have broadband,including little more thanOne of O3b Networks’gateway antennas (r) and tierone antennas are undergoingfactory tests at ViaSat inAtlanta, Georgia14 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

250,000 high-speed connectionsacross rural regions of thecountry.O3b was developed to deliverhigh-speed connectivity to theworld’s unconnected and underservedmarkets. More thanone-third of the capacity acrossO3b’s initial Medium Earth Orbitconstellation is already sold out.O3b is boosting its growing fleetfrom eight to twelve satellitesand nearly doubling capacityafter raising an additional $137million from confident investors.“O3b has the capacity to fuelour customers’ networks andposition them to meet the increasingdemand for bandwidthand connectivity around theworld,” noted Collar. “Our O3bTrunk solution delivers extraordinarybandwidth flexibility andscalability that allows providersto ramp up their servicesas market demand expands,”Collar added. “Our offering ofmore bandwidth, lower latencyand affordable pricing is eliminatingthe primary barriers toconnectivity and growth in theemerging markets.”O3b is opening up the broadbandpipe and a whole newworld of opportunities. Bandwidthoptions from 100Mbpsto 1.2Gbps are set to drive newbroadband applications, such asvoice, mobile data and fixed lineInternet access, that weren’tavailable before. “There’s noneed for cell towers or fiberinfrastructure with O3b,” notedCollar. “Operators can quicklyand easily expand into newmarkets with everything frombroadband to 3G and 4G services,using O3b’s mobile backhauland IP trunking solutions,”Collar added. Featuring steerableantennas, O3b satellitesoffer tailored beams that canbe moved virtually anywhereservice providers need to deliverOmar Trujillo, O3b’s Regional Vice President in AfricaSimon Maher (R), O3b’s Vice President of Middle East and MajorAccounts signs capacity deal with Jules Maher, CEO of TelecomCook Islandsconnectivity.Fiber from the SkyEtisalat is among the growingnumber of telecom operatorsand ISPs that have alreadysecured a stake of O3b capacityworldwide. Across Asia andthe Middle East, Etisalat is empoweringits regional offices todeliver customized broadbandsolutions to local communities.Netcom Africa will deliverhigh-speed connections to oiland gas rigs of the coast ofNigeria. In South Africa, MavoniTechnologies is connecting morethan 2,000 rural schools.“O3b is delivering amazing andempowering technologies, theequivalent of having fiber-opticcable dropping from the sky,”said Jules Maher, CEO of TelecomCook Islands, a governmentprovider serving the remote Pacificnation of the Cook Islands.Vacationing New Zealandersand Australians often travel tothe Cook Islands to leave it allbehind for a while. Reluctantlythey even give up their highspeedbroadband. Fast, affordableInternet access is out ofreach across the remote country,including the main island ofRarotonga – until now.Like Mavoni, Netcom Africa,Etisalat and many other telcos,Telecom Cook Islands has secureda large chunk of bandwidthfrom O3b Networks toprovide speedy web access andmobile data services. “The daysof restricted download speedsand very slow user experiencesare numbered in many emergingmarkets, as O3b preparesto launch its initial fleet,” saidO3b’s Maher. “O3b is enablingInternet access speeds at leastfive to six times faster in marketsaround the world.”Countdown to LaunchO3b’s highly-skilled technicalteam is working acrossthree continents to developand deploy the hardware andsoftware designed to deliveron O3b’s mission to make theInternet accessible and affordablefor all. O3b is shipping itsfirst three gateway antennas toGreece this month and installationat the teleport will start inJanuary.“2012 will certainly be ayear full of important O3bmilestones leading up to launchin early 2013,” said Collar. “It’sexciting to know that soonour gateways and satelliteswill be delivering the highcapacity,IP bandwidth that willultimately play an integral rolein transforming the emergingmarkets,” Collar added. “We’recounting down to the launch ofsomething very special.”December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com15

Khalid AtharTelecomsWorld Middle East 2011Opportunity, innovation and strategy foroperators and investorsThe Annual TelecomsWorld Middle East 2011,held against a back drop ofglobal economic recovery andrenewed industry optimism,proved once again, to be ahuge success. Record numbersof operators, delegates, andsolutions providers attendingcontributed to a dynamicnetworking conference andexhibition floor.The Telecoms World MiddleEast event took place onOctober 3-6, 2011 at JumeirahEmirates Tower in Dubai,drawing a large internationaland regional audience. Theevent attracted delegates fromoperators, wholesale carriers,regulatory bodies, government,and solutions providers withinnetwork infrastructure, BSS,OSS and CRM software, consultingbodies and more.Extensive efforts were undertakento create an informativeand relevant conferenceagenda that offered a varied,comprehensive and interactiveformat with keynote sessionsand Carriers World MiddleEast delivered leading insightsinto the changing landscape ofthe wholesale market, sellingof capacity in the Middle East,regulatory issues, and standingout as a wholesale provider.High attendance levels, aswell as attracting more carriersthan ever from across theglobe, contributed to an excellentnetworking experience.Telecoms World Middle Easthosted some of the biggestnames within the Telecommunicationsindustry, sharingtheir ideas and strategies.Opportunity and outlook forthe Middle East, monetizingcontent services and investingin next generation networksset the tone for the event.Emerging markets were alsocovered, with representationfrom Regulatory Bodies andMinistries from across theworld. The LTE Show MiddleEast and Telecoms WorldIraq brought the event to aclose, addressing the rapiduptake and deployment of LTEnetworks across the region,and the regulatory issues andinvestment opportunitieswithin Iraq.While commenting on this occasionAnders Lindblad, Presidentand Head of Middle EastEricsson said, “Middle Eastwill continue to develop andevolve, attracting more attendees,creating new networks,increasing the opportunitiesfor business development,and enhancing the MiddleEast’s reputation as one of theworld’s most dynamic emergingmarkets. We will continueto conduct in-depth market16 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

esearch and work closely withindustry experts to deliver thedefinitive event and meetingplace for the industry.”TelecomsWorldMiddle East 2011TelecomsWorld Middle East2011 brought together 600attendees from 35 countriesand 250 companies fromacross the world. More thanhundred Operators were alsopresent. The whole conferencewas sponsored by almost 25exhibiting companies includingMobily, Ericsson, TelecomItalia, Telcordia, Verscom, TataCommunications, Genband,Wipro, 2Connect Bahrain,Pishgaman Kavir Yazr, Level3 Communications, InfotechEnterprises, PCCW Global,BT Global, Batelco, Orange,GBI, LCC, IP Access, Bluecoat,Cybercom, Open-Xchange, Ixia,Fast Iraq, Bistalk AG, Digitalk,Advance Technology and Kron.The four day congress featured116 expert speakers representingregional and internationaloperators, regulatory authorities,content owners and worldclass solution providers. Inaddition to keynotes, casestudies and interactive panels,2011 was host to 2 excitingnew formats.Keynote Speakers included:Ross Cormack, CEO, NawrasScott Gegenheimer, CEO, WataniyaTelecomKamal Okba, CEO, MauritelAnders Lindblad, PresidentMiddle East, EricssonEssam AlHodaibi, VP WholesaleCommercial, MobilyAhmed Bin Ali, Group SVPCorporate Communications,EtisalatAndrew Hanna, COO, VIVABahrainDr. Colin Yeh, Director – GroupInnovations, Qtel GroupSamer Al Dameri, VP ConsumerProducts & Services, MobilyHatem Bamatraf, SVP NetworkDevelopment, duAbdul Hamid Chehab, GMMobile Networks, BatelcoHesham Herzalla, DirectorEnterprise & Distribution, NetworkDevelopment, EtisalatHamdi Breik, Chief NetworkOfficer, Zain KSABjørn Amundsen, VP & Headof Mobile Network Coverage,TelenorMikkel Vinter, CEO, FRiENDiGroupDr. Wael Taher, CEO, SamatelJoakim Klingefjord, CEO,Renna MobileEkrem Yener, Chief InternationalExpansion Officer,TurkcellOkechukwu Itanyi, ExecutiveCommissioner - StakeholdersManagement, NigerianCommunications CommissionAmidst this climate of marketrecovery and increased interestof businesses looking tostrengthen their presence, theTelecoms World Middle Eastevent cemented itself as theregion’s leading telecoms businessevent – bringing togethera diverse and varied pool of local,regional and global visitorsall keen to source the latestsolutions and services to helptheir business strategy.2011 also saw the introductionof the Great Debates, whichasked the audience to vote onsome of the biggest challengesand opportunities facing theMiddle East telecom market.Escalating competition fromagile new players, networkpressure from the data explosionand growing consumerappetite for rich multimediaservices, has left operatorswith stark decisions to makeabout their role in the evolvingICT landscape. With theseissues hotly debated by ourunrivalled speaker line up, theaudience had the opportunityto cast their vote.The congress provided anexcellent platform for industryleaders to debate futurebusiness models in the eraof content, monetizing thedata explosion, competing inthe apps space, optimizingnetwork resources and investingin lucrative new markets.Interactive programs, packedwith representation from theregion’s leading operators,provided delegates with unrivalledinsight into the minds ofthose driving the Middle Easttelecommunications industryforward.Carriers WorldMiddle East 2011The congress also featureda dedicated conference dayfor wholesale executives andinternational carriers. In additionto keynote presentationsand panel discussions, CarriersWorld also saw the arrival ofCarriers Karaoke, an excitingnew event feature. CarriersKaraoke allowed delegation toDecember 2011www.teletimesinternational.com17

Awards Middle Easttake to the stage and in just 3minutes educate the audienceof why they are the King ofCarriers.Regional and internationalwholesale experts shared bestpractice and growth strategiesthroughout the day, providingdelegates with an unbeatableexchange of ideas and contactsto drive revenue from existingnetwork resources, debate autonomyfrom retail operations,strategize how to route globaltraffic to their network andhow to capitalize on over-thetopplayers.Keynote Speakers at CarriersWorld Middle East 2011Ali Amiri, EVP Carrier &Wholesale - EtisalatKhaled Tabbara, VP CarrierServices - duAhmed Al Momany, WholesaleDirector - Zain JordanAlexandre Pebereau,EVP International Carriers -OrangeHamza Ali, GM Wholesale &Carrier Services BatelcoGeorge Nikoloudis,Chief Operations Officer - OTE-GLOBEAmr Eid, VP MENA - PCCWGlobalEssam AlHodaibi, VPWholesale Commercial -The LTE ShowMiddle East 2011Mobily.The LTE Show Middle Eastconference day, presented byEricsson was also held on thelast day of conference. LTE hasemerged as the champion ofnetworks, equipping operatorswith advanced infrastructureto manage the data explosionand protect valuable bandwidth.Keynote speakers at The LTEShow Middle East 2011:Sebastian Hoff,Director Market Development,Mobile Broadband, EricssonSamer Geissah, VP CoreNetwork - duMahmoud Al Bannay, Director,Mobile Access Network -EtisalatEng. Wael Al-Ghamdi, VP DataSolutions - MobilyAmer Ali, Senior Advisor, STCAbdul Aziz Alhaqabani, GM ofnetwork services - STCTelecoms WorldIraq 20112011 also put Iraq in the spotlight.With increased security,tightened regulation and awealth of investment opportunities,Terrapinn hosted adedicated Telecoms World Iraqconference day, which washeld under the Patronage ofH.E. Eng Mohammed TawfeqAllawi, Minister, Ministry ofCommunications, Iraqi Government.Having emerged as theregion’s most competitive telecommarket, this day provideddelegates with an unrivalledopportunity to hear from keyIraqi stakeholders on how toaccess Iraq, identify investmentopportunities and securebusiness.Keynote speakers at TelecomsWorld Iraq 2011:H.E. Eng Mohammed TawfeqAllawi, Minister, Ministryof Communications, IraqiGovernmentKassim Al Hassani, DirectorGeneral, ITPC IraqGhada Gebara, CEO, KorekTelecomAhmed Al-Omary,Commissioner, IraqCommunication & MediaCommissionMajeed Hameed Jassim,Director General, StateCompany for Internet Services,Ministry of Communications,Iraqi Government5th AnnualTelecoms WorldFour months of intensecompetition, over 200nominations and carefulselection by an independentpanel of judges culminatedon 5 October in theannouncement of winnersof the 2011 Telecoms WorldAwards Middle East.The gala dinner and awardsceremony held at the JumeirahEmirates Towers in Dubaibrought together over 250 ofthe industry's most influentialdecision-makers, CEOs and seniorexecutives from the telecomsindustry from across theregion and beyond to recognizeand celebrate companies andindividuals who have demonstratedan unparalleled abilityto succeed and continually setstandards of excellence.The awards recognized outstandingperformance in 11 keyareas in the region’s telecommunicationsindustry, and thekey players that have helpedturn the telecommunicationssector in the Middle East intoone of the most dynamic andvibrant in the world.The winners of the TelecomsWorld Awards Middle East2011 are:Best Brand - QtelBest Customer Strategy - ZainJordanBest Value Added Service -MobinilBest MVNO - Friendi GroupBest New Product Launch -OrangeBest Operator Network -EtisalatBest Vendor - Nokia SiemensNetworkBest International WholesaleCarrier - PCCW GlobalBest Network InfrastructureVendor - EricssonBest Middle Eastern WholesaleCarrier - EtisalatBest Operator - Qtel.18 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Asia to be the biggest market of Connected Device by 2020GSMA Mobile Asia Congress 2011concluded successfullyThe 2011 GSMA Mobile AsiaCongress brought togetherthe top leadership of Asianmobile operators and key stakeholdersin the broader mobileecosystem of the region. Theattendees discussed strategicand technological issues, withan emphasis on the way Asiadrives the mobile momentum inadoption, mobile applications,Teletimes Reportby ubiquitous mobile broadband,these connected devices willallow consumers and businessesto interact with information andobjects they require, wheneverand wherever they need. Presently,Asia Pacific has more thanhalf of the world’s six billionmobile connections and is atthe forefront of next-generationmobile broadband technologiesand cutting-edge innovation,innovation and intelligence.Held 16-17 November 2011 atthe Hong Kong Convention andExhibition Centre, the eventfeatured keynote sessions andconference discussions on allareas of the mobile industry,including:• “Creating a ConnectedWorld”• “Mobile Operating Systems& Applications: RedefiningMobile Ecosystems”• “Future View: New Servicesfor New Devices”In addition to keynote sessionsand insightful conference,attendees were given opportunitiesto network with oneanother and seek out new ideas,products and partners in theMobile Asia Congress Exhibition.The GSMA Mobile AsiaDecember 2011Congress 2011 also featured anApp Planet, an event withinevent providing opportunitiesfor the mobile applicationdevelopment community andmobile professionals to sharpentheir knowledge while connectingwith other major mobileapplication leaders. App Planetevent also included App Bytessessions where face-to-faceengagement was ensured amongdevelopers, key players andplatform enablers in the mobileapplications market.According to the deliberationsof the event, the growth ofconnected devices is booming inAsia Pacific, with the region expectedto be the biggest marketby 2020 with over 11 billion totalconnected devices. Poweredbut there is far greater scope forgrowth,” said Michael O’Hara,Chief Marketing Officer, GSMA.“The projected rise of connecteddevices across the region demonstratesthe enormous potentialfor the entire Connected Lifeecosystem, with billions of newdevices connected via mobilenetworks enabling innovativeapplications, services and expe-Contd. on page 20www.teletimesinternational.com19

GBI appointed Chair of SAMENA's Subsea working groupSAMENA Telecoms Committee renews emphasison ICT to drive region’s developmentThe South Asia, Middle Eastand North Africa (SAME-NA) TelecommunicationsCouncil has appointed GulfBridge International (GBI) asthe inaugural Subsea WorkingGroup chair and the David RossGroup as the co-chair at theconference: “The Role of ICT inDriving Economic Growth.”The working group will focuson the region’s submarine cablenetworks, addressing a broadrange of commercial, technical,regulatory and environmentalissues. Ahmed Mekky, BoardMember and CEO of GBI, plansto use the role to promote industryconsensus around socialand economic issues relevant toSamena’s broader ICT infrastructure– speeding broadbandconnectivity, enhancing serviceriences across all sectors.”According to GSMA, Chinawill be the chief driver of thisgrowth and will have nearly fivebillion total connected devicesby 2020 - more than any othermarket globally - resulting inChina-based mobile operatorsbeing able to benefit from thehighest addressable revenueAhmed Mekkyto underserved regions andbringing greater resiliency tocritical networks.GBI has already demonstrateda commitment to these issues,developing the region’s firstcarrier-neutral fiber opticnetwork with industry-leadingtechnology. In the UAE, GBIopportunity across the regionof US$180 billion. The globaladdressable revenue opportunityfor mobile operators for thisspace by 2020 is US$1.2 trillion,and from this, operators acrossAsia Pacific could benefit fromrevenues of US$447 billion,nearly 50 percent higher thanEurope at US$305 billion.Contd. from page 19 GSMA Mobile Asia Congress 2011The event experts said that inAsia, connected mobile growthenabling seamless and pervasiveconnectivity between peopleand processes will increasedramatically over the next tenyears, in part because mobileis virtually the only option forconnectivity for many countriesin the region. In a market thathas partnered with DU toprovide access the region’s onlynetwork fully enabled to 40Gwith sections of 100G capacity,roughly 10 times faster thancurrent connection speeds.“We recognize the critical rolesubsea cable infrastructureplays in the region’s developmentand take our responsibilityas chair of this committeevery seriously,” said AhmedMekky. “As the Middle East’sonly carrier-neutral cableoperator, GBI is uniquely positionedto drive consensusamongst industry leaders. Wewill utilize this opportunity tofocus industry action on thekey issues facing the region,placing a strong emphasis onincreasing bandwidth, reliabilityand reach, while incentivizingoverall market investment.”In their new role, GBI andcommittee Co-Chair The DavidRoss Group seek to support thebroader mission of the SamenaTelecommunications Council inproviding a unified, consensusbasedplatform and voice forleading operators in the region.Samena offers a non-profit,multi-objective structure tofacilitate such consensusbuildingand cooperation, andstrives to address diversifiedinterests of telecom operatorsthroughout the region byallowing for free exchangeof information and ideas.By providing this forum, theorganization allows the broaderregion to benefit from themutual cooperation and resolveof its member operators.already comprises more thanhalf of the world’s mobile connections,this presents a hugeopportunity for mobile operators.During the event, GSMA alsocalled for mobile industry taxesin Asia Pacific to be reduced inorder to drive mobile penetration,and, ultimately, increasethe total tax intake for governments.Organizations represented atMobile Asia Congress 2011include:Alcatel-Lucent, Axiata, BhartiAirtel, China Mobile, CITIC,CTM, Ericsson, Facebook, GlobalSMSC, Huawei, KDDI, Motricity,NTT DOCOMO, Orange, TelecomItalia, Telenor Group, Vodafone,Telstra and ZTE.20 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Group CEO of Batelcoto chair SAMENA CouncilElection of Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa by theBoard of Directors announced during SAMENA’s‘Convergence to Doha 2011’SAMENA TelecommunicationsCouncil, has announcedShaikh Mohamed binIsa Al Khalifa, Group CEO ofBahrain TelecommunicationsCompany (Batelco) as its newChairman, unanimously electedby SAMENA’s Board of Directors.Announcing the SAMENABoard’s decision to electShaikh Mohamed bin IsaAl Khalifa as its Chairmanduring ‘Convergence to Doha2011’, Thomas T. Wilson,CEO and Executive ManagingDirector of SAMENA said,“Shaikh Mohamed, throughhis experience and knowledgewill help realise the visionof SAMENA, as the Councilcontinues to grow its memberbase and gains recognitionthroughout the South Asia,Middle East and North Africaregions.“Guided by his leadership,capabilities and excellentknowledge of the region’stelecommunications industry,the different industry playersand regulatory agendas, wehope to continue the great workdone under our ex-ChairmanEng. Saud Al Daweesh andachieve more success andcontinue adding value to ourmembers and the industry atlarge.”Upon his election as Chairmanof SAMENA, Shaikh Mohamedbin Isa Al Khalifa said that hewas delighted and honoured tobe chosen to chair the SAMENACouncil and very much lookedPTCL CEO & President Walid Irshaidelected Vice Chairman of SAMENASAMENA TelecommunicationsCouncil has announcedthat PTCL CEO &President, Walid Irshaid, hasbeen elected as the new ViceChairman of its Board of Directors.Mr. Irshaid succeeds Mr. RiadBahsoun of TelecommunicationsInformation Technology(TIT). “Mr. Walid Irshaid’selection to the Board adds tothe leadership support thatShaikh Mohamed bin Isa AlKhalifa, Group CEO of BatelcoGroup, is now extendingto SAMENA as its Chairman,”said Chief Executive &Executive Managing DirectorSAMENA, Thomas T. Wilson.“SAMENA is making strides onmultiple fronts, of interest toour operator membership, andMr. Irshaid’s leadership andexperience in the regional ICTare precisely what SAMENA’smembership will gain from.”“It is a great honor for meto have been entrusted withthis esteemed position,” saidMr. Irshaid. “This new honorfor PTCL actually reflectsSAMENA’s recognition ofour Company’s frontline rolein fostering and leading thetelecommunications revolutionin Asia.”In his capacity as Vice Chairmanof SAMENA, Mr. Irshaidwill aid SAMENA’s relationship-buildingefforts withpolicy circles in the SAMENAregion.“As SAMENA Vice Chairman,I envision this as a great opportunityfor PTCL to expandits outreach with both regionaland global players, thus puttingPakistan firmly on theinternational map as a globaltelecom market leader,” saidMr. Irshaid.SAMENA appoints four newmembers to its Board of DirectorsSAMENA Telecommunications Council, has announced theexpansion of its Board of Directors. The addition of the newlyelected board members - Türk Telekom Group, Viva Kuwait,Qtel Group, and Bravo has brought the aggregate number ofregional telecom operators on the SAMENA Board to 11.forward to collaborat with theCouncil’s members to pushforward their collective goalsand aspirations.“Digitisation will be the keydriver of sustainable economicgrowth across the MENA region.All the members of SAMENAlook forward to co-operatingand accelerating digitisationtrends which will enable allindustries to deliver benefits toour societies and economies,”the newly appointed SAMENAChairman elaborated.Walid IrshaidAn international Informationand CommunicationsTechnology (ICT) expert, Mr.Irshaid has more than 30 yearsof professional experiencein the Middle East, NorthAfrica and South Asia regions.Throughout his career, hehas led a multitude of highvaluetelecom projects inseveral markets. His previousinternational stints includeEmirates Telecom (Etisalat),Datanet (Lebanon), Paltel(Palestine), and FLAG (MiddleEast & North Africa).December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com21

Etisalat’s GroupThe SAMENA TelecommunicationsCouncil hashonoured Etisalat's Group, withfour awards on the sideline ofthe SAMENA Conference “Convergenceto Doha 2011”.Ahmad AbdulKarim Julfar, CEOEtisalat Group was honoredas the best chief technicalleader for the year 2011. Hewas awarded this prize for hisexceptional leadership that tookthe group to 18 countries aroundthe globe.Julfar was appointed GroupCEO Etisalat Group in July 2011.Currently, he is on the board oftwo of Etisalat’s internationalsubsidiaries: Mobily of SaudiArabia, where he is the chairmanof the risk managementcommittee; and Excelcomindo ofIndonesia. He began his careerat Etisalat in 1986 and servedpreviously as Manager of CustomerService, General Managerof E-Company and more recentlyas the General Manager forDubai market in 2005.Bocar A. BA. President ofSAMENA TelecommunicationsCouncil stated that “Etisalat isa fastest growing company inthe region providing the latesttechnologies, state of art infrastructureand changing the wayTeletimes Reportscoop 4 SAMENA Council's Awards in DohaAhmad Abdulkarim JulfarCEO, Etisalat Grouppeople communicate. Etisalathas played an influential role indriving economic growth in thecountries they operate in andchanging the economic equationof those used their servicesaround the globe.PTCL wins global SAMENA Awardas “Best Telecom Operator in South Asia”Pakistan TelecommunicationsCompany Limited(PTCL) has won the prestigiousinternational SAMENA Award2011 for being the “Best TelecomOperator in South Asia”.CEO & President PTCL, Mr.Walid Irshaid accepted thisacclaimed honor on behalf ofhis company at the annualSAMENA ‘Convergence toDoha’ summit held in Doha onNovember 1-2.PTCL has been “quickest to offernew products and services,and is a provider of Triple-Play,Quad-Play, 3G and advancedValue-Added Service (VAS),”read SAMENA’s official citationfor the Award. “PTCL’s Broadbandand IPTV have the mostadvanced VAS for fixed linetelco as per global trends. Withits offering of both services,PTCL’s profile as a service providingoperator in the region ofSouth Asia is very rich.”“The SAMENA Award 2011 isanother historic milestone forPTCL in its continuing journeyof technological progress andbusiness achievement,” saidCEO & President Mr. Irshaidon the occasion. “It is a resultof the brilliance and hard workof all PTCL employees whoare busy bringing the bestof innovation and service toour valuable customers. I alsoextend my sincere gratitude tothe millions of PTCL customerswho have made this awardpossible because of their continuedfaith and trust in ourservices.”This year’s Award is PTCL’ssecond consecutive win at theprestigious global SAMENAannual forum. In 2010, PTCLhad won SAMENA’s “BestFixed Operator Award” inrecognition of its competitivemarket edge and impressivegrowth.22 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

4G World’s Focus Evolves:It’s Now Apps Over TechnologyAt previous 4G World events,much of the discussionfocused on core networkingtechnologies, spectrum, cell sitesand backhaul. At 4G World 2011in Chicago, attention shifted beyondjust the technologies thatmake 4G a reality and focusedmuch more on what impact 4Gis having on the user experience,particularly with regard tomobile applications, M2M, cloudcomputing and mHealth. Essentially,the industry is becomingless concerned with 4G as atechnology, and more concernedabout what 4G enables andwhat truly drives 4G adoption.During the “4G Powers Opportunityfor Cloud and Mobility”track, one of the more activediscussions occurred duringthe “Mobile Cloud Applications”panel, when an audiencemember posed the question: Ismobile cloud just hype or is itreally the way of the future formobile applications?The reality is that mobile cloudright now comprises both hypeand substance. The real frustrationwith mobile cloud is thatthe term does a severe disserviceto the cloud. Given that cloudcomputing is about virtual infrastructureand making networkbasedor Web-based applicationsand services available fromanywhere, why do we need amobile cloud? Isn’t cloud computingby definition mobile?The truth is in most ways it is.We use a term like mobile cloudsimply to highlight the challengesthe variety of mobile devices,form factors and OSs bring toapplication development. We atYankee Group believe there isnothing wrong with the industrymaking a mobile distinction, butit needs to be done carefullyso it does not take away fromthe real debates and innovationareas. In this case, the discussionshouldn’t be about a specialcloud segment called “mobilecloud.” Instead, it needs to beabout leveraging cloud as a platformto gain greater scale and amore consistent user experiencewhen mobilizing and developingapplications.Cloud Versus Native Is the RealDebateThe real issue is: When is it bestto use a cloud-based mobileapplication versus a native applicationresiding on the device?Historically, developers wroteapplications aimed at a specificdevice and OS. This process canbe cumbersome and it becomesmore challenging as more devicesSandra Palumbo - Yankee Groupand OS variations emerge. Inan ideal world, cloud-based orWeb-based applications shouldeliminate these differences, butensuring optimal applicationperformance and a consistentuser experience can be a challengein the current ecosystem.Enterprise IT staffs are especiallychallenged because they aretasked with figuring out how tomake custom enterprise customapplications available to mobileand remote workers on a varietyof devices.There will likely always bepeople that prefer native applications,and there will always befans of cloud-based applications.What the industry really shouldconsider, however, and what wasraised in the 4G World discussion,is that a mix of cloud andnative applications are in factthe best strategy.With a mixed approach,devices are not bogged downby a multitude of processingheavyapplications, and usersaren’t always required tohave a network connectionto access their content andapplications. Instead, the marketends up with devices and OSsoptimized to support both typesof applications—cloud andnative—providing the greatestoverall benefit and experience tothe user.Orascom Telecom reports financialresults for Q3Egypt: Orascom Telecomhas posted a net lossof $975m for the thirdquarter, compared with aprofit a year earlier, whenit reported a one-off gainfrom its Egyptian mobilebusiness, Reuters hasreported. The telecoms firmblamed part of the declineon a strengthening of theEgyptian pound against theCanadian dollar which ledto a foreign exchange losson a loan to its Canadianbusiness. Net incomebefore minorities was$10m, down from $934m inthe third quarter of 2010,it said.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com23

With over 30 speakers, 21sponsors and 300 seniortelecoms industry expertsthe CWC Iraq Telecoms 2011conference took place betweenthe 25-27 October 2011 andwas an outstanding success.Held at the Ritz Carlton Istanbulthe conference broughttogether the Iraqi Ministry ofCommunications, Iraqi Parliament,Kurdistan Ministry ofCommunications, Iraqi Mediaand Communications Commissionand major industry playersto discuss partnerships, tendersand the next steps in the Iraqitelecommunications industry.The Minister of Communicationsfor Iraq stated “the hugeimportance of CWCs Iraq Telecomsconference for the Iraqitelecommunications sector inbringing together all the majorplayers in the industry” alsothanking the CWC Group duringhis remarks stating “everyyear CWC delivers an evenThe government of Iraq hasconfirmed its commitmentto enable expanded access tocost-effective satellite communicationsthrough implementationof a progressive licensingframework. The Administration’s5-year plan, which aimsto improve Internet penetrationand increase e-Governmentprogrammes, was the focus ofdiscussion during a high-levelLicensing Summit held hereinvolving Iraq’s Ministry ofCommunications, the Communications& Media CommissionKey Telecom developments discussedat CWC’s Iraq Telecoms 2011 in Istanbulbetter and very high qualityconference.”H.E. Mohammad Tawfik Allawithe Minister of Communicationsof Iraq opened theconference and stated “Iraqis aiming to encourage anincreased role for the privatesector which will see the communicationssector developeven more rapidly in the nearfuture. Combined with theincrease in oil revenues and diversificationof the economy…Iraq looks to become one of themajor economies of the regionand of the world within thenext decade”Senior representatives fromthe Iraqi Parliament includingDr. Vian Said, H.E. MohammedRidha Al Khfaji, H.E. Ihsan AlAwadi and H.E. Ameer Mousastressed the importance of theparliament’s role in supportingthe consumer and helping boththe government and privatesectors to achieve their goals(CMC), and the Global VSATForum (GVF), the internationalnon-profit association of thesatellite industry.The Summit was held on 25October, the day precedingIraq Telecoms 2011, when theIraqi Administration announcedits agreement to implement asatellite communications licensingapproach that has beendeveloped in co-ordination withGVF through a series of meetingsheld in Beirut, Baghdad,Abu Dhabi, Washington, D.C.and Istanbul.to develop and build Iraq’s telecommunicationssector. Majorplayers represented by Asiacell,Zain, and Korek also discussedthe importance of supportingIraq in its plans to diversifyit’s economy by improving anddeveloping infrastructure.Further more H.E. MohammadTawfik Allawi addressed Iraq’sinfrastructure developmentplans stating “Iraq will lay20,000km of fibre optic cableby next year with the aim toconnect 8 million lines withfibre to the home in the nextfive year. With 18 companiesare installing 100,000 fibrelines to homes, our target for2012 is to have almost 1.8 millionlines which will increasethe rate of internet penetrationdramatically”The Minister of Communicationsalso highlighted majorpolicies to encourage thegrowth of the private sectorand addressed plans toMimi Oyelanaprivatize the Ministry of Communicationsstating “we haveproposed in the new draft CommunicationsLaw a committeecomposed of the Ministry ofCommunications, Communicationsand Media Commissionand the Iraqi National InvestmentCommission to studymoves towards privatisation”Iraq Telecoms 2011 closed witha concluding ministerial panelsession discussing the future ofthe Iraqi telecommunicationsindustry, providing delegateswith a summary of the twoday event and the opportunityto discuss key issues and newpolicies.Iraq Telecoms 2011 industrysponsors include: Asiacell, CDN,Zain, Nokia Siemens Networks,Huawei, O3b Networks, Korek,Arabsat, DragonWave, Ericsson,Silkroad Group, Zhone, Eutelsat,PCCW Global, Technology Partners,Kalimat, Alcatel Lucent,Yahsat, SES and Talia.Teletimes ReportIraq Government coordinates with Satellite Industryto advance implementation of progressive licensing reforms"The CMC is pleased to coordinatewith GVF to facilitateexpanded access to satellitecommunications in Iraq,” saidAhmed Al-Omary, Commissionerwith Iraq’s Communications& Media Commission. “Welook forward to building uponthis development with furtherimprovements to our regulatoryframework."In addition to Mr. Al-Omary– and leading the Summit proceedings– was His Excellency,Mohammed Tawfik Allawi,Iraq’s Minister of Communications(MoC), who was accompaniedby Majeed HameedJassim, Director General ofIraq’s SCIS; and Abdul-HusseinAyish, General Inspector, MoC.Representing the internationalsatellite industry was MartinJarrold, GVF’s Chief of InternationalProgramme Development,as well as leading Members ofthe association, including Dr.Mohammed Juwad, Regulatory,Avanti Communications;Paul Richardson, Senior SalesDirector, Comtech EF Data; Dr.Karen Badalov, Area ManagerContd. on page 2524 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Contd. from page 24Central Asia, Eutelsat; PaulKhayat, Managing Director,Harris Caprock; Mohammed AbuHmaidan, Senior Sales Director,Intelsat; Fysal Gill, RegionalSales Director, O3B-SES; AbbasGhanem, Senior Sales ManagerMENA region, SpeedCast;Dr. Raied Nasser, Business &Technical Director, Tigrisnet;Emil Samarah, Regional DirectorMENA, and Ebrahim Alkeem,Country Manager, Yahsat; andother representatives of theIraqi communications sector.“Light-touch licensing isIraq Government coordinates with Satellite Industryincreasingly recognised bythe international regulatorycommunity to be an effectivemeans of expanding access tosatellite-based services,” saidMr. Jarrold. “In this regard,Iraq’s Ministry of Communicationsand the CMC have made aclear case that this approach isin Iraq’s best interest.”Throughout the Summit, H.E.Mohammed Tawfik Allawi madenumerous key points and confirmedimportant Administration5-year priorities, which setthe stage for the discussions:•• The Iraqi Administration’sprimary communications targetsinclude increased Internetpenetration throughoutthe country and expansionof e-Government networks;•• A key technology to achievethese objectives is satellitecommunications;•• The Iraqi Administrationwill continue its consultationwith GVF regarding the“Application for CommunicationsEarth Station License”for corporate networks, andblanket licensing for largeTeletimes ReportEricsson: Iraq is ready for mobile broadbandEricsson has reiterated thevast, untapped potentialof Iraq’s telecommunicationmarket. Speaking at the sixthIraq Telecom 2011, Ericsson’sExecutive Vice President for RegionMiddle East, Tunç Yorulmazhighlighted how the Iraqi marketis now ready to move towardsimplementing Mobile Broadbandconsidering its saturated voicemarket, increasing GDP percapita and increasing internetusage rates. During the event,Yorulmaz also reiterated thatthis move would contribute toEricsson’s plans for a NetworkedSociety that has already startedin the Middle East, anticipatingthat more than 50 billiondevices will be connected by2020 globally.The conference took place from25 – 27th October in Istanbul,Turkey, and gathered the industry’smost influential decisionmakersand senior telecomexperts as well as regional andinternational speakers. As aSilver sponsor, Ericsson leveragedthis opportunity to highlightthat the new technologyTunc Yorulmazimplementations in Iraq can fuelthe growth of the telecommunicationmarket, and positivelyimpact private and public businessesand government sectors,in addition to enhancing the endusers’ experience.“With the connected world thatwe currently live in, consumersare continuously in need ofenhanced services and experiencesand that’s exactly whatEricsson is constantly striving toachieve. With our goal to builda Networked Society, Ericsson isalways on the lookout for newpartnerships to work hand-inhandwith their customers toTarek Saadiprovide an enhanced end userexperience,” said Yorulmaz.In an effort to further developIraq’s telecom infrastructureand modernize and expand itsnetwork, Korek, the fastestgrowing mobile operator in Iraq,has recently selected Ericsson toimplement a network expansionand service quality improvementproject to prepare the networkfor 3G and LTE/4G. Through thisagreement, Ericsson’s role is todeploy and integrate new radiobase stations across the countryand thereby provide a higherperformance and a better servicequality for the entire Iraqipopulation.Tarek Saadi, President and Headof Ericsson North Middle East,said “The Iraqi market has greatuntapped potentials which aregradually being explored andutilized. As Iraqi operators areincreasingly developing theirnetworks to prepare them to3G and LTE, we believe thatit’s also time to move towardsMobile Broadband and leverageon these existing developmentsin order to keep up with the fastdeveloping telecom market globallyas well as regionally.”Ericsson has been present in Iraqsince November 2003 duringwhich they were selected to supplya GSM mobile network forKorek. A year later, the companysigned a contract with anotherGSM operator, ITPC, and due tothe situation in Iraq, operationswere carried out remotely fromDubai. In January 2006, EricssonIraq operations were combinedwith Ericsson Jordan at onebranch office located in Amman,and three years later in 2009 Ericsson’sErbil office was officiallyinaugurated.VSAT network deploymentsthroughout the nation;•• MoC will promote deliveryof Voice over IP (VoIP)services;•• The Minister outlined hisvision for CMC to act as afully independent regulatorybody;•• Transparency of Iraq’sregulatory process is of paramountimportance, and aconsultation process will beimplemented soon regardingIraq’s frequency allocationtable.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com25

Interview: Khalid AtharGENBAND is the market leader inIP Interconnect solutions with majordeployments globally, especially in EMEAMehmet N. Balos, Executive Vice President GENBANDspeaks to Teletimes InternationalTeletimes - Please tell us aboutGENBAND, its products andservices.Mehmet Balos - Over thepast seven years, GENBANDhas transformed its productportfolio, customer profile,geographic footprint andfinancial performance throughstrategic partnerships withleading equipment supplierssuch as Alcatel-Lucent, NokiaSiemens Networks and NEC, aswell as acquisitions of Tekelec’sIP switching division, NextPointNetworks and most recentlyCedar Point Communications.But the company’s boldestmove, the acquisition of Nortel’sCarrier IP Switching division,not only changed GENBANDbut also changed the globaltelecom landscape. GENBANDbecame the engine behindmany of the largest communicationsnetworks in the world.By acquiring Nortel CVAS andimmediately integrating itsproductsin to its portfolio, GEN-BAND preserved many years ofrespected research and developmentand provided continuityfor an enormous installed base,enabling their carrier customersto cost effectively continuegrowth and delivery of servicesto global customer bases.In 2010, GENBAND revenuesgrew more than 275% overthe previous year and becamethe market-share leader of a$2.5 Billion industry. Today,GENBAND enables Voice overIP through the no. 1 call routingsoft switch; empowers operatorsthrough advanced IP businessenterprise and residentialcommunications applications;connects and secures IP networksthrough advanced sessionborder control (SBC) solutionsand enhances businessintelligence, traffic managementand security protection throughdeep packet inspection (DPI)technologies.As the no. 1 market shareleader in fixed lineswitching and mediagateways, GENBANDhas sustained thismarket position formore than 7 yearsthrough a comprehensiveIP Infrastructureportfolio thatdelivers rich solutionsto address transport, controland application layersof the network.With global head quarters inthe Dallas metro area of Texas,GENBAND employs 3,000 fulltimeemployees and contractorsglobally and enjoys a vastglobal services organizationwith over 50 operational locationssupporting customers inover 80 countries.Throughout Asia, the MiddleEast and Africa, GENBANDserves a wide array of operatorswith employees based in Singapore,Tokyo, Hong Kong, Beijing,Shanghai, Taiwan, Korea,Australia, New Zealand, India,Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Israel andSouth Africa.TT - What are the recent transformationsat the core networkside of fixed line networks?MB - The dominant trend atthe core network side of fixedline networks has been, and"Whatis uniqueabout the GENBANDapproach is that we workwith operators as a "trustedadvisor", meaning that wedon't try to force them todeploy something theydon't reallyneed."continues to be the transformationfrom TDM to IP. In theearly years, this was primarilyfocused on flattening and costreducing hierarchical tandemnetworks. In recent years, thishas evolved to the transformationof Class 5 networks as ameans of eliminating all legacyTDM core equipment, which israpidly reaching its "end of life".At the same time, this transformationis addressing newservice opportunities madeavailable by IP for business andconsumers including messaging,video, unified communications,mobility and more. The finalelement in core transformationaddresses IP interconnectof these rich services betweencarriers and to business. This isaddressed by IPX and SIP BusinessTrunking respectively.TT - How do you see theMiddle East region withregards to these transformations?MB - Most majorservice providers havealready begun fixedline transformationto NGN. In fact, manyhave started doing thisas far as 3-4 years ago,especially ones who havefairly large installed TDMbase. This is encouragingfor a company like GENBANDbecause it shows that the MEregion understands the businesscase behind TDM transformationand is willing to invest.We are still seeing pockets ofopportunities for GENBANDwith operators who have notstarted doing so, and evenwith ones who have alreadystarted but finding it difficultto migrate with 100% featuretransparency from TDM to26 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com27

NGN. What is unique aboutthe GENBAND approach is thatwe work with operators as a"trusted advisor", meaning thatwe don't try to force them todeploy something they don'treally need.We examine their networkinfrastructure and work withthem to build a very specificbusiness case that leveragestheir existing NGN/MSAN baseif they already have deployedsuch infrastructure. In suchcases,we offer our professionalservices to plan, designand implement the migrationin a very predictable manner,regardless of the type of TDMswitches they are migratingfrom and the Soft switch theywill migrate to.Some operators have the desireto perform migrations in IMSarchitecture and we are workingwith them to help themunderstand the pros/consof doing IMS vs. NGN basedtransformation. We generallyadvocate they start with anNGN architecture that evolvesto IMS over time to maximizeboth existing investments andto manage costs.TT - What possibilitiescould be brought up by LTEfor mobile networks?MB - If we examine theLTE value proposition, wesee that LTE delivers on twomajor fronts. Traditionally,new network technologies havefocused mainly on improvedperformance. LTE however, notonly delivers substantial performanceimprovements, but alsocreates new business modelsfor operators, improving theoverall value proposition to thesubscriber. With LTE, operatorswill not only have a platformto deliver truly ubiquitousmobile broadband services, butalso a much improved businessproposition compared to legacytechnologies. LTE brings lowercost per bit, higher capacity,a high level of flexibility andhas significant global appealcompared to 2G and 3G wirelesstechnologies.With expected throughput inexcess of 100Mbps and latencylower than 10ms, LTE will providesubscribers with a robustuser experience. In addition,because of LTE’s lower cost perbit, it also makes a number oftypically gigabyte hungry applicationscost effective and viableto use in a mobile environment.For example, high Definition(HD) video streaming, “VideoBlogging”, or the ability toupload video content to socialnetworking sites will becomeseamless.TT - Is Middle East and surroundingregions like Asia andAfrica are in line for IPv6 transitionat network infrastructurelevel?MB - The last top level (/8)block of free IPv4 addresses"Operatorsneed toseparate their richcommunication servicestrategies from theirtechnologicalframeworks."was assigned in February 2011by Internet Assigned NumbersAuthority (IANA) to the 5 RegionalInternet Registry (RIRs),although many free addressesstill remain in most assignedblocks and each RIR will continuewith standard policy untilit is at its last /8. After that,only 1024 addresses (a /22) aremade available from the RIRfor each Local Internet Registry.Currently, only Asia-PacificNetwork Information Center(APNIC) has already reachedthis stage (as of April 2011).RIPE NCC, the regional Internetregistry for Europe, is expectedto be the next RIR after APNICto run out of allocable IPv4addresses. This exhaustion isexpected in late 2011 to 2012.Consequently, IPv6 has become"table stakes" for any vendorwanting to do business in theME. We see it consistently asa mandatory requirement. Thisis mainly due to IP addressingexhaustion because of theexplosive growth in mobile traffic.Even on the fixed networkside, IPv6 is now more requiredthan before as fixed/mobileconvergence applications are inthe initial deployment stages.We have been working with ourcustomers to show them howthey can upgrade to IPv6 acrossthe GENBAND equipment theyhave already deployed, and inmost cases, they can do so witha software upgrade.TT - What are IP Interconnectionsolution(s) features beingoffered by GENBAND?MB - GENBAND is the marketleader in IP Interconnectsolutions with major deploymentsglobally, especially inEMEA. The solution exceedsthe GSMA’s IP Exchange requirementsas well as requirementsset forth by i3Forum.Our Multimedia InterconnectSolution enables the any-to-anyinterconnection that operatorsrequire to bring all the services,providers and technologiestogether.A basic requirement of such asolution is that it is massivelyscalable, dynamic and capableof supporting rigorous servicelevel and quality agreements relatedto each service. Operatorsneed to separate their rich communicationservice strategiesfrom their technological frameworksso when new protocols orcodecs come to market they canparticipate in providing the servicesthey enable without havingto upgrade their networks.Critically, such an approach alsoenables the continued supportof revenue generating legacyservices, while capping theirinvestment in aging technology,notably TDM infrastructure.GENBAND’s IP MultimediaInterconnect Solution enables areduced time to market for newservices and expansions, extensiveinter working betweenall nodes and myriad signalingprotocols. That functionalityis wrapped with a commonmanagement system thatfurther enables operational costreduction and protects operators’investment through theuse of commercial-off-the-shelfhardware and the flexibility ofGENBAND’s GENiUS platform.With so much at stake andevolution and transformationcontinuing, operators need tomake these kinds of futureproofplatform investment decisions.They have to cater to theneeds of the rapidly growingthird party or OTT supplier market,they have to make complexservices integrate and operateacross multiple technologicalecosystems, and they have todo so while providing a higherlevel of service quality thanever before.The technologies, businessmodels and platforms that enablethe rich communicationssuite need technical solutionsto bring them all together. IPexchanges can provide that linkand become a universal layerfor the re-profiling of trafficas it moves from network tonetwork and technology totechnology. Solutions such asGENBAND’s IP multimedia solu-28 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

tion have been designed to doexactly this and have been developedto grow with operatorschanging needs while negatingthe need to upgrade hardwarebefore its useful operationalcycle has run out.TT - Would you please elaborateon Traffic managementsolutions of your company?MB - The massive growthin data traffic as well as theability to monetize this trafficconstantly challenge broadbandproviders and create a uniquewindow of opportunity fortraffic management solutions.Operators need to adapt tochanges in user behaviors andnew applications by rapidlycreating new services and businessmodels to deliver a higherquality of service. GENBAND’sTraffic and Policy Management(P Series) solutions enable serviceproviders to make the rightbusiness decisions and enforcethem better.By leveraging advanced trafficand policy managementtechnology, GENBAND’s solutionsprovide industry-leadingaccuracy, broad platformflexibility, the visualization ofthe business intelligence, anda single point of subscriberand network service awarenessand control. In addition, ourPersonalized Content Deliverysolution can unleash potentialrevenue and define and deliverservices suited to individualusers’ needs.Personalized Content Deliverytools can create a premiumbroadband experience byallowing each user to create acustomized service experienceand billing plan that bestmeets their needs. It alsoallows customers to create theirown broadband package withpredictable billing and enablescarriers to offer services likecontent optimization and videocaching to capture incrementalrevenue for providing animproved user experience.TT - Which critical security issuesare being challenged thesedays across IP networks?MB - Network security is nota new issue in the communicationsindustry. What haschanged however, is that thisphenomenon was restrictedearlier only to the Internet butnow plagues the mobile industryas well with the growingnumber of IP applications.Security issues range from Accesssecurity against “Man inthe Middle” attacks to securityat the edges of the networkswith new protocols constantlycrossing the borders to coresecurity, as more applications inthe core are IP enabled.The solution to these securityproblems require a rangeof measures from mutualauthentication between thedevices and the core, encryptionof traffic to the core, dataand session based securityat the edge of the networksand finally application basedcontent security in the core.Furthermore, all of thesesecurity measures need to scaleas the amount of traffic in thenetworks grows exponentially.GENBAND’s S and P seriesportfolios form a unique andcomprehensive solution toaddress these problems.TT - Would you like to sharesome success stories ofGENBAND in the region?MB - One of our key customerdeployments is in Dubai, UnitedArab Emirates, with du, oneof the largest fixed/mobileoperators in UAEthat is utilizingour C20 Soft switch and MediaGateways to offer VoIP andmultimedia services to the localfixed market.We have recently completed amajor TDM transformation projectthere and are working withdu to offer new value-addedservices leveraging the existingdeployment to increase theirARPU and reduce their OPEX.GENBAND is also involved inother customer deploymentsin the ME, which will be announcedin due time.TT - What key revolutions youforesee along network Servicesand Infrastructure by 2015?MB - By 2015, we see widespreadimplementation of LTEin developed economies alongwith broadband implementationson national scales. Thesenetworks will also lead totransformation of older TDMnetworks to IP infrastructure,enabling service providers toprovide high bandwidth servicessuch as video on demand fromanywhere.TT - Broadband vs. NextGeneration Networks. Are theyboth integrated?MB - The desire for broadbandfrom subscribers will continueto drive a significant percentageof the capital investment byservice providers over the nextseveral years on both fixed andwireless access.For fixed networks, this meansadditional fiber deployments fortelecommunications operators,and wide deployment of packetcable 2.0 / DOCSIS 3.0 forcable broadband.Equally, wireless subscribersnow have similar desires forubiquitous broadband at everincreasing speeds. These factorswill require carriers to invest ina fully integrated NGN core architecturewith multiple accessnetworks being fed from it.In the absence of an NGN core,the delivery of efficient broadbandwith QoS, mobility ofservices and access to advancedapplications will simply notbe achievable. The traditionalsegmented networks withdistinct infrastructure dedicatedto a single service type (voicevs. data) are on their last legs.IP is clearly at the heart of thisfor transport, with SIP playingan ever-increasing role of thesignaling protocol for all broadbandservices.TT - CAPEX and ROI remainsthe top concern for the operators/ businesses while theymove along to network expansionand scalability. How doesGENBAND assist them?MB - GENBAND is helpingservice providers meet theirdemand for new services byproviding innovative IP infrastructuresolutions that includesIP switching, media gateways,application servers and SessionBorder Controllers (SBCs). OurGENiUS platform combines allthese capabilities and enablesservice providers to deliveradvanced services in a timelymanner with improved ROI foran optimal Capex investment.TT - Your words aboutTeletimes International, that isthe only tri-regional magazinefocused towards the ICT andTelecom sectors of the MiddleEast, Asia and Africa?MB - Teletimes Internationalis ideally positioned to servethe Middle East, Asia andAfrica markets, as a strategictri-regional magazine focusedexclusively on the ICT and Telecomsectors.We appreciate both having aninformation source for the keytrends, participants, challengesand opportunities in theregion as well as an editorialoutlet for communicatingabout our regional milestones,customers and partnership. Welook forward to reading andbriefing Teletimes Internationalfrequently and believe they willcontinually and increasinglybe a strategic source for theindustry.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com29

Managing technological discontinuitiesHow Information & Communication Technologies can change your businessThe winners are found amongthose who can capture,protect and internalize ‘new toindustry‘ and ‘new to world‘technologies.“ The increasingimportance of Information andCommunication Technologies(ICT) for innovation in manyindustry sectors comes withnew opportunities for competitiveadvantage. A systematicapproach to dealing with thepotential impact of ICT is crucialfor future success.Information and CommunicationTechnologies (ICT) are now anintegral part of our environmentand are among the most importantdrivers for innovation inmany industry sectors. Whethercomplex control technologiesin the field of machine tools,fly-by-wire systems in theaircraft industry or intelligentcomponents in moderncars, everyday lifewithout ICT is no longerconceivable. Moreover,the contribution of ICTto value creation in theproduction of consumerand industrial goods willcontinue to grow.One of the consequencesof the digitalization of theeconomy is a complete or partialreplacement of establishedtechnologies. ICT solutions can,for example, take on functionsthat have been provided for byother technologies and replacethem completely. A second possibility,one that is less radicalbut equally significant, is theaddition of new functions toproducts through the integrationof ICT components, witholder technologies becoming lessimportant as a result.Such changes are known asThe future of urban mobilityTowards networked, multimodal cities of 2050Management consultancyArthur D. Little’s newglobal study of urban mobilityassesses the mobility maturityand performance of 66 citiesworldwide and finds most notjust falling well short of bestpractice but in a state of crisis.Indeed it is not puttingit too strongly tosay that many cities’mobility systems arestanding on a burningplatform and if actionis not taken in thevery near future theywill play a major rolein slowing the growthand development oftheir host nations.What is needed is innovativechange. This report highlightswhat is holding them back,showcases best practice andidentifies three strategic imperativesfor cities and threeclusters of future business modelsfor mobility suppliers thatwill enable cities to meet theurban mobility challenge.MethodologyArthur D. Little assessed themobility maturity and performanceof 66 cities worldwideusing 11 criteria ranging frompublic transport’s share of themodal mix and the number ofcars per capita to average travelspeed and transport-relatedCO2 emissions. The mobilityscore per city ranges from 0 to100 index points; the maximumof 100 points is defined by thebest performance of any cityin the sample for each criteria.In addition the study reviewedand analyzed 39 key urbanmobility technologies and 36potentialurban mobilitybusinessmodels.Plotting thetrendThe world’spopulation isincreasinglycity-based;50% or 3.5billion peoplecurrently live in urban areasand by 2050 this is expected toreach 70% of the population or6.3 billion people.Urban mobility is one of thetoughest challenges that citiestechnological discontinuitiesor leaps. The jump to a newtechnological path is attendedby a range of opportunities forbusiness, but posessignificant challengesas well.However, despite theirundoubted importance,ICT are not theuniversal solution toevery innovation challenge,and should notbe overrated, especiallygiven the speed at which theyare developing. Many expertsstill see a huge need for furtherresearch in the field of ICT torealize the manifold visions of adigital world.face; accordingly, we will seemassive investment in thefuture. Today, 64% of all travelkilometers made are urban andthe amount of travel withinurban areas is expected totriple by 2050. Being able toget around urban areas quickly,conveniently and with littleenvironmental impact is criticalto their success.Existing mobility systems areclose to breakdown. By 2050,the average time an urbandweller spends in traffic jamswill be 106 hours per year, threetimes more than today. Deliveringurban mobility will requiremore and more resources. In2050 urban mobility will:•• Cost €829bn per year acrossthe globe, more than fourtimes higher than in 1990.•• Use 17.3% of the planet’sbio-capacities, which is fivetimes more than in 1990.30 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Huawei concludes 2011Cloud Computing ConferenceHuawei Technologies hasclosed the curtains onits 2011 Cloud ComputingConference held in Shenzhen,China. The four-day eventbrought together more than1,000 partners and customersto discuss the latest progressof, and a preview of futuretrends for the cloud computingindustry, with Huawei alsoproviding insight into its owncloud computing strategy.Huawei’s recent global strategyto target the enterprisemarket is also giving businessesacross industries theopportunity to experiencethe benefits of cloud applications.Offering a range ofcloud computing-based datacentre and application servicesincluding Huawei’s VirtualDesktop Infrastructure (VDI),companies across industrieswho attended the global eventwere able to experience differentscenarios on how the cloudcould enable organizations tooperate more efficiently.Regional economic competitivenessand a broad commitmentto business innovationmeans that the uptake ofcloud computing is growingrapidly in the Middle East aswell as shaping technologyinvestment decisions globally.According to the InternationalData Corporation (IDC), thepublic cloud segment is setto flourish with cloud serversexpected to grow from an USD4 billion market opportunityin 2010 to USD 12.6 billionby 2014. Huawei believes theMiddle East region will claim alarge part of this global marketgrowth.“Cloud computing is a coreelement of Huawei’s globalICT strategy,” said Li Sanqi,Chief Technology Officer ofHuawei’s IT Product Line.“Huawei is a major investor inthe cloud computing marketand we bring abundant cloudcomputing expertise, worldclassengineers and technologyexperts, and a forward-lookingperspective to the dual challengesof anticipating the futureneeds of the industry andmeeting those needs with thebest products and solutions.Our goal is to be a globalleader in the cloud computingmarket, and we look forwardto continuing to support ourglobal customers with cuttingedgecloud computing servicesand products.”Alongside the conference,Huawei introduced its recentlyestablished IT Product Lineas part of its commitment todeliver leading-edge cloudcomputing offerings. The ITProduct Line will leverage aninternational team of morethan 6,000 Huawei engineersin the United States, Canada,and China to drive developmentof the next generationof advanced cloud computingsolutions.At the conference, Huaweialso showcased its latestportfolio of cloud computingproducts and solutions includingHuawei’s advanced cloudbasedInternet Data Center(IDC) solution; combining thelatest technologies in intelligentmanagement, energy saving,high density deploymentand elastic scalability. Additionalhighlights from Huawei’sTecal server family, DesktopCloud, Cloud Platform, CloudStorage and Media Cloudsolutions were presented tohelp cloud services companiesDalia AchourFour-day event welcomed more than 1,000 partners and customers to discuss latesttrends and preview future innovations for the cloud computing industrytransform traditional data centersto cloud-based IDCs.Earlier this year, Huaweispotlighted its cloud technologyin deploying the world'slargest office desktop cloudsystem to meet the company’sown needs for advanced informationsecurity, IT systemoperation and maintenancemanagement.“Cloud computing is a competitivemarket,” said Mr. Li,“and Huawei’s ability to spurnew innovation, rapidly incorporatenew technologies andbreakthroughs into our solutions,and leverage innovativebusiness models has resultedin strong growth. We areexcited to continue integratingcloud computing into more ofour services and applicationsto drive growth and create opportunitiesfor new win-winsin the industry ecosystem.”Huawei officially announcedits entry into the cloudcomputing market in 2010,and has since made cloudcomputing technology ahigh priority for R&D andinvestment. Huawei hasjoined hands with numerouspartners, including Intel, IBM,Accenture, Citrix, and CA, toexplore new cloud computingbusiness models and practices.Huawei is refocusing its globalR&D resources to help drivecloud computing innovationand promote its applicationacross industries such asgovernment, healthcare,education, and logistics.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com31

His Majesty King AbdullahII of Hashemite Kingdomof Jordan and John Chambers,Cisco’s Chairman and CEO,formally inaugurated Jordan’sfirst Healthcare ICT Task Force,at a session, held alongside theWorld Economic Forum 2011 atthe Dead Sea, Jordan.A joint effort by Cisco, KingAbdullah II Fund for Development(KAFD), and Jordan'sInformation and CommunicationsTechnology Association(int@j), the Jordan HealthcareICT Task Force is an open forumof Jordanian Health InformationCommunications Technology(ICT) companies under the umbrellaof int@j. The Task Force’smain objective is to advanceJordan’s healthcare ICT clustercapacity and promote Jordanianhealthcare ICT technologies andcompanies on a local, regional,and international level. Cisco’srole will be to help in provisioningguidance, mentorship,and support to the Task Force’sprograms.The Task Force was launched ata special roundtable session onthe sidelines of the World EconomicForum Jordan 2011 at theDead Sea, with the participationof Cisco healthcare solution executivesand Jordanian healthcareICT technology companiesexecutives. Discussions focusedon the potential and futureopportunities in healthcareICT in the region and globally,including high level future plans.The session also included an exchangeon the progress made inJordan’s “Hakeem” program, runKing Abdullah II of Jordanand Cisco Chairman inaugurate Jordan’sfirst Healthcare ICT Task Force at WEF Dead SeaMohammad BaayounKing Abdullah II presents Cisco Chairman and CEO JohnChambers with Al Hussein Decoration for DistinguishedContribution of the First Degree at the Dead Seaby Electronic Health Solutions 2. The Task Force aims to to(EHS) a non-profit company promote knowledge-sharingaiming to computerize the public and marketing for companieshealth sector in Jordan.under the umbrella of theThe inauguration roundtable Jordan Healthcare ICT Tasksession also witnessed the presentationof “Al Hussein Decora-to accelerate the growth ofForce Cluster, as well as helption for Distinguished Contributionof the First Degree” to panies by providing a forumJordan’s healthcare ICT com-Cisco’s Chairman and CEO, John for joint collaboration andChambers by His Majesty King cooperation. It also aims toAbdullah II, in recognition of his create a point of reference forcontinuous efforts and commitmentto strengthen Jordan’s wishing to partner with Jor-global and regional leaderseducation and ICT sectors.dan’s Healthcare ICT cluster.Highlights / Key facts:3. Task Force activities will1. Globally, there are key trends include, amongst other initiatives,assessing Jordan'sthat individually and collectivelyare redefining the healthcare delivery systemworld of healthcare - aging position regionally and globally.It will also developpopulation; shortage in keyspecialties; affordability crisis; mentorship programs to linknew uses of IT; privacy and Jordanian companies with innovativeand leading globalsecurity concerns; focus onwellness. Key participants in healthcare ICT brands, and athe healthcare ecosystem will forum to enable cluster companiesto advance and inno-need to adapt to the changesdriven by these trends.vate through current opportunitiesand future trends inHealthcare ICT Technologiesglobally. Regular healthcareICT boot camps for clustermembers will be hostedby leading healthcare ICTcompanies from around theglobe.4. Cisco's goal in this partnershipis to provide supportand thought leadership thathelps accelerate the growthof technology firms in Jordanthat are designing and deployingsolutions to enhancethe quality of healthcare serviceproviders, whether focusedon improved access tocare, better quality of care,increased productivity andworkflow efficiency, or betteraccess to information.5. Industry experts predict thatthree technology ‘big bets’will transform the healthcareindustry:••Healthcare cloud - thegrowth of cloud computingand the ability to deliver intelligenceat scale will enabledisruptive business modelsthrough healthcare exchange.••Mobility - explosive mobiledevice and data growth willchange healthcare deliveryand drive new behaviors forclinicians and patients .••Collaboration - collaborativetechnology in areassuch as clinical workflow,tele-health, and knowledgesharing, will improve accessto healthcare, increase theefficiency of care delivery,and make healthcare moreaffordable.32 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Al Daweesh: Achieving synergieswith other group companies outside reflectedon our services to the pilgrimsSTC Group CEO Eng. SaudAl Daweesh has congratulatedthe Custodian of the TwoHoly Mosques and HRH theCrown Prince on the successof this year’s Hajj season byall means including the supportprovided by most of theGovernment sectors. STC GroupCEO announced the successof the Group’s plan to managethe telecommunications trafficof incoming and outgoing toMakkah and the Holy Sites andcountries around the world. TheCEO also announced the successof coordination betweenthe Group’s various operationssuch as Indonesia, Malaysia,Kuwait, and Bahrain wherepilgrims from these countriesreceived various promotionaloffers that met their needs duringthe season. This year’s Hajjalso witnessed a high demandon various telecommunicationsservices and achieved high trafficflow of telecommunicationsduring the peak hours of Hajjsuch as day one in Arafat andthe first day of Eid at the variousHoly Sites and Makkah.Following his tour of theCompany’s various locations inMina during Eid, Eng Al Daweeshconfirmed that there is avisible increase of telecommunicationstraffic over the yearsbefore and at different rates.He mentioned that the usage ofdata, data transfer, and usageof mobile and fixed internetnetworks increased five-foldover last year. Many guestsand many of those providingthe service also took a keeninterest in fiber options, 3Gadvanced services in additionto uniquely launching, for thefirst time, the 4G service in theHoly Sites.Al Daweesh added on the occasionof the success of theGroup’s Hajj plan, “STC putsall of its sectors into service inorder to achieve high synergiesand success rate during theseason. These plans are harmoniouswith and complement theGovernment’s various sectorsand other agencies working forthe comfort of the guests.” Healso mentioned, “Serving Hajji’sis an honor that we carry andare proud of, availing all of ourhuman and technical resources.We also make use of theGroup’s technical capabilitiesand experience to cope withthe Government’s mega projectsin Makkah and Mina suchas the continuous expansion ofthe Haram, Train Project, andothers providing the upgradedprojects with highly advancedtelecommunications services.”STC: Data traffic during Hajj increased 5 fold from last yearSTC has announced the successof the first phase of itsoperational plan for Hajj andwhere the Company’s networksregistered high flow of trafficat the Holy Sites during thisHaj season. STC’s data trafficincreased by 5 fold compared tothe same period last year andat the same time, the Companyalso recorded an increase ifvoice calls.STC recorded a significantincrease in the roaming customersfor Al Jawal over lastyear which resulted in a visibleincrease in the number of callsand communications in Makkah,Madinah, and other HolySites compared to the sameperiod last year. The Companyalso recorded an increaseof 51% in SMS usage and asimilar percentage in local andinternal MMS according to theround the clock statistics fromthe King Khaled National NetworkControl Center in Riyadh.The various technical and infrastructuresolutions providedby STC using its fiber opticsnetwork and 3G network inaddition to operating the 4Gnetwork in the Jamarat Bridgesplayed a vital role in easing theflow of communications forthe Pilgrims during the Jamaratactivity and during their variousmovements between Mina,Central Area in Makkah enroute to the Holy Site via thevarious underpasses whetherfor cars or pedestrians. TheCompany availed its Jawal networkand Broadband servicesat these sites according to thelatest technological specificationsto ensure both speed andquality.On the other hand, STC’sSAWA Ziyara witnessed a highappeal from pilgrims all overthe world due to its reducedprice of SR 25 and its free offerproviding the first two minutesfor free for international callsand the first two messages forfree with a 40% discount onan international number oftheir choice if requested. TheCompany has also availed economicalmobile phones of SR90 only. The Company also setup a series of fixed office locationsand roaming salesmenwith official company brandingand badges in order to providethese services to the pilgrimswherever they are.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com33

Saudi Telecom Companylaunches Blackberry Curve 9360STC launched the newBlackberry Curve 9360equipped with Blackberryoperating system version 7with the Blackberry monthlypackage for current and newcustomers with a one monthstarting from the day ofpurchase and with the optionto purchase the device withmonthly fee. Both packagesoffer customers a monthly freebalance including voice andvideo calls, SMS, MMS, and aninternet package.The new Blackberry device isequipped with a 2.4 inch witha 360X480 clear display and a800 MHz processor, 5 megapixelcamera and a flash LED,512 Ram Mb, 512 internalmemory.The device is also equippedwith an external memorySD Micro up to 32 Mb inaddition to the devicesupports WiFi andBluetooth.The launch of the newBlackBerry Curve affirmsthe Company's leadership islaunching the newest andlatest smart phones whileat the same demonstratesthe Company's commitmentto provide the latest insmart technologies.STC also uniquely providesits customers withpromotions and offers forsmart phones which is part ofits customer centric strategy toprovide the best services withthe best prices, add to thatthe comprehensive support interms of products, services andnetwork.Both STC and Research inMotion previously announcedearlier a strategic partnershipto provide a wide-rangeof content, applications, andsmart solutions for Blackberryusers in the Kingdom revolvingaround the exchange ofexpertise which will servethe mutual interest of bothcompanies thus achieving customersatisfaction in terms oftechnologies and services.Viva Bahrain debutsSamsung Galaxy NoteViva Bahrain announcedthe commencementof a pre-booking campaignfor the latest Androidpoweredsensation to hitthe international market,the Samsung Galaxy Note.Available from Viva, thephone-tablet hybrid boastsan enormous 5.3-inch HDSuper AMOLED screen, an8MP camera with LED flash,a front-facing camera and fullHD video recording.Bridging the gap betweensmartphones and tabletsand ideal for mobile usersuncomfortable with typingon small touchscreens, theSamsung Galaxy Note alsofeatures an advanced S Penwhich operates much like astylus.Viva customers interested inthe Samsung Galaxy Notecan head to the Viva websiteat viva.com.bh to registertheir details and pre-booka handset. Customers canalso pre-book a phoneand get a feel for it at livedemonstrations at four Vivastores, located in BahrainCity Center, Bahrain Mall,Seef Mall and GOSI complex.Priced at BD299, the phonecan be paired with any ofViva’s postpaid plans startingat BD10.“We are very proud to bringthis remarkable phone toBahrain for the first time,”Andrew Hanna, CCO - Vivasaid Andrew Hanna, CCO atViva. “Our offer is concurrentwith the internationalrelease of the phone, so ourcustomers in Bahrain don’thave to wait longer thanmobile users anywhere elsein the world. The SamsungGalaxy Note is a veryinteresting device and we arecertain users will love it.”Using the S pen, users candraw and take Notes onthe Samsung Galaxy Note’ssharp, bright display, which isalso capable of handwritingrecognition. Front and backfacingcameras make it anideal video communicationtool. The phone runs Android’slatest software, Gingerbread2.3, is capable of handlingdata speeds up to 21Mbps.The Android app storefeatures myriad paid and freeapps designed to increaseproductivity and entertain.34 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Blocking pornto safeguard kids:Some interesting recent developmentsThe Internet continuous toevolve as a dynamic andprevailing source of information.This connected world has somethingfor everyone, a great valueof learning and productivity. Thewidespread adoption of Internet(present global users crossing 2Billion marks) especially amongthe children and youth is bringingupon challenges / issues aswell, the extent of pornographyin cyberspace and its consequencesremain a core. Blockingporn content has been onthe agenda of public institutesdealing with Internet policyand regulations subjects. ChildOnline Protection (COP) is onespecific terminology addressingthis particular content typesince children around the globeare the most vulnerable segmentof a society in terms of threats/ harm posed by porn content.Although, COP is not limited tosafeguarding kids from porn contentonly, it includes a broaderissues framework.Blocking content is not an easytask when we discuss its stoppageat a national level. It’s notlike installing block list softwarein a LAN environment. It doesask for a detail consultation withstakeholders to declare a moresustainable and clear nationalstrategy to block a particularcontent. The continued expansionof the Internet can behampered by blocking contentupfront resulting off-putting attitudestowards Internet accessin some sectors of a society.In general, the whole Internetcontent is being representedthrough URLs or web addresses.Blocking of content has beenperformed by blocking URLs atnational Internet gateways ineconomies like Saudi Arabia,UAE and Pakistan. However,when it comes to porn contentthere are a good set of softwaresolutions available, in fact pornis the only content type (if Iam right here) where specificfiltering techniques have beenapplied in form of a softwareapplication solution (targetingthe application layer in contextwith OSI layers). You may notfind such filters for anti-religion,anti-national, anti-social orother content under blockingpractices.Recently, a broadband serviceprovider in Pakistan introduceda specific parental control packageto its subscribers with lessthan 2 USD per month extracharges. The operator is offeringNet Nanny (a popular parentalcontrol solution) service tosubscribers opting for parentalcontrol service on their broadbandconnection. Another recentexample of such practice is beenobserved at UK. According todetails, a drive backed by the UKPrime Minster David Cameronwill see ISP customers’ in greatercontrols to manage how theyaccess sexually explicit websiteson their phones, tablets andcomputers at home. 4 major ISPsof the country have developeda code of practice to encouragean active choice based parentalcontrol service. In UK, theservice is expected to be free ofany charge.In Australia also, the InternetIndustry Association (IIA) hasprepared specific guidelines toassist Australian ISPs to complywith the regulatory frameworkfor online content. These requirementshave been preparedas a result of both industry andend-user consultation whiletaking on board the AustralianCommunications and MediaAuthority (ACMA). These rulespresent a rationalbalancebetween enablingpositiveprotection forthe subscriberas well as forthe industryto carry ontheir networkoperationswithout excessive cost. The approachfocuses on empoweringend-user by providing them boththe tools and information totake greater control of contentaccessible via the Internet.Under the registered codes ofpractice for content regulation,ISPs are required to; takereasonable steps to ensure thatInternet access accounts arenot provided to persons underNaveed ul Haqthe age of 18 years without theconsent of a parent, teacher orother responsible adult, mustmake available a scheduled Filteror optional filtered service to theend-users and provide users withinformation describing methodsby which receipt of unsolicitedemail promoting offensive materialcan be minimized.These examples show an encouragingand more appropriate developmentwith regards to COPas well. It is a more sustainableway to enable an environmentto the subscribers to managethe type of content on his ownchoice rather than blocking URLs/ websites at a national level.Blocking a particular contentcompletely over Internet is notat all easy; it requires a lot ofresources, investment by publicand private sector, continuousupdating and even resistancefrom the society (adult entertainmentadvocacy). It is eminentto follow a more inclusiveapproach while taking policy /regulatory decisions related withInternet and its content as theInternet world is engaging everycorner of a society. Public policyand regulatory institutes indeveloping economies may alsolook forward to adopt such bestpractice models in order to endorsenational COP Frameworks.Even from an operator point ofview such parental control offersmay bring a business case aswell. They may introduce parentalcontrol as a value added servicecharging a minimum amountto their subscribers. Sounds likea Win-Win situation.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com35

Reham BarakatIstanbul University team relyon Thuraya Solutions to finish World Solar ChallengeIstanbul University, one ofthe participants during theWorld Solar Challenge, a 3,000km race that crosses Australiafrom the Northern territoriescity of Darwin to Adelaide, arecelebrating their top ten finishamongst a highly competitivefield. The team, who were supportedby Thuraya, relied heavilyon Thuraya IP, the world’ssmallest satellite broadbandsolution supporting 384 Kbpsdata streaming and ThurayaXT, the most reliable satellitehandheld with full walk andtalk capabilities, for communications.The Istanbul UniversityTeam depended on Thuraya’sSolutions for the exchange ofcritical information regardingsolar battery levels of the car,speed and weather conditionswhich helped them to finishthe World Solar Challenge. Therace is a bi-annual competitionwith racers from all across theglobe taking part in this ecofriendlytechnology initiativethat involves solar poweredrace cars.Mr. Murat Altug from theIstanbul Solar Race Team said,“It was an exhilarating experienceto take part in the WorldSolar Challenge but what gaveus reassurance and confidencethroughout the race was theknowledge that we had accessto reliable data and voicecommunications wherever wewere located in Australia viaThuraya’s network. We encounteredvery rough and enduringterrain but both Thuraya IPand the XT handheld functionedperfectly every time. Wedepended on both solutions foremergency purposes but mostimportantly the sending of vitaldata that helped us to monitorour performance throughoutthe race.”Gateway Communications expands servicesinto the Middle East & North AfricaGateway Communications,the leading supplier oftelecommunications servicesacross Africa, has continuedto expand its internationalreach with the establishmentof an office in Beirut, Lebanon.The move is in response to theincreasing traffic into and outof locations in the Middle Eastand North Africa (MENA), andthe ongoing demand for connectivitywithin the region fromGateway’s existing customerbase.The MENA market has seenrapid privatisation in the lastfive years resulting in fiercecompetition to gain the largestmarket share in the region.According to Cisco’s GlobalMobile Data Traffic ForecastUpdate (February 2011), theMiddle East and Africa willhave the strongest mobile datatraffic growth of any region(at around 129percent CAGR)between now and2015, with voicetraffic demonstratingsimilartrends. As thecarrier of choicefor many of Africa’slargest mobilenetwork operators(MNOs),the expansionto MENA is anatural progressionfor GatewayCommunications.Leveragingits extensiveexperience in theAfrican market, Gateway Communicationswill now also offerthe highest quality voice, dataand value added services (VAS)to the MENA region.Gateway Communications hasMike Van den Berghalready established relationshipswith many leadingoperators in the MENA regionin Morocco, Qatar, Sudan, UAEand Egypt. In addition to beingThuraya IP is the world’ssmallest and fastest satellitebroadband solution that offers444 Kbps standard IP and 384streaming IP. It is the only satellitebroadband solution withasymmetric streaming enablingconsumers to select upload anddownload speeds ensuring theyonly pay for the bandwidththey consume.Thuraya had sponsored the IstanbulUniversity Solar Team incollaboration with their servicepartner TEKNOMOBIL as partof their continued CSR effortsand dedication to eco-friendlyinitiatives.Elie Jeitanithe largest satellite provider toAfrica, Gateway Communicationsalso offers the advantageof a strong pan-Africanfootprint with on-the-groundlocal expertise throughout thecontinent.“Expanding our reach into theMiddle East is an importantstep in our mission to connectAfrica to the rest of theworld, and helps us to fulfil ourobjective of strengthening ouroffering in North Africa,” commentedMike Van den Bergh,CEO of Gateway Communications,“The location of our presencein Beirut ensures we aregeographically close to Europe,the Middle East and Africa,allowing us to work with operatorswho are looking for highquality inbound and outboundcommunications services in theregion and across the continent.”36 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Thuraya and Al Aan TV partnerto spotlight famine-stricken SomaliaThe famine-stricken areaof Somalia is an unfoldingtragedy that refuses to abate.The country, situated in theHorn of Africa, is experiencingits worst drought for 60years leaving vast swathes ofthe country without water,vegetation or food supplies andrelying on government agenciesand worldwide donations forsupport. Key to driving awarenessand fuelling additionalworldwide provision is mediaawareness.Al Aan TV, the UAE-based prowomanTV channel, is activelysupporting the campaign tokeep Somalia’s plight at theforefront of the world’s mindand, supported by internationalmobile satellite services operator,Thuraya, will be broadcastinga series of live stories andEbrahim K. Ebrahimreports from the region over thecoming months.About 60 percent of the peoplein Somalia have been inaccessibleto aid, and those are justthe people in temporary camps.Al Aan TV will be following thestories of the families, some ofwhom have walked for weeksto find supplies, and airing livecoverage of their courageousThuraya IP enables environmentalresearch project in the HimalayasEv-K2-CNR Committee, anItalian non-profit organisationthat promotes scientificand technological research inmountainous areas such as theHimalaya region, has been usingThuraya’s high-speed data solution,Thuraya IP as part of itsresearch equipment. Thuraya IPhas enabled Ev-K2-CNR to senddata, videos and pictures as partof their environmental studieswhich are often in remote regionswhere terrestrial networksare unavailable.With Thuraya’s ubiquitous anduninterrupted border-to-bordercoverage in more than 140 countriesin Europe, Africa, MiddleEast, Asia and Australia, Ev-K2-CNR can reliably depend on itsnetwork for broadband connectivitywhenever it is needed bythe research organisation.“It is actually fascinating howThuraya’s satellite network hasallowed us to create a remoteofficefacility via Thuraya IP inthe most isolated spots onthe globe. We are able tosend important researchdata reliably through thecompact solution thathas proven to be so easyto use and is now a fundamentalpart of our gear. ThurayaIP has endured the rough andicy conditions we face during ourproject. Additionally, it is alsovery affordable,” said GiampietroVerza, Technical Manager of theEv-K2-CNR. Thuraya IP is theworld’s smallest satellite broadbandsolution to support 384Kbps streaming. It also offersspeeds up to 444KbpsStandardIP. It is the onlysatellite broadband solutionwith asymmetric streamingcapabilities, allowing consumersReham Barakatjourneys in an effort to encourageviewers around the globeto assist wherever and howeverthey can. Thuraya, known forits support of such projects, isproviding the efficient satellitebroadband technology requiredto broadcast stories and reportslive via its media friendlyThuraya IP broadband solution.“We have a strong partnershipwith Al Aan TV, whomwe openly admire for theircontinued efforts to highlighthuman interest stories. Somaliais a vast, barren country with aheart-breaking story to tell, wewanted to ensure Al Aan TVhad the means to get the storyout. Our Thuraya IP solutionenables them to broadcast livefrom even the most remote locationand provides the platformto re-focus international attentionon Somali community,”said Thuraya’s Vice President,Corporate & Marketing Communications,Mr. Ebrahim K.Ebrahim.On a similar note Ms. NisreenSadek, News Projects Managerof Al Aan TV said, “We arecommitted to proving leadingand breaking news to ouraudience, we ensure that we arewell-geared to stream storiesfrom all parts of the globe andthat is why we selected ThurayaIP as our main satellite broadbandsolution. The compact,portable and user-friendly solutionwill enable us to show thereality on the ground in Somaliawithout delay to our studios, inthe hope of bringing attentionto our audience so that theyparticipate in saving the lives ofthose in Somalia.”Reham Barakatto select their upload and downloadspeeds for substantial costsavings. This is in addition toThuraya’s flexible fixed-fee andunlimited pricing packages thatare unique in the market.Ev-K2-CNR is best representedby the InternationalPyramid Laboratory/Observatorylocatedat 5050 meters above sealevel in Nepal at the base ofMount Everest, where since1990, 520 scientific missionshave been carried out by 220researchers from 143 differentscientific institutions in severalnations. Thuraya IP solutionshave been supplied to them byItalian service partner Intermatica.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com37

Tata Communications and Nawrasgo-live with Oman to India via TGN-Gulf cable systemTata Communications, aglobal communications serviceprovider that owns and operatesthe world’s largest subseacable network, and Nawras,Oman’s customer-friendlycommunications provider, hasannounce the launch of theOman to India TGN-Gulf cable.The undersea cable will be usedto instantaneously route voiceand data traffic from Oman toMumbai (India) and onwardsto the rest of the world, via theTata Global Network (TGN).The new cable link offers enormouscapacity for broadbandand high quality voice services,enabling Nawras to meet thegrowing demand for internationalvoice and data servicesfrom its customers – be it inthe form of calls or internetsurfing.“We are proud to bring anew cable system to Omanin association with Nawras,”says Radwan Moussalli, TataCommunications’ ManagingDirector, Middle East and NorthAfrica (MENA). “The MiddleEast is fast establishing itselfas an emerging market hotspotfor business which brings withit the need for solid infrastructureand associated enterpriseservices that require high speedbandwidth. This launch is yetanother step in our overallstrategy to participate and assistin the rapid developmentof this key region.”The development forms part ofthe strategic TGN-Gulf cableproject which will connectthe Gulf region to the rest ofthe world via the Tata GlobalNetwork, providing reliablehigh speed bandwidth to allthe key cities in the world. TheTGN-Gulf Cable System, actingas a gateway to the TGN, willprovide a new dimension to theinfrastructure and unique servicecapabilities of each of thepartners. Using its own cablestations, each party will haveaccess to a new high-speedglobal route, adding muchneeded resilience and diversityRoss Cormackto the infrastructure in eachcountry. The capacity will alsohelp to support the continuedexpansion of broadbandpenetration, internet usage andenterprise applications in eachmarket.“The new cable is an excitingmilestone as Nawras will nowgain bandwidth to economicallymeet the ever-growingdemand for voice and data servicesfrom our valued customers,for mobile and fixed line.It will also reduce internationalinterconnection costs as wellas national and internationaltransmission lease-line costs,Julie Amannwhile at the same time allowingNawras total end-to-endquality control. We can alsonow expand our service portfolioto include internationaldata and transmission services,”says Ross Cormack, CEO,Nawras.The launch forms part of astrategic roll out plan to supportthe development of anextended portfolio of advancedtelecommunications servicessuch as global Ethernet, MPLSbasedVPN, Managed Security,IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service)and global Telepresence.All these services are suited tosupport both local and globalenterprises, which are veryactive in this rapidly expandingemerging market region.The TGN-Gulf project landingparties are Nawras (Sultanateof Oman), Etisalat (UnitedArab Emirates), Qatar Telecom(Qatar), Bahrain Internet Exchange(Kingdom of Bahrain),and Mobily (Kingdom of SaudiArabia).Nawras VoIP offer gives huge savings of up to 30%on international callsNawras, Oman’s customerfriendly communicationsprovider is delighted to introducean exciting new internationalcall offer giving customersthe benefit of fantastic savingswhen talking to friends andfamily abroad. By simply usingthe VoIP prefix 0902 instead of00 while dialling internationally,significant reductions will beapplied to all calls lasting longerthan one minute.After the first minute of a VoIP(voice over internet protocol)call at the standard internationalcalling rate, the pricedrops by 15% for the secondminute. From the third minuteonwards, Nawras customers geteven greater value with a 30%discount off the standard rate.These special low rates applyirrespective of whether a call ismade by a mobile or Home Voiceline and are valid until 30 January2012.For example, after dialling‘0902’ from a mobile numberduring off peak hours, the secondminute of a call to the UnitedArab Emirates or India whichwill charged at the reduced rateof only 84 Baiza and from theOmar Al Farsi, ISM-Nawrasthird minute onwards, it will beonly 69 Baiza per minute.In other examples, mobilecustomers calling Egypt duringoff peak hours will see the priceper minute drop to as low as118 Baiza. Meanwhile mobilecustomers calling the UnitedKingdom will be charged at just132 Baiza per minute for thethird minute onwards.Omar Al Farsi, Nawras InternationalServices Manager, said,“Following the great receptionthat greeted our initial VoIPservice launch to six countriesin 2010, we are now delightedto be in a position to expandthe popular service with thisvery attractive international calloffer.38 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

H.M. King Hamad 4th Golf TrophyTees Off with Batelco as SponsorBatelco, Bahrain’s leadingTelecommunicationsCompany is supporting H.M.King Hamad’s 4th Golf Trophy,organised by the Bahrain GolfAssociation, which took placeat The Royal Golf Club, Riffa,from November 24th to 26th.Bahrain Golf Associationhas invited over 100 playersfrom Bahrain, GCC, Asia,Europe and South Africa toparticipate in the annualevent.“We are delighted to helpcontribute to the successof the event and wish theorganisers success with theirBatelco, Bahrain’s leadingtelecommunications companyhas invested millions ofdinars in recent years to delivertraining and development opportunitiesfor its employees.The Company considers its staffas its most important asset andaccordingly encourages eachemployee to avail of the manyopportunities presented by itsTraining Centre as well as opportunitiesoffered by externalorganisations.Batelco is proud to announcethat one of its employees,Ms. Enas Al Fardan, ManagerCorporate Strategy, has beenselected for the Global TelecomsBusiness (GTB) 40 under40 2011 list. This list representsyoung experts under the age of40 who are considered leadersof the telecoms industry in2011 and potential leaders ofthe industry tomorrow.Following her selection inBrigadier Ali Saqor Al Noaimi with Ahmed Al Janahiendeavours,” said BatelcoGroup General Manager MediaBatelco employee receives awardat international eventJune 2011, Ms. Al Fardan hasattended the GTB 40 Under40 Conference & Awards 2011event, held recently in London.Global Telecoms Businessannually brings together theindustry’s selected top 40 executivesto a summit to discusstheir views on the challengesand opportunities prevalentRelations Ahmed Al Janahi.“This sponsorship is anMs. Enas Al Fardan receiving her certificatefrom Mr. Franco Bernabèin the fast changing telecomsindustry.Mr. Franco Bernabè, Chairmanand CEO of Telecom Italia andChairman of the GSM Associationpresented Ms. Enas AlFardan and the other youngtelecom experts with awardcertificates during the two-dayevent. The Secretary General ofMadeline Deportoinseparable part of Batelco’ssponsorship & donationprogramme designed tosupport a wide range ofevents in Bahrain and promotethe Kingdom’s name overseas.”“The event serves to promoteBahrain as a sporting andtourism destination withfacilities that compare to thebest the world has to offer.The Montgomery designedcourse at Riffa is among theleading courses in the regionand reflects the high standardsthat the Kingdom strives touphold,” he added.the ITU, Hamadoun Touré wasalso in attendance to welcomeaward winners.Additionally, Ms. Enas Al Fardanparticipated in a discussionpanel, “Owning the Customer”,with her contribution beingvery well received by the organizersand attendees.Batelco General Manager HumanResources Bahrain SuhailaAlnowakhda said that Batelcowas delighted to have one ofits employees selected to beamong such a prestigious list.“Batelco’s employees receivemuch encouragement from theExecutive Management to availof opportunities to enhancetheir qualifications and skillsin order to develop to their fullpotential.”“We congratulate Enas andencourage her and all our employeesto never stop the learningand development process,”she added.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com39

MTN Nigeria, improves network securityand efficiency by 98 per cent with AdaptiveMobileAdaptiveMobile, the worldleader in mobile securityhas successfully completed amobile content filtering, antispamand anti-virus protectionproject with MTN Nigeria, enablingthe operator to protectits network and subscribersfrom undesired mobile contentthrough mobile handsets andmobile data-enabled PCs.The AdaptiveMobile NetworkProtection Platform is reducingnetwork load, protecting theoperator’s IP reputation fromthe growing threat of spamrelatedIP blacklisting and isreducing customer complaints.MTN is the largest mobilenetwork in MEA, and withover 40 million subscribers hasseen phenomenal growth inmobile Internet services.The collaboration withAdaptiveMobile is protectingsubscribers across all itsnetwork services to countercurrent and emerging mobilenetwork threats, as well ascombat the small number ofsubscriber numbers that werebeing hijacked by criminalgroups and used to send emailspam over the mobile network.AdaptiveMobile’s NetworkProtection Platform providesnetwork-based protectionacross a range of service bearersand is enabling MTN to:•• Drastically cut spam –AdaptiveMobile’s email andunique webmail filteringsolution is identifying 96%of email coming throughthe network as spam andblocking/quarantining asappropriate•• Remove MTN’s IP addresses••••from blacklists – the reductionin spam levels meansMTN is being removedfrom IP blacklists, enablinglegitimate users accessto services and improvednetwork speedsReduce customer care costs– the reduction in usersunwittingly sending spamacross the network andfreed-up network capacityis leading to a reduction incall-centre complaintsBlock access to illegalsites – users are protectedfrom unsuitable contentwhilst MTN is able to buildits brand image and meetlegislative requirements•• Identify the source ofviruses – AdaptiveMobile’santi-virus technology identifiesinfected handsets andPCs, enabling MTN to onsellsolutions to subscribersand make cost-savings onbandwidth“The roll-out of Adaptive-Mobile’s Network protectionPlatform is enabling us toimprove customer experienceand achieve significant operationalcost savings throughprotecting our network andour subscribers,” says ObinnaNweje, General Manager,MTN Nigeria. “As with manyoperators globally, the sharednature of mobile IP addressesmeans that attacks from unscrupulousspammers can havea huge impact on IP addressreputation and potentiallyresult in innocent subscribers’emails being unnecessarilyblocked.”“MTN is highlighting theAfricaCom Awards 2011 - Orange wins “Best New Service”Orange won the “Best NewService” award at theAfricaCom Awards 2011. Theawards gala dinner took placeon Wednesday, 9 November inCape Town, South Africa. Theawards are a unique annual celebrationof innovation and thehighest achievements acrossthe communications industry inAfrica. An independent panelof judges adjudicates.Orange won the “Best NewService” award for Surf & Pay,a service that aims to facilitateaccess to the Internet. Surf &Pay is a system for sharing andre-charging Internet access,designed for hotels and internetcafés that want to providetheir customers with Internetaccess using WiFi. It also allowsindividuals to share the costsof broadband Internet accesswith their neighbours, using apayment interface that is bothflexible and secure. Up to 20people can be connected to theservice, and each of them willpay according to the time andvolume consumed. The serviceis already availbale in UgandaMarc Rennardand will soon be launched inKenya; outside Africa, it is alsoavailbale to Orange customersin Armenia.Commenting after receiving theaward, Marc Rennard, ExecutiveVice President responsiblefor Africa, the Middle EastGareth Maclachlanvalue of addressing mobileInternet safety,” says GarethMaclachlan, COO, Adaptive-Mobile. “By using our solution,operators can differentiatetheir services for both consumersand enterprises whilstensuring a secure environmentfor their subscribers. Networkoperators across the world areincreasingly accepting a serviceresponsibility to subscribers,whether to protect vulnerableusers such as children, orto help corporates fulfil theirduty-of-care to employeesand it is organisations such asMTN that are forging the wayin keeping one step ahead ofthe criminals.”Tom Wrightand Asia at Orange said: "Webelieve that by developingproducts and services thatprovide widespread accessto the Internet and by offeringsolutions that are specificallydesigned for small andmedium-sized companies, wecan contribute to the economicand social development of Africaand the Middle East. Thisaward praises the quality ofthe work accomplished by ourteams in designing innovativeservices adapted to the Africancontinent.”40 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

now TV and ESPN STAR Sportslaunch ESPN Player exclusively in Hong Kongnow TV and ESPN STARSports (ESS), Asia's biggestsports content provider,have launched ESPN Player, abroadband sports network withlive and on-demand premiersports content, exclusively inHong Kong.now TV customers can nowwatch ESS’ stellar lineup ofsports content on this brandnew and innovative broadbandservice. ESPN Player aims tochange the way viewers experiencesports, providing userswith the flexibility to accesslive and on-demand worldclasssports content anytime,anywhere.In addition to the sportsevents broadcast on television,ESPN Player also carries otherexclusive content and extendedcamera coverage. Highlights oftop sports content available onESPN Player include:Top motorsports events in theMs. Janice Lee, Managing Director of TV & New Media, (right)and Mr. Manu Sawhney, ESPN STAR Sports’ Managing Director,believe the launch of ESPN Player will change the way viewersexperience sports.Formula One (F1), World SBKand the MotoGP. In addition,F1 fans can get closer to theaction for the first time witha "driver’s-eye view” from thecockpits of nine F1 drivers.Grand Slam tennis events in theWimbledon and the upcomingAustralian Open. Fans canenjoy unprecedented coverageof the two Grand Slam events,with the opportunity to watchadditional live matches not coveredon television, giving themcontrol to decide what, where,when and how they want toIvan Howatch their favourite players.Golf fans can tune into golfmajors such as The Masters,The Open Championship and USOpen on ESPN Player with theadditional cameras on the green.Viewers can enjoy multipleviews of designated holes suchas the celebrated Amen Cornerat The Masters and crucial sectionsof the golf course such asthe 18th hole.Ms. Janice Lee, PCCW's ManagingDirector of TV & New Media,said, "now TV is a pioneer inproviding the best sports viewingexperience for fans in HongKong, and ESPN Player providesan added dimension in oursports coverage of top worldclassevents. ESPN STAR Sports’Managing Director, Mr. ManuSawhney, said, “Hong Kong is akey pay-TV market with a highdemand for quality sports programmingwith strong potentialfor Internet viewership.PCCW Solutions and GS1 Hong Kong launch ezTRACKPCCW Solutions, a subsidiaryof Hong Kong’s premiertelecommunications provider,PCCW Limited, and GS1®Hong Kong, a part of the globalGS1 organization dedicatedto improving supply chainefficiencies, are co-launchinga cloud-based ezTRACKplatform which enables users togain visibility of entire supplychains and track and trace theflow of goods and productinformation in real-time via theInternet.Riding on PCCW Solutions’expertise in cloud computingand extensive data centernetwork, and GS1 Hong Kong’sEPCIS-standard (ElectronicProduct Code InformationServices) traceability network,ezTRACK provides comprehensivefunctional coverage acrosssix solutions, allowing enterprisesto improve operationalefficiency, gain greater businessintelligence, as well as maximizetheir competitive advantage andprofitability.The full suite of ezTRACKincludes:• Genuine Product AuthenticationSolution – Enablessupply chain e-pedigree visibilityto assist brand owners,distributors and retailers incombating counterfeiting anddiversion, while increasingbrand integrity and bolsteringconsumer confidence.• Cold Chain ManagementSolution – Captures realtimedata of food, wine andpharmaceuticals, includingtemperature with time, andlocation of products in transit,to control and monitorthe supply chain process, soas to ensure product qualityand consumer and patientsafety.• Item Level Tracking Solution– Uplifts inventory accuracyand visibility for both stockroomand sales floor thatspeed up the time of stockreplenishment to enhancecustomer shopping experienceand satisfaction.• Warehouse ManagementSystem – Enables producttracking and tracing from anylocation at any time, reducingoverhead cost and enhancingthe efficiency of stocktaking,as well as improvingthe accuracy of stock-outprocedures.• Retail Management System –Facilitates inventory channelmanagement and providesextended information platformto customers.• Consumer Behaviour Analysis- By capturing customers’consumption data, retailerscan effectively design andconduct consumer behaviouranalysis.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com41

Smart Handheld Summit 2011convenes in Dubai on 5-6 Dec in a time of enhanced adoptionof smartphones across the Arab regionTeletimes ReportGhassan HasbaniCEO - International STCArab Advisors Group’sSmart Handheld Summit2011 set to take place inDubai on December 5 & 6 2011at the Crowne Plaza Hotel,comes at a time where thenew and evolving landscapeof broadband enabled devicesis of paramount importanceto operators, content owners,broadcasters and publishers,according to regional researchhouse and summit organizerArab Advisors Group, a memberof the Arab Jordan InvestmentPiracy hijacks growth of pay-TVThe growth of pay-TVsubscriptions in the Arabworld is being held back bywidespread piracy, which coststhe industry an estimatedUS$500 million (Dh1.83 billion)a year.Of all Arab households thathave television service, just 8per cent pay to receive broadcasts,in a market dominatedby free-to-air channels such asthose operated by MBC.The proportion of payinghouseholds is expected togrow - but to just 10 per centby 2016, translating to just 5.3million pay-TV subscribers."We don't expect a stellar riseNayla KhawamCEO - Jordan Telecom GroupBank Group.Over the summit’s two days,delegates will interact withan impressive array of speakersthat include Ms. NaylaKhawam (CEO, Jordan TelecomGroup), Mr. Osman Sultan(CEO, DU), Mr. GhassanHasbani (CEO International,STC, Dr. Abdul Malek Al Jaber(Founder and Chairman, MENAApps), Mr. Rashid Al Ballaa(CEO, N2V), Mr. Tom Erskine(Director of Smart Devices,Nokia), Mr. Gustavo Fuchsin pay-TV. It is a slow, steadygrowth," said Nick Thomas, aprincipal analyst at Informa.Al Jazeera, which holds regionalbroadcast rights to theFIFA World Cup among othersports tournaments, is said byInforma to remain the largestpay-TV operator in the region,with 1.85 million subscribersforecast for 2016.The OSN Network, based inDubai, has 552,000 subscribers,and this is forecast to growto 995,000 by 2016.Pay-TV subscription is "veryuneven" in the region, Mr.Thomas said. "We see reallyhigh penetration of pay-TV inOsman SultanCEO - duQatar and the UAE," he said."And right at the bottom wecan see many countries whereit really is a niche product andwill remain so for the foreseeablefuture." One factorimpeding the economic growthof pay-TV is endemic piracy inthe region, experts say."Tackling piracy is important.And the lack of clear legislationin some territories is ahindrance," Mr. Thomas said.Ali Ajouz, a media consultantbased in the UAE, said theArab pay-TV industry losesup to $500m a year becauseof people paying to receivecheaper, pirated access toJawad AbbassiFounder & GM - AAG(Director, Mobility, MicrosoftMiddle East & Africa), Mr. FadiGhandour (CEO, Aramex), Mr.Nick Dimarzo (CEO, SaleCo),Mr. David Ashford (GeneralManager, AppsArabia), Mr.Mohamad Mourad (RegionalManager Gulf, Google), Mr.Hosam El Sokkari (Head ofAudience, Yahoo), Mr. MohammedAl-Mefleh (Director,Product Management MiddleEast, Research In Motion), Mr.Basel Tutunji (Chief OperatingOfficer, nPARIO), Dr. AmmarBakkar (Director of NewMedia, MBC), Mr. Fawzi Rahhal(Regional Digital Director,Grey) and Mr. Jawad Abbassi(Founder and General Manager,Arab Advisors Group).Saudi Telecom Company (STC)is the Strategic Summit Partnerof Arab Advisors Smart HandheldSummit 2011.The Smart Handheld SummitMedia Partners include;Teletimes International, DVVMedia, ITP CommsMEA, MediaMeand Telecom Watch.Nick Thomasbroadcasts. "In Lebanon[there] is 99.9 per cent piracy… $123m is paid to pirate operatorsevery year. So that's$123m that the pay-TV ownersdon't see, the rights ownersdon't see," Mr. Ajouz said."Egypt is estimated to havearound 10 million householdsreceiving illegal cable," he said."I'd say around $500m todayare not being recognised dueto piracy." Steps have beentaken to address the problemof piracy. OSN recently securedits network with an anti-piracysystem, which means thatonly legitimate subscribers canreceive its channels.42 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Sony to acquireEricsson’s share of Sony EricssonHans Vestberg, CEO - EricssonEricsson (NASDAQ: ERIC)and Sony Corporation(“Sony”) announced that Sonywill acquire Ericsson’s 50 percentstake in Sony Ericsson MobileCommunications AB (“SonyEricsson”), making the mobilehandset business a whollyownedsubsidiary of Sony.The transaction gives Sony anopportunity to rapidly integratesmartphones into its broad arrayof network-connected consumerelectronics devices – includingtablets, televisions and personalcomputers - for the benefit ofconsumers and the growth ofits business. The transactionalso provides Sony with a broadintellectual property (IP) crosslicensingagreement covering allproducts and services of Sony aswell as ownership of five essentialpatent families relating towireless handset technology.As part of the transaction, Ericssonwill receive a cash considerationof EUR 1.05 billion.During the past ten years themobile market has shifted focusfrom simple mobile phones torich smartphones that includeaccess to internet services andcontent. The transaction is alogical strategic step that takesinto account the nature of thisevolution and its impact on themarketplace.This means that the synergiesfor Ericsson in having both aworld leading technology andtelecoms services portfolio and ahandset operation are decreasing.Today Ericsson’s focus is onthe global wireless market as awhole; how wireless connectivitycan benefit people, businessand society beyond just phones.Consistent with that mission, bysetting up a wireless connectivityinitiative, Ericsson and Sonywill work to drive and developthe market’s adoption of connectivityacross multiple platforms.“This acquisition makes sensefor Sony and Ericsson, and itwill make the difference forconsumers, who want to connectwith content wherever theyare, whenever they want. Witha vibrant smartphone businessand by gaining access toimportant strategic IP, notablya broad cross-license agreement,our four-screen strategy is inplace. We can more rapidly andmore widely offer consumerssmartphones, laptops, tabletsand televisions that seamlesslyconnect with one another andopen up new worlds of onlineentertainment. This includesSony’s own acclaimed networkservices, like the PlayStationNetwork and SonyEntertainment Network,” saidSir Howard Stringer, Sony’sChairman, Chief Executive Officerand President. Mr Stringeralso noted that the acquisitionwill afford Sony operationalefficiencies in engineering,network development andmarketing, among other areas.“We can help people enjoy allour content – from movies tomusic and games – through ourmany devices, in a way no oneelse can.”“Ten years ago when we formedthe joint venture, thereby combiningSony’s consumer productsknowledge with Ericsson’stelecommunication technologyexpertise, it was a perfect matchto drive the development offeature phones. Today we takean equally logical step asSir Howard StringerChairman & CEO - SonySony acquires our stake in SonyEricsson and makes it a part ofits broad range of consumer devices.We will now enhance ourfocus on enabling connectivityfor all devices, using ourR&D and industry leading patentportfolio to realize a truly connectedworld” said HansVestberg, President and CEO ofEricsson.When Sony Ericsson started itsoperations on October 1, 2001, itcombined the unprofitable handsetoperations from Ericssonand Sony. Following a successfulturnaround the company hasbecome a market leader in thedevelopment of feature phonesby integrating Sony’s strongconsumer products knowledgeand Ericsson’s telecommunicationstechnology leadership. TheWalkmanTM phone and CybershotTMphone are well knownLina Al Desoukyexamples.With the successful introductionof the P1 in 2007, Sony Ericssonearly on established itself inthe smartphone segment. Morerecently, the company has successfullymade the transitionfrom feature phones to AndroidbasedXperia smartphones.By the end of the third quarterof 2011, Sony Ericsson held amarket share of 11 percent (byvalue) in the Android phonemarket, representing 80 percentof the company’s third quartersales. During its ten years inoperation Sony Ericsson hasgenerated approximately EUR1.5 billion of profit and paiddividends totalling approximatelyEUR 1.9 billion to its parentcompanies.Prominent models include ”XperiaTMarc” and “XperiaTM mini”which received 2011 EISAAwards, while recent notableadditions to the lineup include“XperiaTM PLAY” and “XperiaTMarc S”.The transaction, which hasbeen approved by appropriatedecision-making bodies ofboth companies, is expected toclose in January 2012, subjectto customary closing conditions,including regulatory approvals.Ericsson has accounted forits 50 percent share in SonyEricsson according to the equitymethod. Following completionof the transaction, Ericsson willhave no outstanding guaranteesrelating to Sony Ericsson andwill no longer account for SonyEricsson as an investment onbalance sheet. The transactionwill result in a positive capitalgain for Ericsson which willbe defined after closing of thetransaction.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com43

Mobile data traffic to grow 10-fold by 2016New report from EricssonMobile broadband subscriptionsgrew by 60 percentin one year and are expected togrow from 900 million in 2011to almost 5 billion in 2016. By2016, users living on less than 1percent of the Earth’s total landarea are set to generate around60 percent of mobile trafficIn its new Traffic and MarketData report, which provides insightsinto current trends, Ericsson(NASDAQ: ERIC) forecastsa 10-fold increase in mobiledata traffic by 2016. The reportis based on measurements thecompany recorded over severalyears in live networks coveringall regions of the world.Johan Wibergh, Head of EricssonBusiness Unit Networks,says: “Ericsson performs a broadrange of measurements in orderto monitor the pulse of the NetworkedSociety – measurementsthat we use to efficiently designour products and plan networks.This report offers snapshotsthat, together, show how agrowing number of people andbusinesses benefit from mobility,broadband and the cloud.”According to the report, mobilebroadband subscriptions willreach almost 5 billion in 2016,up from the expected 900million by the end of 2011.Thatwould represent 60 percentyear-on-year growth, at thesame time as the data consumedby smartphone users issurging. Total smartphone trafficis expected to triple during2011.Across all devices, internetaccess will continue to drivemobile traffic development andmobile data traffic is expectedto grow by nearly 60 percentper year between 2011 and2016, mainly driven by video.By 2016 more than 30 percentof the world’s population willNew Renault electric and ICE carsconnected through Telenor ConnexionTelenor Connexion has beenchosen as the Europeanconnectivity supplier for Renault’ssophisticated telematicsservices available on new Renaultelectric and fuel vehicles.Following the success with NissanLEAF, ”European Car of theYear 2011”, the Renault NissanAlliance has selected TelenorConnexion as its Europeansupplier of connectivity for Renault’snew electric and internalcombustion car models as well.The first new electric vehiclesto be connected are Kangoo ZE,Fluence ZE and the first ICE vehiclesconnected will be Kangooand Master. Telenor Connexion’sdedicated connectivitysolution helps Renault’s sophisticatedonboard unit connect totheRenaultGlobalDataCenterina private network environmentallowing Renault to provideits end customers with a widerange of services and information.This is made possible byseamless communication viacellular mobile networks in allof Europe, plus Russia and Turkey.Renault’s onboard unit usesthe embedded SIM technologyfrom Telenor Connexion partnerSierra Wireless, which allowsfor more robust, durable andbetter integrated connectivityin an automotive environment.The main features for electricvehicles include helping endcustomers to optimize the autonomyof their electric batteryby making it possible to checkthe battery status either byphone or computer. Electric vehicleowners will be able to spotthe charging locations availableand to plan a trip until destination.In addition, the telematicssolution will offer subscriptionsfor optional services such asremote diagnostics, fleet assetmanagement, road assistance,insurance telematics, and morelive in metropolitan and urbanareas with a density of morethan 1,000 people per squarekilometer. These areas representless than 1 percent of theEarth’s total land area, yet theyare set to generate around 60percent of total mobile traffic.Mobile broadband, new smartphonelaunches and applicationsuptake will continue todrive data consumption. At thesame time, there is strong momentumfor smartphone uptakein all regions. Ericsson expectstraffic generated by advancedsmartphones to increase 12-foldto roughly equal mobile PCgeneratedtraffic by 2016.Ericsson’s presence in more than180 countries, where it supportsmore than 1,000 networks, enablesit to measure mobile voiceand data volumes. The result isa representative base for calculatingworld total mobile trafficin 2G, 3G, and 4G networks.in future.“Telenor Connexion truly supportsinnovation in M2M andis the first mobile operatorable to provide a reliable andsecure connectivity solutionwith an embedded SIM solutionfor mass deployment inthe automotive market. Otherdetermining features of TelenorConnexion’s telematics solutionare their global coverage, theirproactive service awareness andtheir dedicated Service Portalto facilitate the management ofconnectivity”, says Ms. ClaudeDeulniau, IT Purchasing Managerat Renault.44 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Digital games play wellin the Middle EastSales of digital games suchas Angry Birds are forecastto soar to US$3.2 billion(Dh11.75bn) in the MiddleEast and Africa, partly dueto the high smartphone usein countries such as the UAE.Digital games include thosedownloaded or streamed onlinefor use on PCs, consoles,mobile phones and tablets.Sales of such titles in thisregion are forecast togrow by 29 per cent ayear, far ahead of theglobal average of 17per cent, according tothe research companyOvum.The firm's DigitalGames Forecast2011-2016 predictsthat the market forsuch games in theMiddle East and Africais set to grow from $900million this year to $3.2bn in2016.Mark Little, an analyst inLondon for Ovum, said thepopularity of smartphoneswas a major driver of digitalgames in the region. "Theincreased penetration ofsmartphones in the MiddleEast, and feature phones inAfrica, support quite a steepgrowth in games," said MrLittle. However, he acknowledgedthat growth wasforecast to be stronger in thisregion because it was startingat a lower base.Casual games such as AngryBirds, which can be downloadedon to devices such as theApple iPhone, is the primarydriver of revenue growth globally,said Mr Little."It's not just the hard-coregamer any more. Thosecasual-type games are findingtheir way on to phones …through streaming servicesand downloads," he said."Publishers are finding thatdigital distribution is deliveringa host of other benefits.These include boosting marginsfrom 20 to 30 percent on boxed games,to 50 to 75 per cent ondigital."Karim Sabbagh, a seniorpartner at the consultancyBooz & Company,agreed that the digitalgaming market in theMiddle East and Africawould "grow ahead ofthe global average".He cited reasons includingwider economic growth,the relative immaturity of thebroadband infrastructure, andthe large youth population inthe region.Munich Lord Mayor to open FTTH Conference 2012The FTTH Council Europehas just announced thatChristian Ude, Lord Mayorof the city of Munich, willaddress the audience of theFTTH Conference 2012 inMunich during the officialopening ceremony on 15February 2012. The FTTHConference is the largestFTTH event in the world.With both the Gold andSilver sponsorships alreadysold out more than threemonths before the event,its 9th edition in Munichis expected to be a worthysuccessor to the last event inMilan, which gathered 3,000participants. The event takesplace on 15-16 February 2012at the ICM in Munich, withpre-conference workshops on14 February. The FTTH Conferencewill exhibit the latestFTTH solutions, display howFTTH can optimize contentand application delivery,discuss the topic of financingEurope's next generationfibre-optic broadbandinfrastructure, based onsuccess stories including aspecific session focussingon Germany. The conferenceis under the patronage ofBitkom, the German FederalAssociation for InformationTechnology, Telecommunicationsand New Media (www.bitkom.org), and will donatea €3 euro "green donation"from each paying guest toGerman nature conservationgroup NABU (www.nabu.de).Steve Jobsnominatedfor 'Personof the Year'by TimemagazineThe computer genius Steve Jobs continuesto make history not only inthe field of computing, this time, Timemagazine nominated him for the titleof Person of the Year, marking the firsttime that the list includes the deceased.Brian Williams, a member of Timediscussion board which is responsiblefor nominating candidates, said: ""Ohthe places you'll go" and oh the wayyou will change forever the music andtelevision industries. So rest in peace,Steve Jobs. " For his part, Rick Stengel,editor of the publication, emphasizedthat it has never been elected to adead person as a person of the year.The Person of the Year title is awardedannually by Time magazine since 1927,in 2010, the choice was the creator ofFacebook, the popular Mark Zuckeberg.The list has included personalities likeBarack Obama, Bono, Martin LutherKing and Gandhi, among others."Soon we will release our survey tofind out who they think should beour Person of the Year 2011. And theofficial announcement will be unveiledin mid-December, "the publication saidin his official website. Jobs was whonominated Williams, a reporter forNBC during the meeting with the othersix panelists and the editor. In the listof nominees for person of the year2011 also highlights the citizen activistmovement Occupy Wall Street.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com45

EMEA enterprise IT spending set to fall - GartnerEurope, the Middle East andAfrica will see a 1.4% declinein enterprise IT spending in2011 at $835.3 billion, accordingto Gartner, while Euro-basedenterprise IT spending in the regionwill grow by 2.3% in 2012.Western Europe will continue toslow EMEA growth through until2015. "The second recessionis about to hit and CIOs mustdecide which way to turn," saidPeter Sondergaard, senior vicepresident and global head of Researchat Gartner. "The continuedglobal economic uncertaintyand the eurozone crisis willimpact your IT budget in 2012,and your business will face difficultbudgetary questions. Yourchoices will depend on whichgeographies you operate in,your industry, and the strengthof your organisation when theeconomic storm arrives."Sondergaard was speaking atthe Gartner Symposium/ITxpo2011, which took place through10th November. The IT spendingoutlook in EMEA has beenhit by falling economic growthin the mature economies ofWestern Europe. Austeritymeasures brought in to dealwith the sovereign debt crisiswill limit government spendingon IT in particular and hindereconomic growth, resulting inlower demand for IT productsand services from businesses,Georgina Enzeraccording to Gartner. WesternEurope, which accounts for 80%of EMEA enterprise IT spending,will see enterprise IT spendingin euros decline by 1.8% in2011 and grow by only 1.5% in2012. Government IT spending,including spending on education,will account for the largest shareof Western Europe enterpriseIT spending in 2011, at 20% ofthe total.Gartner predicts that this sectorwill decline by 4.8% in 2011 and1.7% in 2012, and that it will notrecover to the level seen in 2010until 2015. "CIOs must build arealistic budget right now to leadfrom the front, irrespective ofmarket growth. By 2014, CIOswill have lost effective controlof 25% of their organisation'sIT spending, and by 2017, chiefmarketing officers may have abigger IT budget than CIOs do.It is time for CIOs to take thelead and reimagine their role,"said Sondergaard.Alcatel-Lucent cuts full-year forecastamid economic uncertaintyAlcatel-Lucent lowered its2011 profit forecast and thecompany's third-quarter revenuecame in lower than analysts'estimates as the vendor saidoperators were more hesitant tospend amid economic uncertainty,especially in Europe.The company loweredits full-year 2011 operatingmargin forecast to 4percent, 1 percent below itsprevious target, which sentthe company's shares downas much as 11 percent.CEO, Ben Verwaayen saidthe company "is not at alevel we are satisfied with"and also said that amideconomic uncertainty, especiallywith European markets reelingfrom the debt crisis there,fourth-quarter revenue would belower than anticipated.To cope with weaker sales, Verwaayensaid Alcatel-Lucent willembark on a $691 million programof additional cost cuts in2012, affecting both sales spendingand project costs. "GivenBen Verwaayeneconomic uncertainties, we willtake more radical actions," hesaid, according to Reuters. "Youwill see us increase our effortson cost control and cash flow."Verwaayen said he is confidentthat the company' strategy ofcapitalizing on increased mobilebroadband demand--and the attendantnetwork upgrades--willpay off. Still, markets wererattled by the company'sdecision to cut its forecasts."This is not just a weakquarter," Thomas Langer, ananalyst a WestLB, told theWall Street Journal. "Therestructuring announcementshows that there may bemore structural problemsresiding in Alcatel-Lucent."For the third quarter Alcatel-Lucentposted a $268 million profit,up from $34.56 million in theyear-ago period and higher thanthe consensus of $79 million, accordingto analysts surveyed byBloomberg. However, the profitwas boosted by a one-time taxgain. Total sales slumped 6.8percent to $5.25 billion, missingthe analyst consensus of $5.53billion, according to Bloomberg.Alcatel-Lucent said revenue forits wireless division clocked inat $1.42 billion, a decrease of 3.4percent from the year-ago quarter.In a bit of bright news forthe company, it said that growthcontinued in the Americas, ledby its CDMA EV-DO and LTEbusinesses, both contributingto strong double-digit growth inthe region. Sales in North Americaclimbed 10 percent year-overyear,the company said.46 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

The Next Wave of DigitizationSetting Your Direction,Building Your CapabilitiesRoman FriedrichMatthew Le MerleMichael PetersonAlex KosterFor more than a decade,powerful new digital approachesto business, and life in general,have come on the scene, yetwe are now entering an evenmore rapid and dramatic periodof change. The phenomenonof digitization is reaching aninflection point. Three powerfulforces are driving the shift:consumer demand, the pushfor new technologies, andthe prospect of even greatereconomic benefits. Everycompany in every industry willbe dramatically affected, and itwill be the responsibility of CEOsto lead the charge by buildingthe right capabilities for theircompanies to remain relevantin the digitized environment,achieve growth, and fendoff competitive threats. Newtechnology deployments andrelated investments will add upto more than even the largestand most resource-endowedenterprises can afford. Trade-offswill be required, and the risks ofmaking the wrong choices willbe high. Unlike the technologyrevolutions of the 1990s and2000s, this time around thebasis of competition will be setby the companies that embraceand deploy digitizationin the right places at the righttime. This Perspective providesguidance to CEOs and theirmanagement teams about therelevance of digitization in theirrespective industries, and thefactors most likely to accelerateor decelerate the digitizationphenomenon. The judgmentsthat companies make now willlargely determine their relativecompetitive position for theforeseeable future.The Inflection PointFans of Disney movies cannow buy cinema tickets righton Facebook and invite theirfriends to join them at the show.Groupon customers receivecoupons for deep discounts fromall kinds of local retailers andservice businesses. Shoppersat Best Buy can ask Facebookfriends their opinions aboutspecific items they see on theshelf, in real time, right in thestore.Elsewhere, ranchers areembedding into their cattlesensors that send back dataon location and health foranalysis—each cow generatesabout 200 megabits of dataa year. Engineers at ThamesWater Utilities in London haveinstalled thousands of sensorsto monitor its water pipenetwork, reducing leakage by 25percent. Further afield, ZMQ,a mobile solutions companyin India, recently launchedan SMS service to deliverprenatal advice and remindersto pregnant women, for 1 rupeeper text. ClickDiagnostics, basedin the U.S., lets people in ruralareas of Bangladesh and Egyptuse cellphones to transmitpictures of their eyes andskin for diagnosis of cataractsand skin cancers. On a largerscale, Australia is building aUS$40 billion next-generationbroadband network to serve asthe basis for a future “smart”economy.The effects of anincreasingly digitized worldare now reaching into everycorner of our lives. Already, 4.6billion phones continually sendinformation on the location oftheir users to carriers. Ciscopredicts that connected Internetdevices will outnumber peopleby two to one in 2015. Upwardof 10 billion applications havebeen downloaded from Apple’sApp Store. Every day, peoplegenerate 100 million tweetson Twitter. Fully 79 percent ofworkers in Western nationscurrently depend on theInternet. The upheavals takingplace throughout the MiddleEast and North Africa owe muchof their power to the digitaldevices connecting people there.And 32 surveillance camerasnow monitor all activity within200 yards of the former houseof George Orwell, author ofDecember 2011www.teletimesinternational.com47

1984 and coiner of the term “BigBrother.” The push to build afully digitized world continues.The amount of data generatedannually is approaching 35trillion gigabytes. In the nextdecade, 350 million Chineseare expected to move to newlybuilt cities, each of whichwill require as much as $35billion in investment for smartinfrastructure. It is estimatedthat the CO2 equivalent of 53million cars could be eliminatedif the U.S. were to invest in asmart electric grid, while smarttraffic management could savean estimated 4.2 billion workhours lost and 10.6 billion litersof gasoline burned annually ascars idle in traffic. Eventually,1 trillion sensors will bedeployed globally in the formof “smart dust,” gathering anddigitizing trillions of gigabytesof information from the analogworld, and sending it wirelesslyto a growing number of “bigdata” machines for storage andanalysis. In short, though thecurrent degree of digitizationhas already given us a worldthat’s very different from theone we knew just 20 years ago,the coming wave will remakeour world all over again. Ourresearch into the behavior ofGeneration C—people born after1990 who are just now reachingadulthood and entering theworkforce—shows that the trendto global digitization will onlyaccelerate, shaping in earnestthe ways in which technologyinvades every aspect of our lives.Pervasive broadband, ubiquitousconnectivity, cloud computing,social networking, “the Internetof Things”—all are coalescing totransform how we work, play,communicate, socialize, anddo business. The digitizationphenomenon has reached aninflection point.That leavesCEOs with a stark choice: Beginto invest now in the internaland external digital capabilitiestheir companies will need todifferentiate themselves fromthe competition. Or sit back,watch the digital revolutionunfold, and run the risk of beingoutflanked by more forwardthinking,faster-moving rivals.Three Driving ForcesThe outlines of the fullydigitized world have long beensketched.So why are we reaching thiscritical inflection point now?The reason is that three drivingforces, acting in concert, areThe effects of an increasingly digitized worldare now reaching into every corner of our lives.powerfully reinforcingone another.ConsumerPullConsumers, and particularlyGeneration C, are alreadyfully adapted to the digitalenvironment. They expect tobe connected every momentof their lives, through virtuallyevery device, whether theyare consuming news andentertainment, reaching outto their friends through social48 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

The infrastructure backbone of the digitalworld is bringing affordable wired and wirelessbroadband to billions of consumers.media such as Facebook andTwitter, or mixing work withplay as they go through theworking day. Their insistence onthe right to stay connected istransforming their personal lives,and their willingness to shareeverything is changing long-heldattitudes about privacy. Theirtrust is shifting from wellknownbrands to referrals fromtheir closest friends. They areadvocates of many causes and atthe same time deeply embeddedin their social environments.In their world, knowledgeisn’t just power. It’s social andcommercial currency—and accessto it is vital. These changes areforcing companies to rethinkhow to manage their employees,who are already becoming lessemotionally attached to theircompany’s wider purpose andgoals, and who expect to beable to live their digital livesat work as well as at home.These trends are spreadingoutward from the developedworld, as new middle-classpopulations in every emergingmarket are being connectedto the global informationflow. The typical Generation Cconsumer now spends a largeportion of his or her day online,always connected, alwayscommunicating (see Exhibit1).Technology PushDigitaltechnology continues to makeinroads into every aspect ofour lives. The infrastructurebackbone of the digital world isexpanding into every corner ofthe globe, bringing affordablewired and wireless broadbandto billions of consumers indeveloped and developingmarkets alike. Three-quartersof the world’s population isnow connected through mobilephones, while digital cloudbasedservices gather moreand more data on consumersin every segment (see Exhibit2). In parallel with the“Internet of People,” low-costconnected sensors and devicesare being deployed in everyindustry. The developmentof cloud computing, and thevast information processingmachinery it requires, is wellunder way. As a result, thedemand for powerful real-timeanalytics engines to allowcompanies to gather and makesense of hitherto “undigested”information flows is risingfast, and companies aroundthe world are responding withnew technologies such asin-memory analytics devicesto meet that need. EconomicBenefitsThe third force drivingthe digitization phenomenonis the realization on the partof executives in every industrythat the economic benefits tobe captured are real. Though itis too early to quantify thosebenefits, a wave of capital haspoured into the new digitizationtechnologies and companies, andthe public markets are beginningto reward early movers withvaluations reminiscent of theyears leading up to the dot-combubble. An increasing portionof the $22 billion and the $20billion that U.S. venture capitalfirms and U.S. angel investors,respectively, invest each yearappears to be going into thesedigitization technologies.Recent transactions in thesecondary financial marketshave suggested that Facebookis worth more than $80 billion,while LinkedIn recently wentpublic at a valuation of morethan $3.3 billion, a high multipleover its 2010 revenues of $243million. On a national scale,the benefits of digitizationcreated through investmentsin broadband infrastructurehave been amply demonstrated(see Exhibit 3). Meanwhile, theeconomic cycle and globalizationhave exposed the weaknessesof large enterprises thathave so far failed to embracedigitization. They have alsosharpened the minds of CEOsregarding the need to furthercut costs and monetize existingcapabilities more effectively.Finally, increased competitionfrom around the world is forcingcompanies in every industryto contend with increasedcost pressures, transformingtheir traditional value chains,spawning new formats andnew business models, blurringindustry boundaries, and evencreating entire new industries.In response, companies areturning to digitization to providea competitive advantage andto generate growth. At thesovereign level, too, countriesand regions are acting toaccelerate the digitizationphenomenon. China haswritten cloud, connectivity, anddigitization goals into its 12thfive-year plan, which will includestimulus measures estimatedat more than $1.7 trillion. TheEuropean Union has agreed onan energy upgrade plan of morethan $200 billion, and the U.K.’snational infrastructure planearmarks more than $200 billion(see “The Age of the Dragon”).Dramatic EffectsMany of the ideas andtechnologies underlying thedigitization phenomenon arenot new; indeed, some havebeen around for a long time.Taken together, however, theywill create a degree of changeDecember 2011www.teletimesinternational.com49

comparable in scope to the greatindustrial revolutions of thepast.The specific effects ofdigitization on the world ofbusiness will be many andfar-reaching, but every industrywill be dramatically affected(see Exhibit 4).Business andCustomer InsightsEvery industrywill be the beneficiary of realtime,high-resolution businessinsights combined with theability to reach out to customersmore effectively. Informationon shopping habits, location,finances, social activities, searchhistory, securities trading,travel, medical history, voting,and advocacy, among others,is already routinely captured,processed, and stored at oneor more of the 7.5 milliondata centers now in operationworldwide. As consumersdigitize their lifestyles and aresurrounded by more sensorsand other devices for gatheringinformation, companies will gainunprecedented new insight—butonly if they have built thecapabilities to do so. Retailers,for example, will be able toadjust their in-store SKUs toaccommodate ultra-local tastesand preferences virtually inreal time.Another result willbe the growing use of criticalbusiness techniques such associal marketing, crowd sensing,and crowdsourcing. Researchersfrom the MassachusettsInstitute of Technology havepored over 16 million telecomcall records, analyzing call date,time, and position, and cannow forecast someone’s futurewhereabouts with 93.6 percentaccuracy. Johan Bollen ofIndiana University has analyzedmillions of Twitter messages todetect national mood swingsthat presage changes in theDow Jones Industrial Averageup to six days in advance.ProductivityThe impact onproductivity will be profound.Labor productivity will riseas a result of more targetedmanagement of workforcesand even more extensiveautomation of businessprocesses. Manufacturing hasalready been transformedin several industries, testingnow takes place using virtualprototypes rather than realones, and teams from variousfirms collaborate in the cloudon complex virtual designsof large-scale developments,seamlessly tapping into globaltalent pools. The productivityof physical assets will bedrastically improved through theuse of smart infrastructure, theintegration of physical goodsinto the digital world throughembedded wireless devices, andbetter investment decisionsthrough deeper analysis ofincreasing amounts of data.New Value Pools and ValueShiftsAs a result of gains inboth productivity and businessinsight, new value pools willemerge in most industries,together with opportunitiesfor major shifts in value as thecompetitive dynamics within andamong industries are altered.Three primary types of valueshifts will occur: Most of theshifts will take • place withinindustries, thanks to changesin market share or industrystructure, clearly separatingthe digital winners from thelosers. Laggards will be acquiredor merged. Consumers willgain substantially, • not justthrough reduced prices andmore attractive offerings butalso because of greater choiceand convenience, and evenlonger life expectancy, driven bydevelopments in e-health andother technologies. Digitizationwill also create the • next waveof growth in capital investment,which will flow to all kinds ofcompanies, includingsuppliers, whether hightechhardware and softwarecompanies, lower-techconstruction companies,professional services companies,or disruptive new players. It isquite likely that a great many“old” businesses will see theirrevenues come under pressureas they are forced to pass onto consumers much of theefficiency gains attributableto digitization. Publishers and“old media” companies, whoserevenues have been increasinglycannibalized by the rise of new,virtual services and businessmodels, serve as a case inpoint. Still, despite widespreadconcerns that new technologieswould destroy the overalleconomic value of the sector,that value has actually risen (seeExhibit 5). But the challengesfaced by the publishing industryremain a cautionary note toother industries that have so farbeen affected only moderatelyby digitization and the valueshifts that can occur as aresult. Altogether, we expectthat the ongoing digitizationof every industry will impactglobal economic value by $12trillion to $15 trillion in 2020,including market share shifts,cost improvements, pricedecreases, and new valuepools; this figure needs to becompared to a global purchasingpower parity–adjusted GDPof roughly $100 trillion and a50 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

total nominal global revenuebase across all industry sectorsof roughly $240 trillion in2020. Though this value is bynature highly speculative today,the estimate is in line withthe effects of previous majortechnological transformations.But the virtuous impact ofdigitization won’t be felt solelyin the economic realm. Aspeople depend increasingly onthe virtual world, the effect onthe environment will be real:The greenhouse gases thatcontribute to global warming willbe reduced, and scarce naturalresources will be consumed moresparingly. People will cut backon unnecessary air travel, datacenters will use energy moreefficiently, and newer machineswill make wiser use of water andother commodities. The benefitsof digitization will be broadlyfelt and will extend to all partsof the human footprint.Inevitable Trade-OffsDigitizing a company does notcome cheaply, and the larger thelegacy aspect of the business,the more disruptive the processof digitization is likely to be.Furthermore, in most industries,even the largest enterprises willnot be able to afford to invest inevery aspect of digitization all atonce. The CEO and the executiveteam will have to make difficultchoices about building andacquiring critical capabilitiesin order to capture the comingopportunities. And they willbe confronted by requests forcapital and resources acrossalmost every part of thecompany. R&D, innovators, andnew business owners withinthe company will demandcapital and resources for newdigitization initiatives. Managersof established business unitswill want to make much largercapital investments to transformtheir existing businesses throughnew, digitized business modelsand approaches. The executiveteam itself will want to makebold investments, includingacquisitions and partnershipswith promising or rapidlygrowing businesses. And everyfunction in the company willbe asking for the resourcesneeded to enable new businessprocesses and labor practiceswith new technologies. Thechoices the executive teammakes will require a deepunderstanding of how and wheredigitization will add value tothe businesses or disrupt thestatus quo. The key questions allCEOs and their executive teamsmust answer center on fourthemes:How will digitizationimpact • my current businessmodel and positioning withinmy industry’s value chain?Howcan I best identify and enterareas where value is beingcreated, both inside and outsidemy industry? What areas ofmy business offer new entrantsclear opportunities to disruptmy current business model, andhow can I best fight back?Whichcapabilities do I need to buildto be a leader in the field?Theanswers to these questions willguide CEOs and their executiveteams to decisions about whereand how to prioritize theirdigitization investments amongthe many competing options.A Question of TimingTo gauge which investmentsare most critical and in whatsequence they should be made,top executives must first judgewhere in their industry theearliest impacts will be felt.The speed of digitization willnaturally vary from market tomarket, and its adoption—andthe level of investment requiredto respond fully—will varyfrom sector to sector withineach market. Thus, executivesmust gauge their responseaccording to their industry,sector, markets, and currentcompetitive positioning in thosemarkets. We have developed amethodology for determiningwhich industries will be affectedfirst. In general, we expect tosee digitization move fastestin industries where barriersto entry are low, those whereinformation in some form oranother is the primary productor a key success factor indownstream activities, and thosewhose upstream activities arethe most information- or capitalintensive,providing dramaticopportunities for digitizationto reduce capital intensity andincrease returns to capital (seeExhibit 6).Consider the case of themedia sector. Since its waresare essentially informationgoods, distribution via onlinechannels has already becomemainstream—from CDs andDVDs to MP3s and streamingmusic and video, and fromnewspapers and magazinesto websites and apps forsmartphones and iPads. Thathas lowered the barriers toentry even more, as evidencedby the constant stream ofstartups looking to profit fromthe aggregation and distributionof content. And though thesector is not especially capitalintensive,the intensity of itsuse of human capital is veryhigh. That makes the sectorripe for cost cutting throughthe digitization of humanbusiness processes—a trendthat has already happened inthe automated aggregation ofnews content through crowdapproaches. Then considerthe manufacturing andinfrastructure sectors. Thebarriers to entry are typicallyhigh, and few companies ineither sector will be able tovirtualize the goods they makeand sell. Furthermore, givenDecember 2011www.teletimesinternational.com51

their long-standing investmentsin plants and equipment, thesecompanies will clearly havelower adoption rates for digitaltechnologies. But all thoseassets also make these sectorsvery intensive in their demandfor financial capital. As a result,digitization is likely to be usedprimarily to maximize return onthat capital. On the other hand,some areas of manufacturingare particularly informationintensive,especially upstream.In the oil and gas business, forinstance, exploration analysisuses massive computing andsmart sensor capabilities todetermine the right investment(and “digging”) choices. Andin the case of large-scaleconstruction, global teamsof architects, scientists, andengineers already work togethervirtually in the cloud to ensurethe seamless completion of theirdesign activities. “Every singleone of our teams is working inthe cloud,” says an executiveat a global software vendoractive in the field of largescaleinfrastructure design.“Manufacturing issues cannow be solved in a matter ofweeks, as opposed to monthsin a traditional model.” TheChinese government, forexample, is currently leadingthe construction of a nationalhigh-speed rail network—ineffect, the world’s largestdigitization project—which willhave digitally connected tracks,axles, in-carriage entertainment,on-screen advertising, ticketing,and infrastructure managementsystems.As these examplesdemonstrate, no industry willremain free of the effectsof digitization. Even thoseindustries that at first glanceseem less “digitizable,” such asmanufacturing and utilities, willgenerate significant digitizationbenefits due to their sheersize. Thus, companies in theseindustries, too, will be forcedto build new capabilities,and many will simply not beprepared with the leadership,culture, organization, and talentnecessary to respond. Regulatorsin many Western economiesare forcing the utilities sector,for example, to deploy smartmeters in hopes of improvingthe efficiency of power grids,which will also draw themcloser to customers, enablingthem to monitor demand andbill in real time. Yet manyutility players will struggleto embrace this shift. Andpharmaceutical companies willdiscover the power of gettingcloser to their end customers,especially in Europe, wherethey are currently barred fromadvertising or direct selling.Digitization also promises toenable them to build virtualcustomer labs, generating moreinformation about their productsand superior customer insight.Here, too, few companies arefully prepared to face the digitalfuture.The range of possibilitiesis seemingly endless, but the keyto success will be to understandhow digitization will affecteach industry first and with thegreatest impact. Only by doingso can companies accuratelydetermine which capabilitiesto build and prioritize whichdigitization investments tomake, and when. Absentan assessment of this sort,companies are likely to be facedwith making more investmentsthan they can afford, andmaking them in the wrong order.The Speed Of DigitizationDigitization has indeed reacheda point of inflection around theworld, but that does not meanthat the phenomenon will occurat the same rate everywhere,or that external events won’tspeed it up or slow it downin different industries andgeographies. To quote novelistWilliam Gibson, “The future isalready here—it’s just not evenlydistributed.” Top executivesmust decide what stance totake on the digitization of theirsector and whether to be a forcedriving the transition to a fullydigitized industry. For those whodecide to forge ahead, the keyquestion is where to focus theirattention. The answer rests on aconsideration of the acceleratorsand decelerators that contributeto the rate of change in theirindustry and geography. Definingboth the engines of digitizationand the potential stumblingblocks is essential to this task.We find it helpful to divide theforces affecting the speed ofdigitization into four key factors:society and culture, economicsand risks, regulation and legalconsiderations, and technology.Based on interviews withEuropean and U.S. players in theinformation and communicationsindustries, we have assessedthe potential accelerators anddecelerators in each of thesefour categories. We expectthis assessment to be globallyrelevant, although the relativeweight of each factor will varyby regional market (see Exhibit7).Society and CultureThe pushto digitization is being drivenmost powerfully by the newgeneration of end-users—bothconsumers and business users—demanding its benefits, includingever-widening social networks,ubiquitous connectivity, andconstant access to news,entertainment, and information.Already we can see the powerof digitization in the role ithas played in the upheavalsin the Arab world. And theentrepreneurial spirit is alive andwell, and contributing greatly52 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

to new digital technologiesand business models; theglobalization of talent will onlyboost this activity. At the sametime, however, both socialand cultural concerns remain.Fears of loss of privacy and thepotential for government abuseof the array of technologiesbeing made available will likelyincrease as the digital world isbuilt out. The growing senseof a digital divide between thetechnological “haves” and “havenots,”and the accompanyingfears of job loss, could alsostall the push, especially in lessdeveloped markets. Politicalissues, too, must be watched,given the likelihood of regionalbattles over turf and power, and“not-invented-here” reactionsto new technologies. Economicsand RisksA relatively robustinfrastructure is already inplace to support digitization.But the amount of investmentrequired to fully realize it isdaunting, both for the additionalinfrastructure needed and forthe services and applicationsto be built on top of it.Governments around the worldare contributing billions ofdollars to the effort.Yet problemsremain: Conflicting economicinterests have the potential toslow down further investmentsin infrastructure, potentiallyleaving much of it without thebandwidth and speed neededto support full digitization. Andrecent major malfunctions andincidents of theft of criticalpersonal and corporate datacontinue to raise questionsabout the risks involved inplacing too much faith in thereliability of the complex digitalenvironment. Regulation andLegal ConsiderationsThereis already considerablegovernmental and institutionalsupport for digitization,including regulations concerninghealth information and privacyissues, and laws involvingliability risks as they relate toinformation and networking, atleast in some jurisdictions. Manygovernments have also helpedpromote consistency in thecreation and use of technologicalstandards, and exerted a greatdeal of influence over the fairallocation of spectrum, for themost part. Uncertainty lingersover several of these areas,however. Spectrum is becomingscarcer, and its allocation willlikely generate fiercer fights incoming years. The debate onthe regulation of infrastructure,its construction, and fair usecontinues in many markets. Andvarious legal issues regardingliability—in the case of injuriescaused by automated systems,for instance—and ownership ofcontent rights remain largelyunresolved. TechnologyAnumber of trends in technologyare coalescing to promotethe coming transformation todigitization. We have not yetreached the limits of Moore’sLaw, and the cost of all kinds ofcomputing and communicationsequipment and devices keepsdropping. Meanwhile, theglobal implementation ofhigh-speed fixed and mobilenetworks continues apace,creating a geometric Metcalfe’sLaw effect as the value of theworld’s telecommunicationsnetworks grows in proportionto the square of the number ofconnected users of the system,dramatically increasing the valueof the Internet economy. Anddespite occasional setbacks,more and more users areadopting cloud services, a movethat is also promoting the fastercreation and adoption of highlyuser-friendly applications andprocesses. The globalization ofinnovation hotbeds—includingthe creation of Silicon Valley–like communities outside theU.S., in Russia, India, China, andSingapore, to name but a few—supports this process. Muchstill needs to be invented: Mostof the world’s infrastructureinformation is not yet digital,but scanning technologies aswell as “digital wraparounds foranalog things” will drive furthergains (see “Digitizing the High-Tech Sector,”). Knowing theaccelerators and deceleratorsaffecting the rate of digitizationin each industry and geographyis critical as CEOs and theirexecutive teams decide howto go about taking advantageof these trends. And while wewould not recommend standingin the way of digitization, itgoes without saying that anyoneseeking to retard the rate ofchange will also want to beginby making sure they understandthe factors driving digitization.CONCLUSIONWe expect, indeed hope,that a key conclusion of ourstudy—that the digitizationphenomenon has reached apoint of inflection and the rateof change is accelerating—willnot come as a surprise to theCEOs and executive teams ofmost of the largest companies inthe world. They have read aboutand seen the changes alreadytaking place in any number ofindustries, most likely includingtheir own. But what this impliesfor the decisions they needto make and the capabilitygaps they need to fill, givenscarce capital and resources, isonly now becoming clear. Thework we do across the globereinforces in our minds theimportance of first assessingyour industry, geography, andcompetitive position, andthen deciding on the tradeoffsregarding where to placeemphasis and where to hold off.Understanding the acceleratorsand decelerators of change is thebest way to determine how toshape the trend to digitizationto your company’s advantage.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com53

Prime Minister of Pakistan approves 3G policyPrime Minister Syed YusufRaza Gilani has approvedthe 3G (third generation) policyfor up gradation of country’stelecom sector and directed theCabinet Committee to bring thepolicy before the Cabinet for itsfinal approval.The Prime Minister accordedapproval while presidingover a meeting on 3G andGrey Traffic and AdditionalSpectrum auction for WirelessLocal Loop here at the PrimeMinister House. The Ministryof Information Technologygave a presentation onrecommendations formulatedby the Cabinet Committee,comprising Minister for FinanceDr. Abdul Hafeez Sheikh,Minister for Water and PowerSyed Naveed Qamar, andMinister for PrivatizationGhous Baksh Mehr andMinister for Petroleum andNatural Resources Dr. AsimHussain.The Cabinet Committee’srecommendations pertain toauction of 3G frequencies anddefunct instaphone licensealong with allocated frequencysimultaneously but in quicksuccession. To encouragecompetition, new internationalChairman PTA inauguratesTransworld's Data Centre In KarachiChairman PTA, Dr. MohammedYaseen has said thatPTA is fully committed to thetask of regulating, issuing newlicenses and to introduce newspectrums and technologies,but the private sector also hasan important role by investingin ventures. This he said whileaddressing in-augural ceremonyDecember 2011players as well as existingoperators would also be invitedfor instaphone license auctionbeing the sixth of the existinglicensee in the country and nota new licensee.Furthermore, it was decidedthat three blocks of 10 MHz(megahertz) each out ofavailable 3G spectrums wouldbe immediately offered forauction and existing operatorscan participate in this roundas well. New players willalso be invited but withprovision that if new playeris successful in bid, then theywould be eligible to resumeoperation only after March2013 when moratorium onnew licensing as per previouscabinet committee decisionwould expire. It was alsodecided that more spectrumwould be made available for3/4 G services and offered forauction with the provision thatwinners of such auction will beawarded licenses and allocatedfrequencies by March 2013 andas such will be able to starttheir services thereafter.It was also decided that inorder to ensure professionalismand transparency, a committeeof public sector stakeholders,including representativesfrom Ministries of Finance,Information Technology,PTA (Pakistan TelecomAuthority) and representativeof Frequency Allocation Boardto supervise auction processand the PTA would devise anappropriate methodology toconduct varying componentof this auction as decidedunder the supervision of thecommittee. On the issue ofGrey Traffic, it was decided thatthe Cabinet Committee wouldconsider this issue and put therecommendations to the PrimeMinister for approval.of Data Centre establishedby leading Telecom companyTransworld in Karachi, the eventwas attended by executivesof telecomm industry, mediapersons and employees of thecompany.Dr. Mohammed Yaseen said thetelecom industry has had tobattle a host of issues rangingContd. on page 61www.teletimesinternational.com55

“TIP for Success” - Empowering Pakistani youthIn Pakistan, we have enteredan age where people are wellaware of Information and CommunicationTechnologies (ICTs)empowerment but despite itsapparent advantages there is avisible deficient for large-scaledeployment of these technologies.The major reasons for thisare the lacking of investmentand liaison between academiaand ventures’ capitalists. YoungPakistani students are trying toreach out for new opportunitieshighlighting the fact that youthof Pakistan is talented and inpursuit to achieve excellence inthe knowledge based economy.Mohammad Ahsan, a computerinformation system engineeringstudent at NED developeda foot mouse. Initially footmouse was exclusively designedfor people with disabilities, butit is suitable for everyone. Itcan help users increase typingspeed and can also be used asa pointing device for gamers.Farhan and Shafiq are thestudents of Electronics from SirSyed University of Engineeringand Technology, Karachi whoinvented an amazing car whichconsumes Solar Energy as itsfuel; Pakistan’s First Ever SolarCar. Regardless of Solar Energythis car can be charged directlywith the electricity. There arelots of amazing features in thiscar but the most special featureis that one has to give correctpassword to start the car.It is a fact that 10% of thepeople in Pakistan are disabledin one way or another. Keepingthis in mind four brilliant studentsfrom Peshawar inventeda remote control car which ishighly easy to drive for thepersons who even just have oneeye and one finger.The invention from tremendousPakistani youth is not limitedto the aforesaid examples butis just the glimpse of our younggeneration’s talent and skills.These distinguished younggenius students are seekingfor manufacturer and investorwho can help produce theseitems in large quantity and alsomarket it.In order to uplift the imageof Pakistan as a technologyfriendly country, build theentrepreneurial ecosystem andthus bring more investmentin the country, ICT Global2012 is offering a “TechnologyInnovation Platform –TIP” tofacilitate the promising ICT studentsand business Start-ups inincubation (under two years)to accelerate their business tothe next level.TIP will provide a launchingpad to get recognition for theirbrilliant projects and meet withIndustrialists, Government dignitaries,ventures’ capitalists,research & development fundingauthorities and competefor an opportunity to win cashprizes up to 200,000 PKR aswell. TIP will be held concurrentlywith the ICT Global 2012(www.ictglobal.com.pk) fromJanuary 7th – 9th, 2012 at LahoreInternational Expo Centre.TIP has received full supportfrom National ICT R&D Fund -Ministry of IT & Telecom, PakistanSoftware Export BoardTMT Trends - Opportunities & ChallengesTechnology, Media andTelecommunications (TMT)will be a major breakthroughthat will transform social &economics dynamics of theglobe. Technological evolutionis at its peak and every dayadding new dimensions to theapproaches of past. New facetswill bring opportunities andchallenges to investors, regulators,operators and users.South Asian region comprisesof Pakistan, Afghanistan,Bangladesh, Bhutan, India,Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.South Asia contains 1/3rd ofthe World’s GSM populationwhich is far above than itsproportionate global population.During last decade SouthAsian region has witnessedhigh growth in the Technology,telecommunication & mediasectors separately. It is evidentthat convergence will be theoutcome of current technologicaladvancements resultinginto adoption of innovativestrategies to survive, sustainand thrive.4th Dimension is pleased toannounce TMT South AsianSummit, a technology, mediaand telecommunications eventfor the players of the SouthNaurin Sultana(PSEB), Azad Jammu KashmirInformation Technology Board(AJKITB), Punjab InformationTechnology Board (PITB),Pakistan Software HousesAssociation for IT & ITES (P@SHA), Institute of Electrical &Electronics Engineers (IEEE)and Small & Medium EnterpriseDevelopment Authority(SMEDA). Innovative Projectscomprising solutions forDistrict, Provincial & FederalGovernment, Technology Media& Telecommunication, Defense,Finance, Wholesale & Retail,Utility Distribution, Medical& Health Care, Engineeringincluding automobiles, Textile,Education & Academia can takeactively part in this competition.Young people enjoy tremendouspower in Pakistan as they constitute63% of the total population.In this context, TIP aimsto provide the Pakistani youthusing their innovative spirit torevolutionize their society andcommunities and the directionof the future course.Asian region. TMT South AsianSummit with the support ofmajor stakeholders will be anannual industry event. Theevent will provide a knowledgeand experience sharing platformamong the serious playersof the region. TMT SouthAsian summit will be a meetingplace for Investors, Regulators,Operators, Researchers andTechnology providers.The objective of this prestigiousconference is to enablethe decision makers and policymakers to take advantage ofthe emerging trends in theunfolding business environment.The conference wouldhighlight many opportunitiesand challenges associated withtechnological evolution andconsequent transformation inthe TMT Scene.A panel of experts on thebasis of quality and relevancewill review presentationssubmitted in the followingareas of emphasis. Acceptedpresentations will be includedin the conference proceedingsand author(s) will be invitedto present the paper in theconference at AuditoriumLahore International ExpoCenter.56 www.teletimesinternational.comDecember 2011

Muhammad Amir MalikPakistan Internet TrendsThe study determines and assesses the Internet traffic trends of Pakistan. The studyevaluates the usage trends of Internet users in the country to assess the preference forusing Internet as a medium of information, services and entertainmentInternet is an amazing communicationtool through itsopen architecture and globaloutreach. With the passage oftime, internet usage models havemoved away from being morepassive and static text drivencontent to rich digital content.User’s expectations of how theseapplications respond to theirinput however remains the same.They expect the experience tousers, an extensive exercise wascarried out by analyzing the Internettraffic of the country. Thedata has been gathered throughInternational and National Internetgateways been managedby PTCL and Transworld Associates.The results concluded bythe traffic trends are summarizedas follows.The trends of the usage arequite positive keeping view theinterest of the users in utilizingInternet for carrying out variousactivities as well as acquiring informationknowledge, entertainmentand social networking.The general usage pattern statesthat 38% of Internet usersbrowse for social networkingbe seamless, instantaneous andsmooth. It is inevitable that theInternet and power-hungry applicationswill continue to growunabated as more people moveonline.If we compare the ICT trends inPakistan, 72.4% of householdshave a TV, 65% population usesmobile telephony, 33.5% own acomputer whereas only 15.8%are accessing Internet. Over thepast three years, the beam ofthe ICT services in the countryis emerging due to the stronginfrastructure development. Themobile infrastructure and theFiber backbone in particular areplaying key role in attractingmore subscribers base. In recentyears, the application devolopmentand its usage in Pakistanshows high demand of ICT basedservices. The following chartdepicts the increase in this trend.Broadband subscribers in Pakistanhave touched 1.4 millionmark, compared to 900,000subscribers. In order to assessthe Internet usage trends of theDecember 2011www.teletimesinternational.com57

sites, 27% for educationalpurposes, 24% to access e-mailsand 21% browse the Internet forsearch purposes on daily basis.While analysing the top usagecategories it was found thatover the last 4 months, socialnetworking had been the mostbeen addded in overall Interentpenetration.In regards to browsing publicdepartment’s websites over theInternet, State Bank of Pakistanis one the top over last 4months. 22.42% of the Internetusers accessed its website whilepopular usage pattern followedby search engines, job hunting,online shopping and entertainment.The incresing interest inonline shopping is quite encourgingfor businesses to introducesuch services for the consumers.The following graph shows thenumber of website hits recordedat the Internet exchange pointsof Pakistan over the last 4months. The trends shows a upwardtrend while more users arewebsite of Pakistan InternationalAirline was accessed by22.35% of the users. FederalBoard of Revenue is presuming18.67% while Pakistan TelecommunicationAuthority attracted14.90% Internet traffic in thegovernment websites category.The search engine usage patternshighlights that 61.33% ofthe traffic was directed to accessGoogle search engine followedby Bing, Ask, AltaVista and AOL.Online banking is flourishing inPakistan as it reflects a 32 percentgrowth witnessed last year.Electronic banking (E-banking)is getting increasingly popularas the number and values ofe-banking transactions in thecountry have shown a significantgrowth in the last fiscal year.A total of PKR 124.6 millione-banking transactions wererecorded valuing PKR 13.9 trillionduring the fiscal year 2008,showing a growth of 25.4% innumbers and 32.3% in amountwhen compared with the fiscalyear 2007.Bank of Punjab is most popularbank website followed by BankAl-Habib. Other popular bankingwebsites include Muslim CommercialBank, Bank Alfalah andAllied Bank.Online editions of daily newspapersin Pakistan are among thetop visited services. Currently,Jang is the market leader with45.80% of compartive share onthe online accessed newspaperwhile Express emergingly followingthe Jang with a 30.20% ofcomparitive share. English newspapers including The News andDawn have 17.25% share whileother newspapers eneded upwith 6.75%.The fever of Cricket is one ofthe renowned characteristicsof natural enjoyment sense ofPakistani Public. The Internetflow conforms the true storyas Cricinfo the leading websiteabout all cricket activities acrossthe globe is the torchbearer withthe 41.45% massive averagedshare over the last year whilePublisher-Editor: Khalid Athar - Printed by: Javed Khursheed at Khursheed58 www.teletimesinternational.comPrinters (Pvt) Ltd. Islamabad. Place of Publication: #6, St-39, G-6/2, Islamabad December 2011Vol: 06, Issue: 12

social networking websites trafficof Pakistan on Internet whiletwitter is on the second placefollowed by LinkedIn and newlyintroduced platform of Google+.The impact of internet on educa-While connecting the previousdots, the future seems not somuch fuzzy. The future trendsroad map of Pakistan is stupefying.The current trends andchanging technology horizonsTen Sports website follows theCricinfo with 20.75% trafficshare. World Wide WrestlingEntertainment and Yahoo Sportsare here with promising 18.90%and 11.04% traffic shares.Currently, the Media is acquiringa prominent place in the internetusage as well. Express NewsNetwork is leading with 24.62%of averaged internet usage whileGeo Network is following with alittle margin and having an appreciatedshare of 23.84%. ARYNetwork is getting attention ofthe Internet users with 20.49%averaged share during last yearwhile Dunya TV network andSama TV network are having17.20% and 9.32% sharesrespectively.Gmail is the most popular e-mailservice in the country followedby Yahoo, Hotmail and AOL.Facebook, as a social giant withmore than five million users accountsfrom Pakistan and is with36.47% of the total share oftion sector in Pakistan is quitesignificant. Every major university,college and school is offeringvarious services to students andpublic over their websites.The trends shows that during thelast four months FAST websiteare the source of insight intothe future. The world is rapidlyconverting to a real role model ofGlobal village under the umbrellaof social networking, multimediacommunication and most importantlywith the usage of internetis on the top with 26.87% ofthe traffic. NUST is next in linewith 26.03% and LUMS hastotal share of 19.23% while GIKIshows 11.75% of the hits.Job hunt is among the mostpoular Internet traffic trendsin the country. Rozee.pk, thejobs search gaint, populated theInternet with 35.91% traffic inthis regard while joinpakarmywebsite follows the Rozee.pkwith 23.14% share.through wireless devices. However,social networking will evolveand get a proficient significancein the online life while the acquisitionof information throughsearch engines as a natural desireof human being will lead theinternet life as well. Jobs, email,Video content, local contentand other field of interest overinternet will get boom as welland especially more discoveriesare still to be loomed.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com59

USF all set to thrive in Telemedicine NetworkUniversal Service Fund (USF)has awarded a contractworth Rs. 59 Million to setuptelemedicine networks aroundRawalpindi, Karachi and Multan,using the already deployedBroadband Networks. Thecontract between Oratier Technologiesand USF was signed byCEO-USF, Parvez Iftikhar andDirector (Projects) Oratier, Zia ulIslam in the presence of FederalSecretary IT, Mr. Saeed AhmadKhan at the Ministry of IT.The project was approved bythe Board of Universal ServiceFund, in it’s 25th Board Meetingchaired by the Prime MinisterSyed Yusuf Raza Gilani in hiscapacity of being the Minister ofIT. The Prime Minister directedthat steps should be takento also include flood strickendistricts like Nawabshah, MirpurKhas, Umerkot and Sanghar inthe telemedicine network. Inclusionof cities of Bahawalpur,Rahimyar Khan, Rajanpur, DGKhan, Qadirpur, Shuja'abad Mianwaliand Kharian is also beingplanned.Through the project, USF aims todemonstrate that the Optic Fiberand the broadband networks beingfunded can easily be used forproviding e-healthcare facilities.Jinnah Post Graduate MedicalContd. from page 55from the rupee devaluation, theenergy crisis, the security situationand inflation which hasgreatly reduced the disposableincome of the common citizensof this country. However, theindustry has proven itself to beremarkably resilient and thereare some notable achievementsthat the industry can be proudof he added.Center- Karachi, Nishtar MedicalCollege-Multan and Holy FamilyHospital-Rawalpindi will beconnected with 12 remote sitesto set up three pilot telemedicinenetworks. Remote sites inthe pilot project include Thatta,Dadu, Badin, Nowshehro Feroz,Chakwal, Talagang, Murree, Domail,Vehari, Khanewal, Lodhranand Muzaffargarh. Each ofthese remote sites will providefacilities of digital stethoscope,digital derma-scope, portableultrasound, digital ECG and customizedtelemedicine softwareto the patients at their hometownsincluding video consultationswith the specialists sittingin the three main hospitals.As for the rest of the USF programmes,in broadband program,256 previously unserved townsnow have more than 334,000USF-funded broadband connections.Subsidy winning serviceprovidersare obliged to providefree broadband internet to allhigher-secondary schools, librariesand colleges in their areas. Sofar 943 such educational institutionshave been covered. In OpticFiber Connectivity Program,3,630 Kms of Optic Fiber Cableshave been laid through subsidycontracts which will connect 102unserved Tehsils with 6,523 Kmsof cables, mainly in Balochistan.To take broadband internet tothe villages, USF has launchedanother Program. A pilot projectof that program is also underimplementation aiming to bringthe most modern e-Servicesthrough broadband, down to thevillage level.Chairman PTA inugurates Transworld's Data CenterHe said that Cellular servicecoverage is one of the best inthe region; the cellular subscribershave crossed the 100 millionmilestone, there are multiplebroadband options available tothe consumer in every nook andcorner of Pakistan, there aremore than 1.5 million broadbandconsumers in Pakistanwith the industry doubling yearto year and 4 operational longhaul networks in the countrythat connect various cities ofPakistan. He said that with theincrease in broadband adoption,the need of the hour for Pakistanis to continue to improveits internet infrastructure. Headded that Internationally thereare two independent operatorsthat connect Pakistan to theAt this occasion, Secretary ITsaid that with such constantefforts, Ministry of IT willundertake more programmes inthe future for the promotionof telecom related services. Hesaid that he is also positivethat this fund will keep servingas a source of inspiration foreveryone.He further said that Ministrywill keep intensifying its effortsto promote ICTs for the sustainabletechnological developmentand prosperity of the country inthe future as well.Apart from Secretary IT, AdditionalSecretary IT, Mr. NadeemAshraf, Member Telecom, Dr.Ismail Shah and other high officialsof the Ministry of IT andUniversal Service Fund were alsopresent.internet and every destinationof the world. Transworld beingone of these.Dr. Mohammed Yaseen said thatTransworld’s new data center isunique due to its location andstate of Art Technology and newapplications and contents canbe hosted with minimum capex.Later he inaugurated the DataCentre.December 2011www.teletimesinternational.com61

December 2011Global Telecom events 2011-12CTIA IT & Entertainment01 - 08 Dec, Budapest, HungaryThe Smart Handheld SummitArab Advisors Group05 - 06 Dec - Dubai, UAEFemtocells Americas05 - 06 Dec - USACIO Midmarket Summit04 - 07 Dec - TBDMobile Advertising World06 - 08 Dec - London, UKLTE - Next Generation Networks Americas07 - 08, Dec - USAIndia Telecom 201107 - 08 Dec - New Dehli, IndiaSaudi Infrastructure Forum & Exhibition11 - 14 Dec - Jeddah, Saudi ArabiaITU Kaleidoscope12-14, Dec - Cape Town, South AfricaM2M World12-14 Dec -Venue: London - LondonJanuary 2012ICT Global 201207 - 09 Jan - Lahore, PaskistanWireless Symposium & WiExpo 201211 - 13 Jan - New Orleans, La.Roaming Congress MENA 201215 - 17 Jan - Dubai, UAEPTC 201215 - 18 Jan - Honolulu, HawaiiACUTA 2012 Winter Seminar22 – 25 Jan - Palm Spring, CAInterconnection World Forum23 - 26 Jan - Venue TBC(London)TELSA29 - 31 Jan - Riyadh, KSAFebruary 2012Cloud EXPO Europe 201201 – 02 Feb - Olympia, LondonITEXPO East 201201 - 03 Feb - Miami, FLSAT Expo Europe09 - 11 Feb - Lazio, Italy2012 NTCA Annual Meeting & EXPO12-15 Feb - Manchester GrandGSMA Mobile World Congress 201227 Feb - 1 Mar - Barcelona, SpainCABSAT 201228 Feb - 01 Mar - Dubai, UAEMarch 2012CEBIT 201206 - 10 Mar - Hanover, GermanyTelecoms Fraud & Revenue Assurance19 - 21 Mar, Venue TBC5th Mobile Commerce Summit ASIA 201220 - 21 Mar -SingaporeIPTV World Forum - London20 - 22 Mar - England, UK20th Convergence India21 - 23 Mar - New Delhi, IndiaEurasia Com27 - 28 Mar - Istanbul, TurkeyPacket Transport Networks 201226 - 28 Mar -SANA Lisboa, LisbonDecember 2011www.teletimesinternational.com63