Within a rapidly-growing regional mobile phone industry that is set to increase on an average of 40 percent annually, Siemens Mobiles, as the second biggest player in the Middle East, is optimistic about further consolidating and strengthening its position across its core target market sectors.
At a press conference to announce the launch of its latest model—Siemens C55—as well as the company’s participation at the forthcoming Gitex 2002, Asim Sukhera, head of Siemens Mobile Devices for the Middle East, said that while there was only a five percent growth of the global mobile phone sector, the Gulf region was experiencing a boom.
Explaining the reasons for the bullish scenario, Sukhera said: “The current size of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) mobile phone market is five million units a year, set to grow by 40 percent annually. The main reason for this growth is that there are a lot of potential first-time users as well as those who change or upgrade their phone models frequently.”
He added: “In fact, the life cycle of a mobile phone has reduced from two years in 1998 to less than nine months in 2002. The GCC has one of the fastest turnaround times as far as replacement phones is concerned, which in turn is indicative of how mobile phones have changed from being just communication devices to lifestyle statements and fashion accessories.”
In line with these industry trends, Siemens Mobile launches about five new models every year in the region with its latest offering being the Siemens C55—a tiny phone that packs in a host of features including advanced messaging and entertainment applications. The C55 will be under the spotlight at Siemen’s stand at Gitex.
The Siemens Information and Communication Mobile Group (IC Mobile) offers mobile solutions including mobile devices, infrastructure and applications. Devices include mobile phones, wireless modules, mobile organizers and cordless phones as well as products for wireless home networks. The infrastructure portfolio includes GSM, GPRS and 3G mobile network technologies from base stations and switching systems to intelligent networks, e.g. for prepaid services. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
