Market Structure for Communication Services in Saudi Arabia

Table of Contents

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 3

Research Objectives and Questions…………………………………………………………………………… 3

Literature Review …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4

An Overview of the Saudi Telecom Company……………………………………………………………. 4

Background of the KSA Economy…………………………………………………………………………….. 6

Telecommunication Development in KSA: A Brief Overview……………………………………….. 7

Establishment of STC and Recent Developments………………………………………………………… 8

Data Analysis and Discussion……………………………………………………………………………………. 11

     Overview………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 11

     Method of analysis…………………………………………………………………………………………………. 11

    Rapid Development Phase of KSA Telecommunication……………………………………………… 12

    Privatization………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 15

   Results discussion…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 15

Recommendations and Conclusions………………………………………………………………………….. 16

    Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 16

    Recommendation…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 17

Transparency………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 17

Recommended Study Areas…………………………………………………………………………….. 17

Study of related areas……………………………………………………………………………………… 17

Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 18

Reference………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 20

List of Tables and Figures

Figure 1.0 …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 7

Figure 1.1 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 12

Table   1.0 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 13

Table   1.1……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 14

Table   1.2 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 14

1. Introduction

The present century and the last one can truly be characterized as centuries of telecommunication revolution. It began innocuously enough with the invention of the electric telegraph, wireless telegraph and the telephone during the 19^thand 20^th centuries. One of the more attractive features of global telecommunications today is that it helps not only developed nations but also developing ones in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has experienced rapid progress in the last few decades socially, economically and politically. With the rapid growth in its economy, KSA has witnessed a steeply rising demand for telecommunication services during the last decade. This demand has been met partially by service providers such as the Saudi Telecom Company (STC), Mobily, Zain, Virgin, and some other smaller but growing companies. Out of these, STC was a monopoly firm under direct government control till 2002. In late July 2002, however, STC lost its monopoly when the government announced new regulations in order to allow greater competition within this sector.

1. Research Objectives and Questions

As discussed previously, STC is one of the principal providers of telecom services within KSA. Also known as STC Mobil, it is now facing challenges from several other private service providers but wishes to retain its position as the preeminent provider of telecom services within the KSA market. Keeping this background in view, the aim of this research is to investigate the demand function of mobile services in STC after the privatization and the entrance of other competitors to the market.

To initiate and develop this research, the following series of questions were proposed based on the current telecommunication services:

•         What is the effect of privatization on the demand function on STC?

•         How dissolving monopoly affected the STC market share and profits?

•         How did the competition change the STC services prices?

The above questions will be answered based on various literature obtained on the internet, the company website, various trading websites, and academic databases.

            The rest of the paper is organized as follows. The next section is in the form of a literature review. It consists of an elaboration on the telecommunications industry in KSA together with an account of how it is affecting and is getting affected by the overall economy. In this section we shall briefly review the history of the telecommunication sector in Saudi, why it is important and how it is playing a major role in the country’s development. Also, we shall analyze the industry’s rapid growth phase, the effects of privatization, and characteristics of an open market structure. In addition, we shall identify the main telecommunication firms and measure their demand and supply. We shall also look into their roles and responsibilities towards our society. In the next section we shall analyze the results obtained on the basis of information obtained from the topic under discussion. This will be followed by a section on discussion of the results. Then we shall present recommendations of our research and this will be following by the conclusion section.

• Literature Review
  • An Overview of the Saudi Telecom Company

The Saudi Telecom Company (STC) is the largest telecommunications provider in KSA. The company has been at the forefront of satisfying customer needs by attempting to stay ahead of the competition and offering the most recent technologies in the area of telecommunications in the KSA. The STC understands that by doing this, it will be able to maintain a large market share especially in the current society where the use of telecommunications is becoming more and more relevant. With this understanding, the company has been at the fore front of ensuring that the most advanced broadband technologies in a bid to enhance its competitive position. Based on the company’s strategy, the company continues to offer services that are customer focused in all aspects of its business. This ideal has been reflected in the company’s organizational design which has focused on the vital categories of its customers. In the past few years, the company has gone international and now offers its products both locally and internationally in countries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East (Yahoo Finance, 2015).

As noted earlier, the company has experienced increased competition in the recent past. Most notable of these was after the government of KSA adopted policies to enable other companies to invest in the industry. Even then, it is notable that the company has maintained a lead both locally and internationally in those areas it offers its services. While the competition has been significant, there are still opportunities of expanding and obtaining a larger market share in most of its markets.

First, the company operates in regions where advanced next generation technology is largely unexplored. It is the only company that has been able to adopt these technologies with little difficulty. In 2014, the company adopted the 4G network in most of its markets. This provides the company a chance to grow as individuals shift to the more reliable network in the region especially for those who intend to take advantage of the internet in making calls and accessing information. It is especially suitable for companies and individuals who use large amounts of data in the region. Young people are also getting especially attracted to new technologies and this move could lead to a larger percentage of youths in its market share.

With increased competition in mobile telephony services, the telecommunications industry has been characterized by increased price pressures. The company risks losing its market share to its competitors as a result of major price drops. To acquire bigger market shares, companies have adopted strategies such as reduced monthly subscriptions and lower tariffs. Owing to this, the company risks losing its market share and registering lower revenues. The company should find ways to supplement its income and obtain a better and more stable market presence in the region.

The growth rate of the telecommunications industry has dipped over the past few years. Owing to market saturation, the market is becoming less penetrable as each person obtains a handset. Governments in the region are also offering increased regulation to telecommunication companies making the industry less pleasant. In 2013, the mobile penetration rate reached 182 in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia came third in penetration rate. As a result, most of the consumers have a large number of options and price pressure has become prevalent in the region. It is also likely to affect the average revenue per user.

• Background of the KSA Economy

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has long enjoyed a dominant position in the Arab world and has become a geopolitically important nation in the last few decades. It can be stated that modern infrastructure and communications played a significant role in the ascendancy of the nation, although it should also be noted that its telecommunications network was established and became operational within a relatively short period.KSA has not only been endowed with rich petroleum reserves, but it also occupies a strategic position at the heart of the Arabian peninsula between the continents of Asia and Africa. It is also the largest country in this region.

Figure 1: Different components of KSA government spending from 1969 to 2009.Source: Alshahrani & Alsadiq, 2014, p. 5.

As noted from the above figure, the total spending has been on the rise in the country. This then is an implication that consumers have had increased disposable income in the country. Increased disposable income is good for the industry as individuals are likelier to spend their money on better communication devices and the communication process. The reality on the ground is however that, with increased spending power, more companies have entered the market hence increasing competition in the region.

Other than government spending, capital markets are accepted as another indicator of economic performance of a nation. The Tadaul All-Share Index (TASI), which is the Saudi stock exchange, increased by 12.3% by the end of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013, one of the principal factors being speculation that the government might open some sectors of the economy to private investors and to foreign direct investors. The telecommunication and information technology sector contributed to 14.7% of the increase in TASI during the first quarter of 2014 – this represented 6.9% of the total trading value at the stock market. There were reports that the STC plans to sell new bond issues because of the general performance of the market.           

• Telecommunication Development in KSA: A Brief Overview

Long distance communication services started in Saudi Arabia in 1926 with the establishment of the Directorate of Posts, Telegraph and Telephones (PTT); this was later merged with the Ministry of Communications in 1953.The PTT was again given separate ministry status in 1975 in recognition of its essential role in the country’s economic development. A receiving and transmitting radio network was installed within the country in 1954 and communications began to be broadcast to the rest of the world from a transmitting station in Jeddah. This initial RT-1 network was upgraded to a more modern RT-3 network in 1964 using equipment from Siemens. This was followed by installation of tele-printers with Arabic alphabets at 50 bauds and the first automatic telex service was started in 1975.Developments in telephony were occurring at the same time – although there was a single manual switchboard in 1924, the PTT established a wider telephone network within KSA by the 1950s. A high frequency telephone transmission station was established in Jeddah by PTT in 1954, implementing the single side band technology. An automatic telephone network with 76,000 lines was implemented in 1968. The number of telephone lines kept increasing under five year plans (the number crossed 1.5 million lines by the end of 1989), and a host of new technologies and upgrades kept getting implemented. These included implementations of stored program controls in exchanges, digital switching and transmission in high traffic metropolitan networks, tandem switches and pulse code modulated transmission. Fiber optic networks were introduced during the 1980s and the SEA-ME-WE submarine cable project, started in 1986, was linked to subsequently. KSA contributed $66 million towards the project cost and was provided it with robust communication routes to 28 countries across the world. The number of mobile telephony subscribers is expected to exceed 60 million in 2015.

• Establishment of STC and Recent Developments

On April 21, 1998, the STC was established as a joint stock company by way of Royal Decree No. M/35 and the assets of the Ministry of PTT were taken over by this company. It was supposed to cater to wired telephony, mobile telephony and telegraphy. Based in Riyadh, the STC was commercially registered on June 29, 1998, and commenced operations as the only provider of telecommunications services within KSA. While it remained wholly owned by the government during the initial years, 30% of its shares were sold on September 9 2002 as per Resolution No. 171 passed by the Council of Ministers. Out of these shares at least 20% were earmarked for natural Saudi citizens and at most 10% were appropriated by the Public Pension Fund and General Organization for Social Security. Subsequently there was an initial public offer that closed on January 6, 2003, and the capital base of STC was increased from SR 12,000 to SR 15,000 by the Council of Ministers. An extraordinary general meeting of the company board approved further expansion of capital to SR 20,000 on April 11, 2006; this was done by way of stock dividend (Tadawul 2015).

The Telecommunications Act was passed in 2001, along with the establishment of the Telecommunication Commission, for the purpose of supervision of the telecom sector. The Act stated that the Ministry of PTT would formulate general policies, plans and development programs for this sector as well as scrutinize applications seeking licenses by private service providers. The Commission was stipulated to perform duties and functions as conferred to it under the Act and its bylaws. The Act envisaged that there would be a number of objectives guiding the regulation of the sector, for example providing advanced services at affordable prices; ensuring public access to the telecommunication network at affordable prices; encouraging fair competition in different activities pertaining to the sector; and ensuring clarity and transparency of all procedures. The Act had two important provisions – issuance of licenses to private fixed and mobile telephony services operators would be subject to approval by the Council of Ministers; and these services could only be offered by joint stock companies that were open to public subscription of their shares (Telecom Act 2001).The next important event in the Saudi telecom sector history occurred on 1^st May 2003, when the Ministry of PTT was completely overhauled and renamed as Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT) by way of Royal Decree No. A/2. This change reflected the importance given by the Saudi government to this sector and was meant to realize several important goals aimed at transforming the sector as well as the general economy. In the following year, 2004, the government took several other important steps such as drafting the national IT plan and launching an e-payment gateway for Saudi citizens. This was accompanied by liberalization of some data and mobile norms as well as launching of the Etihad-Etisalat consortium, in May 2005, the second telecom service provider in KSA. Prior to its launch the company obtained a GSM license in 2004 and broke the monopoly of STC in the wireless telephony segment. It now offers its services under the brand name Mobily. The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), established by Council of Ministers decision no. (123) dated 21/5/1424H, has become the chief telecommunications and information technology (IT) related authority in KSA.

            At present KSA have four principal telecom service providers – STC, Mobily, Zain and Bravo. These four together offer a number of services, including trunk mobile radio access, satellite services and internet services, paging, cellular, and fixed line telephony. Mobily is owned by local partners to the extent of 45% of its shares, 20% is owned by the public, and 27% is owned by the UAE based Etisalat. The company offers mostly cellular telephony services, including 3.5G (since 2006) and 4G (since 2011).Zain was established in 1983 in Kuwait and now provides services throughout the Middle East, entering the KSA market on 26^th August 2008. Zain KSA has a parental ownership of 37%and provides a variety of services, including 4G LTE. Bravo is a group wireless communications services provider that began operations in 2005 and was earlier owned by Watanyia Telecom of Dubai. It is a push-to-talk (PTT) operator that is focused on the corporate business segment. It was recently acquired by STC (on 31^st October 2013) and presently operates with a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) license agreement with STC. During the third quarter of 2010 STC had a market share of 43%, Mobily had a share of 41%, Zain had a share of 15% and Bravo had a small market share of 5%. The KSA telecommunications market is growing rapidly, with the mobile services segment now accounting for 77% of all revenues. Revenues increased at 15% annually, from SR 19.8 bn in 2001 to SR 52.5 in 2009 (Talet, Shawosh, & Al-Saeed, 2011, p. 5).

3.0       Data Analysis and Discussion

3.1 Overview

This chapter is presented as 4 major sections as follows: overview, method of analysis, analyses and conclusion. The overview provides the brief for the entire section. The methodology will analyse the data analysis’ structure that this research employed. The analyses follow where various factors that surround the demand market in telecommunication are analyzed and discussed. The final part in the chapter is the conclusions. This part will give a summary of the chapter.

3.2 Method of analysis

This section involves carefully observation, selection, dispensation and modelling of data focused at producing helpful information, buoyant conclusions and helping in policy development (Thomas & Heck 2001). Our case is in need of qualitative data hence we shall employ confirmatory data analysis (CDA). This form of analysis focuses on affirming already formulated hypothesis as opposed to explanatory data analysis (EDA). The latter focuses more on creation of new facts based on hypothesis formulated in relation to the topic matter. CDA is ideal for analyzing existing data without having to dwell on trying to produce new dimensional perspectives. It is so to prove that the matter under investigation is not unique to others of its nature in different era or place, that is, the actors also apply to it as it does for others. To do this accurately, we shall use some already existing academic materials.

It can be seen that the analyses does come across the previously mentioned method (EDA) in several instances. Thus, the study can be said to enlighten on some issues resulting in formation of new knowledge. For instance, the study did come across new truths and relationships of variable surrounding the demand context of telecommunication in KSA exploratory role. Also the analyses of the cases is meant to assist Saudi Arabia avoid the shortcomings in this sector given the numerous adjustments made to facilitate it; hence the study plays a predictive role. Prior to analyzing the academic materials, their sources and authors were authenticated and will be provided below in a fully referenced state.

3.4 Rapid Development Phase of KSA Telecommunication

            The main period of development of KSA telecommunication facilities is the period after the privatization of Telecom, the main government telecommunication company in Sep 9, 2002.  According to Abdulgahni et al (2014) development in general ICT in the Arabian nation has been the main contributor to the growth of national GDP. The main major breakthroughs that put Saudi Arabia in the foremost ground in ICT are the government foundation of it in law formation, that is, it’s the infrastructure (Abdulgahni, Ahmad, & Salah, 2014).

Figure 1.1 These are the number of fixed telephone lines in the countries listed. From, Rand

Since the headway development projects, Saudi has appeared as rank number 33 in the high income ICT development countries.

Country/     economy	Rank	Score	Rank within income group
Saudi Arabia	33	4.44	HI	32

Table 1.0 Rank of Saudi among developing nations in terms of ICT. From, The Global Information Technology Report 2010–2011

According to the national communication and information technology commission (CITC), ICT has contributed up to 3% in the years 2011-2013. This is an aftermath of the rapid growth of sectors such as telecommunication sector which on its own contributed above 8% of total GDP of KSA. As per a study by Alsenaidy & Ahmad, the best way to communicate in Saudi Arabia is via a mobile phone’s short message, SMS. Telecommunication can be described to have a vertical market due to the immense demand that arises with population growth (Abdulgahni, Ahmad, & Salah, 2014). Use of cell phone is prospected to hit 45.63% from 25.01% from late 2011 to end of 2016. This will have great impact in the use of telecommunication facilities as the subscribers will choose from the now variety of communication services provided (Abdulgahni, Ahmad, & Salah, 2014).

Users	Mean±SD	P
*Post-Paid Subscription *Pre-Paid subscription Total subscription   **Mobile Penetration	5.06± 1.54 0.000 23.86±18.77 0.001 28.93±20.26 0.000   107.20±68.47	0.001 0.000 0.000   0.000
***In millions

Figure 1.1 Mobile service growth from 2012-2013 (Abdulgahni, Ahmad, & Salah, 2014)

 
According to Saudi Arabia Telecommunications Report Q2 2015, the mobile phone sector will fluctuate for a range of five years (2015-2019) and the mobile broadband will have driven the growth to above 60% by the end of this period. The government is working to develop the telecommunication  platforms in order to meet the growing demand for the services with the ratio of internet users at 40.5 in every 100 people, and the government strategies seek to make it 53.6 in every 100 people (Cordesman, 2011).

Due to the remarkable growth that Telecommunication has shown, it has been identified as a major source of the country’s GDP thus a high profile venture in KSA. The table below matches this

Table 1.2 The share of telecommunication in nation as per the national plan. From the Ministry of economy and planning

3.5 Privatization

Implementation of privatization of companies is move done on speculation of markets behavior or a government initiative via a law passed by the necessary authority concerned as was the case for Telecom in Saudi Arabia (Tadawul, 2015).  Evaluation public of companies need special concern in the analyses since in the imperfect funding state, the local market cannot be relied upon to give an accurate version of the analyses. This is attributed to the under pricing which results from analyses via cash flow when using capital for operation of the enterprises (Onour, 2010).   

            During privatization, there are a number of factors that need to be addressed such as the existence of a debt for the previous owner. In economic, the debt is tied to the business thus it is transferred to next owner with or without their consent. Thus there must be a legal process of demarcation of debts be it long or short term in order to eliminate chances of economic surprises in future. There is also the issue of setting up a clear mechanism of payment that operates in and out of perfect capital market. This ensures that there is no inside loans practice while relying on local banks (Onour, 2010)

• Effects associated with privatization

The implication of privatization are far more beneficial than not. Therefore, the Saudi Arabian policy makers and investors should encourage and participate respectively both in an accelerated rate.  Like the case for RTC, the competition in the latter years of privatization has seen the company reducing prices of its services. Also, there is need that arises for setting up of more laws that govern transitions and privatization procedures.Investors should also be aware when a companies sell off is not for profit prospective future development but rather a handing over.(Alanazi, Liu, & Forster, 2011)

3.6 Results discussion

In this chapter data from various cases has been analyzed. The analysis aimed at investigating the market of telecommunication and its structure in Saudi Arabia has been relate to many parts of the world and a causal correlation with the predicaments common in the regions has been observed. This was via contrasting with various sector from other counties and itself.  First the analysis methodology was discussed- confirmatory data analysis and reasons were cited for the same. This research being a meta-analysis and comparative, various data was introduced.

The first data presented was a tabular description of the national development of KSA. This case sought to analyze how telecommunication has facilitated the general GDP growth of KSA. The second data analyzed was the cell phone usage in the kingdom where the relation was made between the increased population, cell phone usage and development of telecommunication services.  In particular it analysed the use of smart phones and the internet plus SMS. The comparison to other world ICT developing nations followed indicating that Saudi Arabia is a well of nation in regards to communication facilities. Bureaucracy was also examined with particular comparison with Canada. The final section investigated the privatization of the telecommunication services in Saudi Arabia and provided data that is necessary when a privatization is carried out on a particular company. This information is relevant to the Telecom Company in Saudi Arabia which was privatized in the period of rapid technological growth.

                                    4.0 Recommendations and Conclusions

4.1 Introduction

This section will host two parts that is; the recommendation and the conclusion. The recommendations section involves examination of lessons learned from the analysis of data from the previous analyses section.  Alongside, a proposal has been formulated on the best course of action after comparing both the existing literature and the Saudi Arabian specifics the issues.

The concluding part will be the conclusion of study is a synopsis reflecting the entire research by sections. This part broadly reflects the contents of each chapter and finishes off the study by lightly summarizing the main ideas examined in them.

 4.2 Recommendations                                                                     

This study offers the following recommendations to all the investors and policy makers in the Saudi Arabia as arising from the development of the telecommunication in country based on the big market:

4.2.1 Transparency. This in particular is a major concern by investors both local and foreign where they seek out the most secure ventures for investment. It is that they identify such markets by analysing the policies set about in regards to their market of interest. For instance, the privatization of the Telecom Company in 2002 was initially only limited to the nationals of Saudi. This policy is a strong foundation for internal development. The period in which the company was purely national owned, all returns in profits and revenue contributed to national GDP thus developing the nation.     

4.2.2 Study of related areas. In order to make headway in telecommunication, the study of all related sectors need to be studied thoroughly to facilitate the formulation of sound policies as shown above. The market as has been studied above should be thoroughly perused in sectors that cause effect on the telecommunication sector. The study need not be limited as was in our case where we studied the market structure in relation to telecommunication only but broad and binding all those other sectors.

4.2.3 Recommended Study Areas. It is felt that this study effectively answered the following research questions as presented in the introductory chapter:

• What is the effect of privatization on the demand function on STC?
• How dissolving monopoly affected the STC market share and profits?
• How did the competition change the STC services prices?
•  How has the telecommunication development affected the nations GDP?
• Who are the market targets of telecommunication services?
• How does Saudi Arabia relate other nations in terms of IT and telecommunication?

The research is resourceful in the selected subject matter and the information recovered from the process is verifiable. However the following area as exemplified by a sample research question is recommended for future research work by students and other academicians:

• How does culture and politics affect the development of a nation’s economy? A focus on Company privatization and investment.

4.3 Conclusion

In the first section of the research, the research topic was introduced and interpreted. The market structure of Saudi Arabia’s telecommunication services is the research statement of this paper and it has been thoroughly examined throughout the paper. The methods of analyses were introduced as per use and explained in detail how they are used and their merits shown. The next part of the research introduced the background information of the research and focused on the markets and telecommunication milestones in Saudi Arabia.  Various arguments are presented by personnel from academia and industries surrounding the concepts were analyzed. Here the query of our research was floated in context to demonstrate the necessity of the research.

In the following section, analyses of data were done based on national research reports and international reports and researches. This section uses already existing information based on hypothesis proven with researches and thus the conclusion of the research is credible. The analyses section has a conclusion section that summarizes the entire process and gives some headway points that have been found through the processes. The recommendation then is the final section of the research report where we made some sample pointers as of the direction of the telecommunication market structure in Saudi Arabia.  

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