Week In Review: Week ending on Saturday, the 12th of July, 2008
July 13, 2008
There’s been so much going on this past week in IT and T, we’ve hardly had time to put it all together! But of course you know that’s not true, because here’s a look at this past week! (haha! We almost made a funny there!) [Read more]
Week In Review: Week ending on Saturday, the 7th of June, 2008
June 9, 2008
Boy what a week this has been! Everything but the kitchen sink and lota seemed to be getting thrown at the local sector! Companies in the Evacuee Trust Complex in Islamabad received eviction notices the board, which asked all companies to clear the premises within seven days. The notice, which was sent on 23rd of May, was received by all the companies on the 27th of May, when all hell unleashed in Islamabad.
IT sector discouraged this act and called it illegal. The building had been officially designated as an IT Park in 2001. P@SHA and other companies arranged meetings with government secretariat but the problem has not resolved itself yet.
The Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology was informed that the Ministry of Science and Technology would get a share of 3,015 million rupees for 146 projects that have been planned for the year 2008-09. This was announced at a presentation given by the ministry at committee meeting held with Chairman Rozina Alam Khan. [Read more]
‘Pakistan market not ready for 3G mobile’
June 2, 2008
KARACHI (May 31 2008): Marwan Zawaydeh Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Warid Telecom has said that presently Pakistani market is not ready for 3G mobile services because the cost of a mobile phone for this service is over Rs 50,000.
In an interview with Business Recorder on Friday, he said that a 3G mobile set is out of buying reach of common men due to which market does not show potential for service providers to make huge investments prematurely.
“3G service is a commodity for very few people. The feasibility of 3G services in Pakistan will depend very much on the license fee as well as network rollout cost,” he maintained. He said “therefore, the mobile phone operators ask the government to consider 3G not as a licensing opportunity, rather an allocation of additional spectrum linked with rollout obligations.” [Read more]
Bringing music to mobile ears: increasing ARPU
May 30, 2008
The digital music market in the Middle East is likely to get a lot more lively with the entry of new, internationally backed competitors.
Two regional businesses, both partnered with major international media companies, have announced plans to launch digital media download services, primarily focused on mobile phones.
Mobile operators such as Etisalat, du and Egypt’s Orascom Telecom are looking to value-added services such as media downloads to increase their average revenues per user (ARPU).
Arvato Middle East Sales (AMES), a Middle Eastern affiliate of the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann, yesterday announced it had closed deals with a number of global content providers.
The agreements will allow AMES to distribute music from international labels including Sony BMG over Middle Eastern mobile phone networks.
“To adapt to changing business models and combat piracy, media companies want a creative, economic business model that allows a customer to pay to receive the experience they would like,” said Sean Emery, the CEO of AMES.
“People want a media buffet: they want the ability to sample and try out all kinds of music. They would then like to buy and own some of that music forever”.
Current digital music download services operate on a variety of business models. Some, like Apple’s iTunes Music Store, let users pay for each song they download, with those songs permanently available in the user’s music library.
Others, such as the Rhapsody music service offered by the Seattle-based RealNetworks, charge a monthly subscription fee. In return for the fee, users can access an “online jukebox”, with the ability to listen to the entire catalogue of available music but not to download and “own” the songs.
A recent report by the management consultancy Booz Allen Hamilton called on mobile companies to adapt their business models to new realities in the telecommunications industry, saying they needed to learn from the model of the media industry to survive in the coming decade.
Mr Emery would not reveal specifics of the service to be offered by AMES, saying that details would be announced at the MECOM conference taking place next week in Abu Dhabi.
But he did say that distribution via mobile telephones would be a major part of the company’s strategy.
“Media companies need mobile operators and mobile operators need media companies”, he said. “There is a symbiotic relationship between content and access.”
That relationship has been slow to evolve in the Middle East, in part because of the reluctance of network operators to enter revenue-sharing agreements with content providers.
“Operators have traditionally asked to keep 70-80 per cent of content revenue,” Mr Emery said. “The result is consumers get a low amount of poor-quality music, coming only from content owners who can survive on that kind of revenue. If you want quality, top-class content, you need to change that business model.”
AMES is part-owned by the Abu Dhabi Group, an investment vehicle controlled by members of Abu Dhabi’s ruling Al Nahyan family. The Group owns Warid Telecom, which operates mobile networks in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Another content agreement was announced yesterday by Cellempower, a mobile services company owned by the Saudi Arabian mobile phone distributor i2. The company has reached a content distribution agreement with Paramount, a US media company, to distribute the studio’s mobile digital media, including film clips, ring tones, wallpapers and movie previews.
Abdul Hameed al Sunaid, the CEO of i2, said that to keep up with changes in the market and the region the company would “implement innovative business models and marketing strategies combined with a full multi-channel distribution infrastructure.”
SingTel’s mobile customer base shows strong growth
May 26, 2008
Singapore, 22 May 2008 — Singapore Telecommunications Limited’s (SingTel) mobile customer base in the Asia-Pacific totalled 185.34 million as of March 31, 2008.
In particular, the group’s combined mobile customer base in Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand jumped almost 50 per cent from 123.79 million during the same period last year. [Read more]
Warid Telecom aims to cover every corner of country by 2009
May 26, 2008
LAHORE: Warid Telecom will connect every corner of Pakistan through its mobile service by the end of 2009, the chief executive officer said Wednesday.
During a press conference, Warid chief, Marwan Zawaydeh said in the last three years of our operations, we have achieved all our targets. Our biggest achievement is strong reputation for the best quality network by deploying latest technology in the GSM network, he added.
Under the leadership of our chairman, His Highness Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan and guidance of Bashir A Tahi, chief executive officer Abu Dhabi Group, we are focusing full power of our assets to become the best mobile phone operator and the primary choice of Pakistani subscriber, fulfilling the consumer’s communication needs, he said. staff report
Oracle Asia Pacific Japan Sees Strong Customer Momentum in Q3FY08
April 24, 2008
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Oracle Asia Pacific & Japan Sees Strong Customer Momentum in Q3FY08 3FY08 US GAAP Revenues In Asia Pacific & Japan Increase By 25% Over Q3FY07 As Customers Choose Oracle Solutions Over Other Competitor Offerings
SINGAPORE 07-APR-2008 04:09 PM
Oracle today reported strong regional customer momentum in key software segments and industry sectors across Asia Pacific and Japan during its third quarter of fiscal year 2008 (ended 29 February 2008).
Oracle attributes customer momentum to new adoptions or expanded implementations of Oracle(r) Database, Oracle Fusion Middleware, Oracle Applications, Oracle Business Intelligence and Enterprise Performance Management. Customers are leveraging Oracle’s standards-based software to replace legacy, proprietary systems, in order to optimize performance, improve market responsiveness, and lower costs.
Companies of all sizes in key industries - such as financial services, communications, public sector, education, healthcare, manufacturing, retail and utilities - continue to choose Oracle.
Oracle Applications Momentum Grows Across Key Industries
Customers are responding positively to the expanding breadth and depth of Oracle’s Applications portfolio. Oracle’s ‘Applications Unlimited’ program, its Lifetime Support policy, and the roll-out of advanced integration capabilities with Applications Integration Architecture, are driving customer confidence and adoption of key product lines including Oracle E-Business Suite, and Oracle’s Siebel, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, Agile and Demantra, amongst others.
Oracle Applications new wins in Q3FY08 for Asia Pacific include: Advanced Research Group (Thailand), Ajisen (China), Atlas Bank (Pakistan), Bank of China (Hong Kong), China Mobile Group Beijing (China), GEMADEPT Corporation (Vietnam), Global Mart Shanghai (China), Guangzhou Zhujiang Brewery (China), Hitachi Elevator (China), Landai (Lanbei) Group (China), LG Display (Korea), NIB Bank Limited (Pakistan), Optus Systems Pty Ltd (Australia), Ping An Insurance (China), PT HERO Supermarket Tbk (Indonesia), PT HM Sampoerna Tbk (Indonesia), Shenzhen Development Bank (China), STX Engine (Korea), Superfil Products Ltd (India), TaeYoung Engineering & Construction (Korea), Unitech Electronic Co Ltd (Taiwan), Yantai Raffles Shipyard (China) and YUM Brand (China).
Customers Choose Oracle Fusion Middleware to Optimize Investments
Customers are choosing Oracle Fusion Middleware’s “hot-pluggable” architecture to optimize existing software investments within their heterogeneous IT environments.
Oracle Fusion Middleware new wins in Q3FY08 for Asia Pacific include: Bureau of Labor Insurance (Taiwan), DylanGroup (Singapore), Energy Australia, National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (Korea), North China Grid Company Limited (China), Shanghai Stock Exchange (China), The University of Wollongong (Australia), Tianjin Electric Power Corporation (China), Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation (Taiwan) and Warid Telecom (Pakistan).
Oracle Fusion Middleware is a family of pre-integrated middleware products that spans portals and process management to application infrastructure, developer tools and identity management, enabling companies to run and expand their businesses using SOA.
Oracle Database Options Power Customer Demand in Asia Pacific
Customers are choosing more options around Oracle’s powerful database to meet specific requirements in the areas of performance and availability, security and compliance, data warehousing, and manageability.
Oracle Database new wins for Q3FY08 in Asia Pacific include: Adstream Holdings Ltd. (Australia), Alcatel-Lucent Australia Limited, Asiana Abacus INC (Korea), Australian Pipeline Trust, China Academy of Telecom Research, MII, China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd., CNOOC (China), CSC Australia Pty Ltd., Department of Environment & Water (Australia), Eastern Home Shopping Network (Taiwan), Encar Networks Limited (Korea), Energy Australia, Fuji Xerox Asia Pacific Pte Ltd. (Singapore), GS-Caltex Corporation (Korea), Hong Kong CSL Limited, Hunter Water Corporation Limited (Australia), IOOF Limited (Australia), Kookmin Bank (Korea), Korea Exchange Bank, Maeil Dairy Industry Co., Ltd. (Korea), National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (Korea), National Bureau of Statistics of China, North China Grid Company Limited, PCHOME EBAY CO., LTD. (Taiwan), Shanghai Stock Exchange Infonet Ltd. (China), Shanxi Electric Power Corporation (China), Shinhan Card (Korea), Shinhan Credit Information (Korea), Sice Pty Ltd. (Australia), State Administration of Taxation (China), Tianjin Electric Power Corporation (China), Uecomm NSW (Australia), Vanguard International Semiconductor Corporation (Taiwan).
Supporting Quote
“Customers of all sizes are turning to Oracle and our partners for integrated, industry-specific solutions that deliver significant flexibility, functionality, and speed-to-market. This is driving Oracle’s momentum in the region,” said Derek Williams, Chairman and Executive Vice President, Oracle Asia Pacific & Japan. “Our commitment to offer standards-based, best-in-class software, industry expertise, as well as world-class support, education and consulting clearly extends Oracle’s lead as a strategic IT partner for customers in Asia Pacific and Japan.”
Supporting Resources
Oracle Q3 FY08 Earnings Release
Related Links
Oracle Applications
Oracle Application Integration Architecture
Oracle Fusion Middleware
Oracle Database & Database Options
Oracle Business Intelligence and Enterprise Performance Management
Oracle for Midsize Companies
About Oracle
Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) is the world’s largest enterprise software company. For more information about Oracle, please visit our Web site at http://www.oracle.com.
The Week in Review: Week ending 12th April 2008
April 16, 2008
Mobile Phone companies have been pulling out all the stops in trying to stay on top of one another, and Ufone has just signed a 4.5 billion Syndicated Term Load Facility agreement on 12th of April 2008 to increase its network coverage, subscribers numbers as well as customer care services. National Bank of Pakistan and Habib Bank Limited, have mutually established the resource. The President and CEO Ufone, Abdul Aziz, Chairman and President NBP, Ali Raza and President and CEO HBL Zakir Mahmood were the main contributors of the agreement. Ufone is expanding its network and improving customer care services. [Read more]
Warid Telecom organizing a series of retail sales conferences
April 4, 2008
KARACHI: Warid Telecom is organizing a series of nationwide Warid retail sales conferences with the aim to educate its retailers. These retail conferences while building direct relationship between retailers and Warid Sales teams, will also familiarize the retailers with new sales standard operating procedures (SOPs) introduced by the Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA). [Read more]
SingTel Boasts 172M Subs
February 13, 2008
SINGAPORE — Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SingTel) today announced that the Group’s combined mobile subscriber base in the region has reached 171.54 million as at 31 December 2007. Its mobile subscriber base in the eight markets – Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand – went up by 53 per cent from 112.28 million customers a year ago. The latest figure was boosted by the addition of Warid Telecom’s 13.21 million subscribers in Pakistan in the quarter. [Read more]