The network sharing will be the key growth driver for Middle East’s mobile operators thanks to the growing demand for data and 3G services, said Mobiserve, a leader in turnkey telecom infrastructure solutions and engineering services.

Predicting strong growth for mobile operators, Mobiserve said the subscription rates too will grow substantially in the coming years, with Egypt emerging as the second fastest growing market in Africa.

Competition and financial pressure, however, has sparked a wave of cost-cutting concerns with operators striving to roll out networks while improving profit margins, said a top official.

'As a result, regional operators are increasingly looking to adopt solutions that have been implemented in the more mature markets of North America and Europe. This includes the concept of network sharing, where multiple operators can share a single tower or cellular site, reducing the cost of ownership and maintenance while increasing network coverage,' said Sameh Atalla, CEO of Mobiserve.
 
'By reducing duplication of the costliest elements of an operator’s network, cell sites, towers, base station equipment, and the transmission network, operators can deliver better services more cost effectively,' he noted.

'The resulting savings can be from 20 per cent to 50 per cent of an operator’s Capex and Opex depending on the level of network sharing without compromising end-user quality or the uniqueness of their offerings, Attala said.
 
“We see this as a growing trend in the region, having already built and begun maintaining a number of shared sites in Egypt and neighboring countries. Operators who recognize the cost advantages of network sharing and outsource to qualified solutions providers will see substantial opportunity in terms of growth and profits,” he added.

Over the past decade, Mobiserve has become the leading telecommunication infrastructure solutions provider in the region.

The company’s network infrastructure build out, expansion, and maintenance services enable an operator to quickly and cost-efficiently roll out services to subscribers in a country or region.

The Emirati company is the chosen infrastructure build out and engineering partner for a multitude of the region’s leading operators including du in UAE, Mobinil, Vodafone and Etisalat in Egypt, Djezzy and Lacom in Algeria, Mobilink in Pakistan, Banglalink in Bangladesh, and Tunisiana and Orange in Tunisia.