Exclusive Interviews

Digitization has had a profound impact on the UAE, which has proven fairly resilient to the recent economic headwinds triggered by low oil prices and weak global demand, due to its diversified economy which has embraced business opportunities and smart infrastructure. Leading the continuous digitization movement in the UAE is Etisalat Group, which over the years, has spread across 18 countries throughout the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Speaking to Telecom Review, Etisalat Group CEO Saleh Al Abdooli, touched on the phenomenal growth of digitization in the UAE and the opportunities that have emerged for Etisalat as a result. He also spoke about Etisalat at GITEX, as well as its international operations, and the importance of enhancing customer service.

As an emerging player in the satellite industry, LeoSat Enterprises is proving itself a force to be reckoned with. Speaking exclusively to Telecom Review, Mark Rigolle, CEO, LeoSat Enterprises, elaborated on LeoSat’s highly anticipated satellite constellation which is expected to launch in 2019.

In an interview with Telecom Review, Chaesub Lee, Director of Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, ITU, talked about ITU standardization and the latest achievements.

Since its inception in 2010, Es'hailSat, the Qatar Satellite Company, has grown into a major satellite operator in Qatar in the Middle East. Based in Doha, with the aim to be a truly global satellite operator and services provider, Es'hailSat started the operation of its first satellite Es'hail-1 at 25.5° East in 2013 supporting key broadcasters in the region, beIN SPORTS and Al Jazeera Media Network.Es'hailSat President & CEO, Mr. Ali Ahmed Al Kuwari, spoke to Telecom Review about Es'hailSat's strong presence in the region, essential business partnerships, and plans to expand its worldwide satellite footprint.

Looking forward to expanding on a global level while reinventing the telecom infrastructure, Nabil Haddad, CEO, IPT PowerTech, discusses with Telecom Review the company's growth, strategy and solutions that is helping in decreasing energy costs along with their future plans.

It's fairly well understood now that of the time people spend online, they're spending it on mobile and in just a handful of apps, including Facebook. What's remained top of mind for advertisers is how challenging it is for them to tell compelling brand and product stories on mobile in ways that are enjoyable for people and effective for their business.

Telecommunication, by far, is one of the most exciting and challenging sectors with insatiable need for continuous innovation. Operators cannot afford to rest while serving superior customer experience to their users. Operators have no other option but to innovate and differentiate by creating a win-win situation for both - telco and the customer. In the growing digital era, internet has fundamentally changed the way we live, work and communicates. Nowadays, we do everything over the internet, be it ordering a burger, buying a mobile, chatting with friends, sharing videos or pictures, watching movies… the list is exhaustive.

Sterlite Technologies has over a decade of experience in the telecom and broadband industry. During his time as CEO, Dr. Anand Agarwal has seen the company draw its roadmap on delivering smarter networks to expand its capabilities. Telecom Review caught up with Dr. Agarwal, who spoke about his vision as CEO, the benefits of Sterlite Tech's acquisition of Elitecore, how he plans to capitalize on the broadband data network creation globally, fulfilling operator monetization needs and R&D projects.

Having a ubiquitous, reliable, and high speed broadband network is essential for socioeconomic growth and is pivotal for telecommunication operators' long-term survival. According to Ovum's recent report, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is behind others in terms of both broadband penetration and basic access speeds. In order to remain competitive and take advantage of the opportunities that broadband access can provide, Michael Philpott, practice leader of Ovum's Consumer research practice and author of 'MENA Operators Need to Increase Investment in Broadband Infrastructure to Provide Excellent Quality of Service', believes that operators must invest in developing high quality fixed broadband networks that are capable of delivering minimum speeds of 10Mbps, and that are available and affordable to all. Telecom Review sat down with Michael Philpott to discuss this.

Global IT product and service provider, Elitecore, has over 150 network deployments worldwide for 59 service providers in more than 40 countries. Telecom Review sat down with Akshat Joshi, VP - WiFi Business, Sterlite Tech - Elitecore, to discuss trends and WiFi in the African market.