Number of mobile subscribers in the UAE fall for the first time

For the first five months of 2010 to end-May, the UAE recorded a net decline in mobile subscriptions by 64,091, according to the latest figures from the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA). This represents the first time since mobile telephony was introduced in the UAE in 1994 that mobile subscriptions have fallen month-on-month.

The area in which the decline was experienced the most was with respect to prepaid subscriptions, where 114,475 users were lost between January and May, with the number of active prepaid subscriptions standing at 9.6 million at the end of May, down from 9.72 million at the end of January 2010.

The number of post-paid subscriptions rose by 50,384 accounts during the period, crossing the one million mark for the first time in May. At the end of May the number of post-paid subscriptions in the UAE stood at 1.02 million, up from 969,005 at the end of January.

The 0.6 per cent fall in overall mobile subscriptions between January and May 2010 can be partly attributed to the reduction in the number of residents living in the UAE, given that the global economic crisis led to large numbers of residents, primarily labourers, being repatriated to their home markets during the course of 2009 and 2010. Labourers overwhelmingly utilise prepaid subscriptions.

In a recent article compiled by Comm., the impact of the lower number of residents in the country was also highlighted with respect to the commercial difficulties a number of mobile retailers have faced over the past 12 months.

The largest declines in overall active mobile subscriptions were witnessed in the months of March and April, where numbers fell by 22,143 and 101,899 respectively before rebounding in May by 58,121 subscriptions. At the end of May, the TRA counted 10.62 million active mobile subscriptions in the UAE, representing a mobile penetration rate of 198.5 per cent. These figures were down from a peak mobile penetration rate of 206.7 per cent reported at the end of November 2009, reflecting an active subscriber base of 10.74 million.

Despite the fall in active subscriptions in the first five months of this year, the country’s two telecom providers continue to report robust operational results. Du recorded 182,100 net active mobile subscribers added during the quarter to end-June, taking the total subscription base to 3.92 million. Etisalat on the other hand reported 7.8 million active subscribers at the end of June, up from 7.71 million at the end of March, representing half the number added by Du during the corresponding period.