Broadband penetration in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) achieved high growth during 2002, reported EIM, the Emirates Telecommunications Corporation (Etisalat)'s ISP business unit, Domestic connections alone saw an increase of 108 percent during the year, with the number of customers subscribed up to the Al-Shamil service rising from 7,500 in 2001 to 16,177 by December 2002.
Business connections, meanwhile, also saw exceptionally strong growth. The number of small to medium sized businesses that subscribed to the BusinessOne broadband package rose 189 percent from 946 in 2001, up to 2,740 in 2002. Leased line connections, which provide dedicated access to larger organizations and businesses, rose from 427 in 2001 up to 766 in last year.
The sharp rise in connection figures are attributed to a number of factors. For the home user, more applications are becoming available online that require a high bandwidth connection. These include online gaming, video streaming and music programs. These applications are the main driving force behind broadband adoption in the home.
For businesses, a high-speed connection is no longer just considered a competitive advantage, but more a vital commodity. The majority of business communication and a vast number of transactions now take place online. Combine this with the growth in online business resources and business applications that streamline processes, and the need for broadband becomes evident.
The growth in leased line connections has been attributed to the massive reduction in costs of 60 percent in March 2002. This was made possible by the reduction of international bandwidth costs, which EIM immediately passed on to their customers.
Looking ahead, EIM is due to announce a number of new products and services to raise the broadband penetration in the UAE. New technologies are being investigated to plug the gaps in the coverage area, whilst a range of online content that requires a high-speed connection is being developed. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
