Support where it is needed

In 2011 Ericsson counted 12 managed services contracts in the region and 70 million subscribers under management at the end of the year. The demand for such services underlies an increasing awareness by service providers to be first-to-market with products and services as well as the cost savings inherent in well-planned and implemented efficiency drivesStaffan Akesson_2 (853x1280)

Akesson says service providers are focussed on business innovation through the development of new vertical markets to address

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Maximum data

The demand for broadband data across Africa continues unabated, and in Zimbabwe one of the first of a dozen licensed Internet access providers, Dandemutande Investments’ Umax, launched service in June promising a wholly differentiated offering to what consumers have so far been used toHarare

Zimbabwe’s capital Harare has seen a dramatic rise in broadband investment and coverage, both wireless and wireline, in recent years

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Towering ambition

Africa has been at the centre of a growing number of tower sale and lease-back announcements in recent years, with such arrangements typically involving the sale of the passive elements of network operators’ infrastructure. Initially it appeared to be an emerging business model that benefitted all parties, though the recent insolvency issues of some tower operators raises questions whether the model is as compelling in the long-term as it was initially made out to bePic 2 - Issam Darwish

IHS’ Darwish suggests selling and leasing back towers offers significant cost savings, as the operator no longer has to incur the cost of running infrastructure

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Delivering on the vision

Qatar National Broadband Network (Q.NBN) is a private company owned by the government of Qatar and charged with the responsibility to roll out passive fibre infrastructure across the country. Given the Qatar’s ambitious digital plans, which are summarised under the Qatar ICT Strategy 2015 and further articulated through the Qatar National Vision 2030, Q.NBN is playing a critical and pioneering role with respect to public-private partnership ICT infrastructure investments in the GulfQ.NBN CEO

Mohammed Al Mannai, CEO of Q.NBN has more than 13 years of experience in network planning, deployment and optimisation with Qtel, where he most recently served as senior director for Network Design and Rollout

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Price vs. value

Despite a stock market share price that is languishing at more than 30 per cent below the level it listed on the Oman bourse in November 2010, Nawras continues to be an energetic operator that is looking to maximise the opportunities data usage represents. Through the leveraging of its various access technologies and the bundling of products and services, Nawras continues to expand its base of operations, believing such a focus will generate the necessary good results Pic 1 - Nawras - Ross Cormack CEO

Cormack freely admits that the competitive landscape in Oman has become more aggressive in the last few years, not least through the presence of value-focussed resellers together with the omnipresence of a well-entrenched incumbent

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