Mobile Capex Holding Firm in AME Despite Down Economy, Pyramid Research Says

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts - Strong subscriber growth and sustained levels of revenue in Africa and the Middle East will encourage mobile operators to carry on with their capex plans for 2009 and 2010, according to a new report from Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com), the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network (www.lightreading.com).

AME Capex Looking Up in Face of the Global Economic Downturn analyzes the three major factors that will drive capex investment in AME during 2009 and 2010 and investigates how the global economic downturn will affect each one. This 18-page report examines three operators in key markets (Turkcell in Turkey, Vodafone in Ghana, and Zain in Nigeria) that serve as real-life illustrations of the prevalent trend among AME operators to keep spending on network infrastructure.

Download an excerpt of this report here: www.pyramidresearch.com/downloads.htm?id=5&sc=PR060309_IAME1.4

Recent reports from global network vendors and operators have confirmed the inevitable: Global capex is on the decline, notes Dearbhla McHenry, analyst at Pyramid Research and author of the report. “However, spending in AME is holding steady so far - AME is one of only two regions that will actually see an increase in total telecom revenue in 2009, mainly due to the late development of the mobile sector and a recent move to address pent-up demand for mobile services in AME,” she says.

“Pyramid forecasts a similar resilience in its capex spending, due to the region’s ongoing unmet need for basic telecom infrastructure,” says McHenry. “Whereas capex in developed countries is driven primarily by service enhancements and operator differentiation strategies, capex in AME is driven primarily by the need for more capacity and coverage in order to keep up with organic growth of the subscriber base in many of the region’s largest (and poorest) markets,” she explains.

Increasing wireless broadband uptake and new licensing, acquisitions, and privatization will also bring new money to the region and help drive capex spending over the next two years. Furthermore, the list of operators interested in increasing their footprint in AME is still a long one. “Zain, MTN, and Etisalat are all keen to enter African markets while penetration is still low. Global operators, such as France Telecom, Telefonica, and Vodafone, have also realized that future growth will come largely from emerging markets and have turned their sights on Africa,” McHenry says.

AME Capex Looking Up in Face of the Global Economic Downturn is part of Pyramid Research’s Africa/Middle East Telecom Insider report series. Telecom Insiders are packed with trend analysis, industry best practices, market sizing and forecasting, competitor analysis, and case studies, providing you information you can leverage to make better business decisions.

Download an excerpt of this report here: www.pyramidresearch.com/downloads.htm?id=5&sc=PR060309_IAME1.4

AME Capex Looking Up in Face of the Global Economic Downturn is priced at US$595 and can be purchased online here: www.pyramidresearch.com/store/ins_ame_090528.htm?sc=PR060309_IAME1.4 or by contacting Jeff Claudino via email at claudino@pyr.com or telephone at +1-619-229-9940.

About Pyramid Research

Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com) offers practical solutions to the complex demands our clients face in the telecommunications, media and technology industries. Our analysis is uniquely positioned at the intersection of emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models, powered by the bottom-up methodology of our market forecasts for over 100 countries - a distinction that has remained unmatched for more than 25 years. As the telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network, Pyramid Research works with Heavy Reading, providing the communications industry’s most comprehensive market data, trusted research and insightful technology analysis.

About Light Reading

Founded in 2000, Light Reading (www.lightreading.com) is the leading online media, research, and focused event company serving the US$3 trillion worldwide communications market. Lightreading.com is the ultimate source for technology and financial analysis of the communications industry, leading the media sector in terms of traffic, content, and reputation. Light Reading’s research arms, Heavy Reading and Pyramid Research, provide the most comprehensive communications research, market data, and technology analysis in close to 100 markets around the world. Light Reading produces nearly 20 targeted communications events including TelcoTV, Ethernet Expo New York and Ethernet Expo London, The Tower Summit @ CTIA, and Optical Expo, as well as focused one-day events tailored for cable, mobile, and wireline executives. Light Reading was acquired by United Business Media in August 2005 and operates as a unit of TechWeb.

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TechWeb (techweb.com/aboutus), the global leader in business technology media, is an innovative business focused on serving the needs of technology decision-makers and marketers worldwide. TechWeb produces the most respected and consumed media brands in the business technology market. Today, more than 13.3 million* business technology professionals actively engage in our communities created around our global face-to-face events, Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat, and VoiceCon; online resources such as the TechWeb Network, Light Reading, Intelligent Enterprise, InformationWeek.com, bMighty.com, and The Financial Technology Network; and the market leading, award-winning InformationWeek, TechNet Magazine, MSDN Magazine, and Wall Street & Technology magazines. TechWeb also provides end-to-end services including next-generation performance marketing, integrated media, research, and analyst services. TechWeb is a division of United Business Media, a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than US$2.5 billion.

*13.3 million business decision-makers: based on number of monthly connections

About United Business Media Limited

UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information distribution, targeting and monitoring; and, the development and monetization of B2B communities and markets. UBM’s businesses inform markets and serve professional commercial communities - from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists - with integrated events, online, print and business information products. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, bringing buyers and sellers together, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently. For more information, go to www.unitedbusinessmedia.com.

Press contact: Jennifer Baker +1-617-871-1910 jbaker@pyr.com

Source: Pyramid Research

Jennifer Baker, +1-617-871-1910, jbaker at pyr.com