UAE- Mobile data use to increase 16 fold by 2021

Date

11/18/2015 6:08:50 AM

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)

By 2021 Mobile data traffic will experience 16 times the growth it experienced in 2015 according to the latest data from the Ericsson Mobility Report for the Middle East and North Africa.

In the same time frame Long Term Evolution - commonly known as 4G - subscriptions in the region are expected to rise from around 4 per cent of total subscriptions in the region (overwhelmingly in the Gulf) to over 30 per cent - or about 290 people.

Additionally Ericsson found that the extremely rapid proliferation of smart phones - particularly in Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia Qatar and the UAE - coupled with faster connectivity means that video content will increasingly be seen through mobile devices.

According to the report the amount of data used monthly by each active smart phone will increase from 1.2 GB in 2015 to an enormous 10 GB by 2021. The year 2015 has already seen an 80 per cent growth in mobile traffic from 2014. "While the Middle East and Africa region is extremely diverse and some countries are only just adopting LTE networks we are seeing a rapid rise in terms of data consumption and connectivity" said Rafiah Ibrahim President of Ericsson Region Middle East and Africa. "We are currently working with our partners in the industry to introduce the next generation technologies which will fuel the transformation to the Networked Society throughout our region." The importance of high-speed internet has been highlighted in the UAE recently with both du and Etisalat vying to outdo each other with speed upgrades. In May data released from the UAE's Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) showed Etisalat comprehensively outperforming Du in terms of mobile internet speeds.

The data part of the TRA's 2014 benchmarking survey showed that users of Etisalat's 4G service were able to download data at 24740 kilobytes per second (kbps) compared to 8728 for Du users.

Etisalat's upload speeds showed similar superiority with speeds of 2111kbps compared to Du's 943kbps.

"As ICT sector organisers we conduct testing and assessments that help track the status of mobile networks in each phase and the range of services provided in order to increase the standard of service and attain excellence in addition to promoting healthy competition amongst the operators" said TRA Director-General Hamad Obaid Al Mansouri at the time.

Al Mansouri added that telecommunications surveys serve to encourage service improvements in the UAE as the country works towards becoming a "smart city".

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