ICT Business

Second Fixed Line Auction Postponed for One Year, Global Economic Slowdown Blamed

National Telecommunications and Regulatory Authority, (NTRA) Egypt, announced on September 8 that the auction for the second fixed line license in Egypt would be postponed by a year.

The decision was made in consultation with the 12 companies who expressed interest in the auction by purchasing the specifications handbook. The companies who are so far involved in the process leading up to the bidding on the line include Orascom Telecom Holding S.A.E., Etisalat and Sony Ericsson.

The NTRA stated in its press release that ICT markets in Europe and the United States are experiencing volatility, with increasing inflation being blamed for decreasing funds allotted to investments. The NTRA has stated that it hopes the auction will take place in 2009 with more participating companies and that in the meantime will look into developing WiMAX for the Egyptian ICT market.

Mobinil Launches 3G Services
Mobinil will activate its 3G network this September. Signed last October, the license agreement between MobiNil and the NTRA cost the mobile operator a fee of E£3.34 billion and 2.4% of its future annual 3G revenues.

The network’s implementation has been plagued by delays, its rollout pushed back from July 2008. According to Mobinil, (the last mobile operator in Egypt to provide 3G services), the delay was a result of regulatory authorities’ lateness in providing a frequency band for testing. Mobinil also claims the government owes the company spectrum. Mobinil is pushing the service forward against a backdrop of declining profits and stock prices.

20th International Olympiad in Informatics held in Egypt

The world championship in computer science for high school students took place in Egypt from August 16 – 23. The International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) is one of five international science olympiads (ISOs) for high school students around the world. The IOI is open only to a handful of the very best high school students from each participating country. In several countries, a student who achieves a high ranking in any ISO guarantees them admission to any university of choice and a fellowship.

The first IOI competition was organized by UNESCO and held in Bulgaria in 1989. The IOI has been held in a different member country each year, mainly throughout Europe and the Americas. 2008 marks the first year in its history that the IOI is held in the Middle East, at Egypt’s Mubarak City of Education in 6th of October.

ITIDA and Atos Origin to Launch Capacity Building Program for 100 Egyptian ICT Companies

The Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) announced the launch of its capacity building program in cooperation with Atos Origin, an ICT service firm, to raise the standards and output of 100 Egyptian ICT companies.

The program’s goal is to increase Egypt’s exports of ICT products and services. The list of 100 participating ICT companies has yet to be announced, along with the criteria used to determine which firms will be included.

This announcement builds on the ITIDA’s efforts to expand Egypt’s production, exporting and outsourcing of ICT products and services through its signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Egyptian Association for ICT Exports in July.

Egypt Requiring Personal Information on Users of Internet Cafes
In a move criticized by the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), the Egyptian government now requires users of Internet cafes to leave their name, phone number and email address before being allowed access to cafes’ Internet service. Only when the customer receives a text message confirming verification of the user’s number may they access the web at these public cafes.

Professional activists and Egyptian bloggers decry the move as a further encroachment on individual privacy, as well as a restriction on the access and dissemination of information. Earlier in 2008, bloggers and Facebook activists in Egypt were arrested for making comments online that were deemed to present the country’s image in a negative light.

Orascom Telecom Participating in Consortium to Form New Canadian Wireless Operator

A consortium including Orascom Telecom won a total of 30 separate bids on a new advanced wireless services (AWS) spectrum in its efforts to create the fourth wireless operator in Canada. Led by Globalive Wireless, the consortium spent more than Can$442 million to provisionally secure more than 30 bids.

While widely reported in the media that the bids by the Globalive consortium cover 26 million Canadians, the actual number is closer to 23 million, according to Industry Canada, the governmental entity organizing the auction. However, 23 million Canadian consumers is still a significant market share for the group that is hoping to take advantage of Canada’s relatively low penetration of wireless devices, lower number of wireless services currently available and high prices for services offered.

105 megahertz (MHz) of spectrum was made available in the auction that raised more than Can$4.2 billion for the Canadian government – twice the amount expected by analysts. The bids secured by the Globalive are provisional; the licenses will be issued following a review of the ownership and control of the consortium by Industry Canada – a process which may take up to several months.

Egypt’s Inflation Tops 16-Year High at 22%
Fueled by rising costs in food and transportation, Egypt’s annual inflation rose to 22%, numbers not seen since 1992. If inflation continues to climb, analysts predict that the Central Bank of Egypt will increase interest rates for the sixth time this year by another 50 basis points. The CBE raised interest rates in August to curb rising inflation and has stated that it will continue to do so if necessary.

Other emerging markets around the world, including Brazil and India, have likewise increased their interest rates to combat the rampant inflation that has gripped most of the world’s economies. Food-driven inflation is particularly acute in Egypt given it is the biggest single importer of wheat in the world, bringing in 6.5 million tons from abroad last year. Wheat is a staple, subsidized foodstuff in Egypt.

Google Chrome

Rumors of a Google web browser have circulated for years, but the rumors that began circulating on September 1st were different; a comic book explaining the technology behind Google’s Chrome was leaked, indicating that Google would be releasing a browser known as Chrome.

In practical terms, it has been observed that Gmail loads faster in Chrome. Chrome tracks favorite websites and displays them as clickable icons. Google has said the browser was designed for modern browsing that includes multimedia and interactivity. Currently, Chrome is only available for the Windows operating system.