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Editorial
The year 2009 has been yet another progressive year for SAMENA. After a successful Istanbul conference, we went on to formally launch a new workgroup within SAMENA, the SAMENA International Roaming Group (SIRG).

The aim of the new group, in essence, is to lead the creation of an industry-wide consensus among the SAMENA region’s mobile operators to address the issue of international roaming rates before an external regulation requires that specific price caps be placed on both voice and data roaming calls. Our Roaming Group seeks to assist operators to make networks and network-based services more consumer-friendly and responsive. The Group intends to lead first by following the free-market principles.

Upcoming Activities

Regulatory Summit 2010
January or February 2010 (date to be confirmed)
Four Seasons Hotel,
Riyadh - KSA

Broadband Workshop 2010
22nd - 23rd February 2010
Ritz Carlton,
Manama - Bahrain

Beyond Connectivity 2010
20th & 21St April 2010,
Royal Plaza,
Beirut, Lebanon

SAMENA Past Events

Past Key 2009 Activities
Convergence to Istanbul
3rd, 4th & 5th November, 2009
Istanbul,
Turkey.

Beyond Connectivity 2009
Broadband Wireless Summit 2009
Riyadh Regulatory Summit 2009

SAMENA Output (available to members)

  1. Two more sections (SIRG Watch and Mobile Content) added to the Daily news update, available to subscriber and members

  2. Regional Operator Updates 2009

  3. SAMENA Awards 2009 research on regional organizations

  4. Broadband surveys

  5. Broadband study (under finalization)

  6. Visions 2010 (under finalization)

  7. Recent Regulatory Updates newsletters

  8. 3G WCDMA global map available. (Broadband and WiMAX maps in progress)

  9. “Visions 2008”: Research reference guide on regional telecommunications and beyond, published in 2008.

  10. “Current Facts & Regulatory Updates 2007”, SAMENA’s first publication (next edition expected this year)

  11. Technology research, titled “WiMAX, iBurst and TETRA –A multi-parameter comparison”, produced for and delivered to Omantel.

  12. Research, titled “Threats and Opportunities of Disruptive Technologies”, produced for and delivered to Omantel.

  13. Research, titled “Choosing to Co-brand with Vodafone: Things to Consider”, produced and delivered to SAMENA affiliates.

  14. Internal research report, titled “Pakistan: Telecom Operators’ Info”.

  15. Internal research report, titled “Stats & Info on Datacom Products and Market Shares”.

  16. Research, titled “Dell Resellers and Distributors in the US”, produced for and delivered to Teralight.

  17. Internal research report, titled “The Current Status of FTTH”.

  18. Internal research, titled “Mobile TV and CITC Information – Saudi Arabia”.

  19. Research report, titled “MVNOs & Relevant Info on the SAMENA Region”, produced and delivered to Teralight.

  20. Research, titled “The MVNO Viewpoint for Egypt”, produced for SAMENA.

  21. Internal research, “Seamless Roaming: The Zain Issue”, produced for SAMENA.

  22. Internal research, “Recent Regulatory Updates – Oct – Nov 2008”.

  23. Research, titled “Satellite Launchings in the SAMENA Region”, produced for and delivered to Inmarsat.

  24. Internal research, titled “Problems in the Distribution of Scratch Cards in Pakistan, drafted for Teralight.

  25. Research, titled “VSAT Opportunities in the Mideast & Saudi Arabia”.

  26. Research, titled “Major WiMAX providers and examples of WiMAX partnerships”, produced for and delivered to Inmarsat.

  27. Research, titled “Key Technology Definitions”, produced for and delivered to PTCL.

Regulatory Advisor

Regional & Member News

  • Wataniya Palestine launches West Bank network  

  • Qtel wins Corporate Treasury Deal of the Year in Middle East  

  • Phase3 updates international fiber-optic launch plans  

  • Sudatel launches HSDPA network  

  • ZTE wins Unitech GSM infrastructure contract  

  • Etisalat installs 105 mobile sites for Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix  

  • Nokia Siemens, Neusoft Enhance JV To Target 3G Opportunities  

  • Alcatel-Lucent has signed 2 multi million Euro contracts in Libya with LPTIC telecom  

  • Du partners with Eurosport to launch Eurosport Arabia  

  • Huawei, Hutchison CP Telecommunications Deploy ngHLR in Indonesia  

Regulatory Corner

  • ictQATAR establishes National Numbering Committee  

  • Telecom authority seeks bids to connect interiors  

  • Gateway awarded Kenya licenses

  • TRA Bahrain sets the regulated rate of return applicable to the regulated telecommunications services of Batelco and Zain at 9.5%

Regional Performance

  • SAMENA WLL Market

  • SAMENA Mobile Market

  • SAMENA Fix-Line market

   

Top Technology Updates

  • Motorola unveils new design for WiMAX base stations to tackle major building and powering expenses

  • MBO Video and 180SQUARED unveil world`s first IPTV Managed Cloud Service

  • 3S PHOTONICS achieves 20 Gbps transmission test of 1915 LMA laser module

  • On-Demand Gigabit-class video transmission successfully proven on testbed network

  • Ruckus Wireless comes up with new Wi-Fi based Wireless Broadband Access solution

  • Fujitsu Introduces XG2600 10-Gigabit Ethernet Solution

  • LANCOM VPN client now available for Windows 7

  • Networking vendors demo 100 Gigabit per second throughput

Featured Articles

Emerging Markets: The Issue of Monitoring Communications
Monitoring of consumer communications, a restrictive approach and which, typically, bears politically motivated undertones, has been one of the latest subjects to have come under discussion within the telecoms and the ICT industry in the emerging markets. Based on a review of dynamics of some pertinent developing markets, it appears that the rationales behind monitoring communications differ.

“Convergence to Istanbul 2009”
An opportunity for all stakeholders to assess the pace at which the marketplace is advancing and how evaluating organizational assets and goals has become inevitable, SAMENA’s Convergence to Istanbul 2009 conference was held in Turkey on November 4th through November 5th.

RF Health Corner

More on Mobile Phones and Radiation Concerns

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SAMENA Insight contains information based on data and content retrieved from sources deemed trustworthy by SAMENA.Professional discretion should be used in assessing the usefulness of this information. SAMENA publishes this newsletter in both electronic and hardcopy formats. Please contact us to learn more or to contribute.Design and content by SAMENA Market Research Team.
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