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29 March 2024

Jordan tops Arab World's cellular market

Was Jordan's score on the Cellular Competition Intensity Index. (REUTERS)

Published
By Staff Writer

Jordan has been ranked the most competitive Arab cellular market according to the results of the Cellular Competition Intensity Index 2010 released by the Arab Advisors Group. Saudi Arabia came in second, followed by Palestine, according to the index released just before the two-day 7th annual Media and Telecoms Convergence Conference to be held in Amman from tomorrow.

The Cellular Competition Intensity Index results for June 2010 revealed that Jordan tops the score – as the most competitive Arab market – with an 80.7 per cent mark followed by Saudi Arabia (75.3 per cent), Palestine (69.3 per cent), Oman (67.1 per cent), Egypt (65.7 per cent), Morocco (64.9 per cent), Iraq (63.4 per cent), Tunisia (62.7 per cent), Yemen (61.1 per cent), Bahrain (59.9 per cent), Algeria (59.5 per cent), Sudan (59.4 per cent), Mauritania (56.8 per cent), Kuwait (49.8 per cent), Qatar (46.4 per cent), the UAE (45.4 per cent), Syria (38.0 per cent), Libya (34.3 per cent), and finally Lebanon (31.2 per cent).

The 2010 index results revealed that eight countries ranked higher than their June 2009 index ranks. These are: Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Oman, Tunisia, Yemen, Bahrain and Qatar. Meanwhile, eight countries ranked lower compared to June 2009 index, namely: Iraq, Algeria, Sudan, Mauritania, Kuwait, the UAE, Libya and Lebanon. The remaining three countries – Egypt, Morocco and Syria – maintained their June 2009 ranks.

The Arab Advisors Group had devised the Cellular Competition Intensity Index to rate and properly assess the intensity level of competition in the Arab World's cellular markets. The index takes into account the number of operators, packages, and services available in each of the 19 countries covered by the Arab Advisors Group. Each category was assigned a certain weight according to its importance as an indicator of competition.

The categories include the following: Number of licensed and expected operators in 2010; number of working operators; market share of largest operator; number of prepaid plans; number of post-paid plans; availability of corporate offers; availability of 3G services and the availability of ILD (International Long Distance) competition.

"In addition to having four cellular operators, Jordan has intense competition in the ILD segment and has the highest number of prepaid plans amounting to 24," Faten Bader, Arab Advisors Group senior research analyst, said. "Moreover, Jordan was the second highest (after Morocco) in terms of the number of post-paid plans which amounted to 37."

"Oman's cellular market received a score of 67.1 per cent in the Cellular Competition Intensity Index," Zeena Al Borgan, senior research analyst, Arab Advisors Group, said. "This pulled it up to the fourth rank compared to the 15th rank in June 2009. This was mainly due to the launch of MVNOs (mobile virtual network operator) in Oman. By end of April 2010, the market hosted five operational MVNOs, in addition to the two mobile operators, Oman Mobile and Nawras.