Telecommunications Insight RSS Feed

Pay-TV Joins WiMAX And Fibre Broadband In TTK's Expansion Plans (Emerging Europe Telecommunications Insight)

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Russian long-distance telecommunications operator Transtelecom (TTK) has revealed that pay-TV services will form a cornerstone of its ambitious expansion plans for 2012, building on efforts to reach rural and underserved Russian cities with fibre-optic cable and WiMAX-based broadband connections. The plans will require significant investment and, while TTK can leverage its pan-Russian footprint, BMI cautions that it will be targeting markets with low disposable incomes and will compete with large well-known brands for comparatively few potential customers.

Sonda SA (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Sonda SA is Chile's largest information technology company. It specialises in three main areas: platforms, IT services and applications. Founded in 1974, it has a presence in nine countries in Latin America, with more than 1,000 cities covered. It has close to 11,000 employees in the region, half of which work in Brazil.

Europe Risk/Reward Ratings (Western Europe Telecommunications Insight)

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Europe's IT Risk/Reward Ratings remain largely stable, as markets in the region hold many of the same characteristics and face many similar challenges. Western European markets dominate the top of our ratings owing to their larger addressable markets and economies. Nevertheless, the growth opportunities in emerging Europe maintain these markets' appeal to investors. The ongoing eurozone crisis continues to affect all markets, although some are better protected than others.

Sprint M2M Goes Global With Orange Business Services (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Sprint Nextel, the third largest operator in the US, has secured a roaming agreement with France Télécom's Orange Business Services for the provision of machine-to-machine (M2M) services. The agreement will enable Sprint to provide M2M connectivity in 180 countries. BMI considers the agreement to be of benefit to Sprint as it counters its previous competitive disadvantage in the M2M market against rivals with global reach able to offer seamless international connectivity.

Virgin Mobile Prepares To Take On Latin America (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Virgin Mobile Latin America is making strong progress in its Latin American expansion plans. Chile will be the first country in which Virgin will launch, in March 2012, and BMI expects to see similarities across the region in terms of product and target market. However, it has opted for a slightly different strategy in its Colombian and Brazilian launches, selecting local partners to assist with rollouts. BMI believes Virgin is set for strong growth in the market, and believes it will have a significant positive effect on market dynamics in Latin America. However, the rapid international rollout schedule heightens the risk of costly errors.

Windows Phone 8 Echoes Apple's Path To Success (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Microsoft is reportedly optimising its upcoming Windows Phone 8 (WP8) operating system (OS) for at least four different display resolutions and six different form factors. A presentation delivered to the Nokia World conference by the general manager of the Windows Phone Design Studio included a slide that appeared to show six different permutations of WP8-powered devices, including what appears to be a tablet PC and, most intriguingly, a small, square-shaped touch-screen device reminiscent of Apple's popular iPod nano media players. Increased diversity in terms of display and form factor will certainly help WP8 gain traction among connected device owners and could well prove to be Nokia's salvation, BMI believes.

Multimedia Polska Acquisition Of Strategic Value To Several Operators (Emerging Europe Telecommunications Insight)

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Consolidation in the Polish cable market looks set to continue as local press reports state that Multimedia Polska has selected JP Morgan as advisors for a potential sale. The sale would closely follow the recent acquisition of Aster by cable market leader UPC Polska, completed in January 2012. BMI considers the opportunities and risks for potential bidders for Multimedia Polska, and the wider impact on the market.

Investment Expected But Uncertainties Abound (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Digitel revealed in February 2012 that it is to invest US$150mn to expand the capacity of its 3G network. This is a positive sign for the Venezuelan market, which is suffering a dearth of investment as economic circumstances deteriorate. However, BMI believes Digitel faces tough challenges in 2012, with limits on imports likely to severely hamper the company's growth potential. However, rivals Telefónica and Movilnet face problems of their own. Here, we examine the outlook for the mobile market's two privately owned operators.

Scailex To Exit Partner As Sawiris Eyes Market (Middle East & Africa Telecommunications Insight)

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

Scailex Corporation is reviewing its options with regards to its controlling investment in Israeli mobile network operator Partner Communications. The 44.5% stake is considered to be worth approximately US$590mn, based on Partner's current share price. The investors in Scailex also have direct minority stakes in Partner. These too could be sold, potentially giving the new investor nearly 51% ownership of the company. This may be more than enough to pique the interest of Egyptian telecoms tycoon Naguib Sawiris, who has announced plans to return to the merger and acquisition field after selling key parts of his business in 2011.

2G Licence Cancellations: Thoughts And Implications (Asia Pacific Telecommunications Insight)

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

BMI View: The Indian telecoms industry is experiencing another major shakeup after the Supreme Court cancelled in early February all 122 2G licences that were issued under the purview of former telecoms minister A Raja in 2008. While the decision is a clear sign that the government is trying to eradicate the problem of corruption and improve policy transparency, it also has wide ranging implications on foreign investor confidence in the telecoms sector and related industries in the near term.

Time For Green Technologies To Blossom (Asia Pacific Telecommunications Insight)

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

BMI View: Telecoms operators in emerging markets rely heavily on diesel generators to power their base transceiver stations (BTS) in both urban and rural regions (more so in the latter) due to inadequate power grid infrastructure coverage and unreliable energy supply. While diesel-powered BTS are relatively cheap to set up, the legacy technology carries downsides such as an exposure to oil price fluctuations and environmental pollution, which is a growing global concern as seen by the increasing number of carbon taxes being introduced (most recent notable example is Australia's carbon tax law, which will be imposed on the country's top 500 polluters beginning July). We believe that there should be a greater push for green technologies (renewable and energy-efficient) in the telecoms industry to reduce long-term operating costs, which are expected to surge as operators expand network coverage via wireless means.

SAP Strengthened By Strong Software Sales In Latin America (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

German IT giant SAP has revealed that Latin American software revenue growth outpaced global growth in 2011. The company recorded software sales growth of 22%, compared with 17% globally. In software related services, growth totalled 19%, higher than the global average of 13%. BMI believes this pattern should continue as enterprises seek efficiency gains and improved productivity in the face of growing competition.

Mexican Market Reform Unlikely To Yield Major Changes (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00 GMT

A new report by the OECD has found that Mexico needs to quickly reform its telecoms sector in order to boost competition and investment. The report identified a number of key areas where the Mexican market requires improvements, including decreasing barriers to entry, increasing transparency of regulatory processes and reform regulations to promote competition and efficiency. The Communications and Transport minister reacted by proposing 10 measures to improve the regulatory agenda. While BMI welcomes the renewed attention to the problems in the market, we hold doubts about how much change we will see in the competitive environment in the short and medium term.

Mobile Telephony To Become More Affordable For Cubans (Americas Telecommunications Insight)

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00 GMT

On February 1 2012, two reforms to lower the cost of mobile telephony will be put into practice. Firstly, the cost of sending SMS messages is to fall by 46%, and secondly, charges for receiving telephone calls on mobile telephones will be eliminated. BMI is optimistic that these reforms will encourage more Cubans to use mobile telephones. Additionally, we believe other economic and political reforms are currently being passed in the country and this will help increase incomes for the average Cuban. This will, indirectly, have positive effects on mobile penetration rates. However, we note that the country continues to lag behind its regional peers in terms of technological and economic development by a significant margin and will continue to do so throughout our forecast period to 2016.

Nintendo Struggling In Changing Gaming Market (Asia Pacific Telecommunications Insight)

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00 GMT

Nintendo has reported a net loss of JPY48.351bn (US$631mn) for the nine months ended December 31 2011 as the Japanese gaming console maker continue to struggle to cope with weak consumer demand for its home console and new handheld gaming system. The short-term outlook remains bleak as the firm has also revised down its full-year earnings forecasts for the year ending March 2012, and it envisages its net loss to widen by three-fold. While Nintendo's troubles could be attributed to the ascendency of smartphones and tablet computers, which has eroded the firm's dominance in the casual gaming industry, another factor is Nintendo's slow reaction to the rapidly changing environment.