Ericsson Mobility Report is one of the leading analyses of data traffic available, providing in-depth measurements from the world’s largest selection of live networks spread all around the globe. The report uses those measurements and analysis, together with internal forecasts and other relevant studies, to provide insights into current traffic and market trends in today’s Networked Society. The June 2015 report looks at global subscription growth and how the pattern is set to continue to 2020.

1. MIDDLE EAST AND
NORTH EAST AFRICA
ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT APPENDIX
2015JUNE

2. 2 ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH EAST AFRICA JUNE 2015
MARKET OVERVIEW
A region of contrasts
The Middle East and North East Africa region consists
of 23 countries and more than 760 million people.
It is extremely diverse in terms of socioeconomic
development, culture, and Information and
Communications Technology (ICT) maturity levels.
GDP per capita varies greatly. Some countries in the
region have the highest GDP per capita ratio in the
world (Qatar), while others have the lowest (Eritrea,
South Sudan and Afghanistan). This has a direct
impact on how quickly ICT services are adopted.
Key figures: Middle East and North East Africa
Regional segmentation based on ICT maturity,
consumer profiles and services adoption
Advanced Optimizers Emerging
Turkey
Sudan
Saudi Arabia
Kuwait
Jordan
Egypt
Iran
Afghanistan
Pakistan
Iraq
Syria
Lebanon
Qatar
UAE
Somalia
Djibouti
South Sudan
Ethiopia
Yemen
Bahrain
Eritrea
Oman
Palestine Authority
2014 2020 CAGR 2014–2020
Mobile subscriptions (million) 680 970 6%
Smartphone subscriptions (million) 120 380 20%
Data traffic per active smartphone (GB/month) 0.8 5 35%
Total mobile traffic (PB/month) 130 1,700 55%

3. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH EAST AFRICA JUNE 2015 ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT 3
Egypt device ownership and internet connectivity
Source: Ericsson ConsumerLab, Egypt study (2014)
Base: Mobile phone users in Egypt aged 15–69 in metropolitan areas
Note: Smartphone and feature phone penetration is shown at an individual
level, while all other devices are represented at the household level
0%
50%
0% 50% 100%
100%
Device penetration
Deviceinternetconnectivity
Portable gaming device
Game console
Feature phone
Smart TV
Tablet
Laptop
Smartphone Desktop
Portable MP3 player
The region can be segmented into three
categories in terms of ICT maturity, consumer
profiles and services adoption
Advanced: This segment, which includes the Gulf
countries, has the highest GDP per capita and has
the most progressive ICT markets in the region.
These countries are characterized by advanced mobile
technologies, innovative services, high data consumption
and fierce competition.
People’s level of technology literacy is high in this segment.
The internet has become an integral part of their personal
and professional lives. Around 85 percent of the population
in Qatar use a laptop and 71 percent use a smartphone
to connect to the internet.1
This segment is also more
advanced in its usage of the internet across different
devices, while convenience and usability determine
how users perform a particular task. For example, in
Saudi Arabia, the mobile phone is the primary device to
access internet services both indoors and outdoors, as
shown in the top right figure.
Optimizers: This segment includes countries where
operators and consumers are value conscious. This
group is very active on social networks, however their
mobile broadband usage is significantly lower compared
to advanced markets. In Egypt, 33 percent of people
own a smartphone, and 89 percent of them connect
their devices to the internet. Feature phones remain
widely used by Egyptians, and 22 percent of these
devices are connected to the internet. Tablets have
low household penetration in Egypt (9 percent) and
42 percent of these devices are connected to the
internet.2
Staying connected is crucial – 65 percent
of smartphone users in Turkey are extremely sensitive
to coverage or reliability issues.3
Emerging: This segment includes highly populated
countries in which 3G networks have been recently
introduced (Iran, Pakistan and Iraq). It also includes
the Palestine Authority and Eritrea, the two remaining
markets with GSM-only networks. Most countries in
this segment have at least two operators, except for
Ethiopia, Djibouti and Eritrea, which have a monopoly
on their telecom markets. Consequently, these three
countries have some of the lowest mobile penetration
rates in the region at 30 percent, 35 percent and
6 percent, respectively.
Primary device to access services while
indoors and outdoors, Saudi Arabia
Source: Ericsson ConsumerLab, Saudi Arabia study (2013)
Base: Mobile/tablet/laptop or desktop users in Saudi Arabia aged 15–69
Send or read instant messages,
chat or email
Browse the internet
Visit social networks
Use maps or GPS
(e.g. Google Maps or Navigator)
Watch TV or video
(Streaming online content)
Indoors Outdoors
Make internet calls
(Skype, Tango, Viber, etc.)
Laptop/desktopMobile/smartphone
From a consumer profile perspective, connectedness
is currently very low, but is forecast to increase. As
mobile broadband penetration rates in the region rise,
consumers in emerging markets are expected to show
similar behaviors as the optimizers and eventually the
advanced markets.
1
Source: Qatar’s ICT Landscape 2014 report, ictQatar. (Ericsson ConsumerLab was commissioned by ictQatar to conduct the study)
Base: People living in Qatar, aged 15 and over
2
Ericsson ConsumerLab, Egypt study (2014)
3
Ericsson ConsumerLab, Turkey Smartphone Users’ Loyalty study (2013)
Tablet

4. 4 ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH EAST AFRICA JUNE 2015
+210
+360
-85
+490
million
Total
additions
+5
MOBILE SUBSCRIPTIONS
Mobile subscriptions in the Middle East and North East Africa have been increasing rapidly
Mobile penetration passed 100 percent in the more affluent
areas of the region, such as the Gulf countries, while less
affluent countries with higher populations (for example
Pakistan, Yemen and South Sudan), still have much lower
mobile penetration at 75 percent, 65 percent and
25 percent, respectively.
The region as a whole had around 680 million mobile
subscriptions at the end of 2014. Between 2014 and 2020 it
is forecast that mobile subscriptions will grow at a compound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6 percent, amounting to
around 970 million subscriptions by the end of 2020.
GSM dominates mobile subscriptions in the
region, while WCDMA/HSPA will be the most
popular in 2020
Around 75 percent of subscriptions are still GSM/EDGE.
This is because a large proportion of lower income
consumers have handsets that only work with that
technology. Some people only use GSM as they don’t
subscribe to a data plan, despite having multi-access
technology handsets. GSM will continue to be the most
commonly used mobile technology in the region up until
2020, when WCDMA/HSPA will take over. By 2020 it will
account for over 40 percent of total subscriptions,
up from almost 25 percent in 2014.
Around 40 percent of countries in the region have
launched LTE, but the technology only accounts for
around 1 percent of subscriptions, most of which are
concentrated in the Gulf countries. However, LTE
subscriptions are expected to triple during 2015 and
reach 210 million by the end of 2020, equating to
around 20 percent of all mobile subscriptions.
970
480
20202012 2014 2016 20182010
Mobile subscriptions, Middle East and North East Africa, split per technology (million)
LTE/WCDMA/GSM WCDMA/GSM
GSM/EDGE-only CDMA-only
0
200
400
600
800
1,000
1,200
In 2020
WCDMA/HSPA
subscriptions will
overtake GSM

5. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH EAST AFRICA JUNE 2015 ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT 5
Smartphone adoption varies between different countries
The Gulf, and especially the United Arab Emirates
(UAE) and Qatar, have some of the highest smartphone
adoption rates in the world, while Pakistan, Afghanistan,
and North East African countries lag behind.
As inexpensive smartphones become abundant and
mobile broadband rollouts accelerate, smartphone
subscriptions will increase in less affluent countries.
At the end of 2014, there were around 120 million
smartphone subscriptions. By the end of 2020,
this number will increase to 380 million, accounting
for 40 percent of mobile phone subscriptions.
LTE subscriptions
are expected to triple during 2015
0
200
600
400
800
1,200
1,000
Mobile subscriptions, Middle East and North East Africa,
split per device (million)
Basic phones Smartphones Mobile PCs, tablets and routers
2016 2018 20202014 20192013 20172012 201520112010
Note: A mobile subscription is defined as a SIM card (or equivalent) with a device capable of using the technology, in a network that offers the service
40%
of mobile phone
subscriptions
will be
smartphones
17%
of mobile phone
subscriptions
are
smartphones

6. 6 ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH EAST AFRICA JUNE 2015
14X
growth in
mobile data
traffic between
2014 and
2020
Mobile Traffic
Source: Ericsson ConsumerLab, Turkey Smartphone study (2014)
Base: 3G smartphone users
Services used most on a weekly basis in Turkey
Percentage of all users who use these
services on a weekly basis
Smartphone owners show intensive usage behavior
Data-intensive utility, communication and entertainment
services are commonly used by smartphone owners.
The graph below shows the percentage of smartphone
users in Turkey who access certain data services on
a weekly basis. This usage leads to significant volumes
of data being consumed. As a result, 40 percent of these
users say that they would like to have unlimited data plans
and 41 percent say they would increase their mobile data
volume if the quality of service was better.
Total mobile traffic will continue
to increase in the coming years
Mobile traffic in the Middle East and North East Africa
is expected to reach 1,700 PetaBytes (PB) per month
by the end of 2020 – around 13 times more than in
2014. Mobile voice traffic will continue to rise slightly
by a CAGR of 6 percent between 2014 and 2020.
Mobile data traffic increased by around
70 percent in 2014 from the previous year
It is expected to rise by a CAGR of around
55 percent between 2014 and 2020. The amount
of data used monthly by each active smartphone
will increase substantially from an average of
0.8 GB in 2014, to around 5 GB in 2020.
Mobile data traffic, Middle East and North East Africa,
split per device (PetaBytes/month)
1,700
PB/month
10
PB/month
202020142012 201820162010
Mobile PCs, tablets
and mobile routers
Smartphones
Mobile traffic, Middle East and North East Africa
(PetaBytes/month)
0 0
200 200
400 400
600 600
800 800
1,000 1,000
1,200 1,200
1,400 1,400
1,600 1,600
1,800 1,800
2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020
Data Voice
Social
networking
Internet
downloads
Upload
pictures/
photos
Internet
calls
Mobile
games
Tethering
Instant
messaging
Video
streaming
73%
87%
75%
91% 84%
71%
55%
86%

7. MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH EAST AFRICA JUNE 2015 ERICSSON MOBILITY REPORT 7
There will be a significant uptake of high
speed mobile technologies in the region
WCDMA/HSPA and LTE will drive growth in mobile data
traffic and mobile data subscriptions, mainly due to:
More connected users in highly populated countries
The availability of more affordable smartphones
More indoor users changing their preferred connection
from Wi-Fi to LTE
Video as the top content driving mobile data
traffic growth
Actions for growth
To facilitate a more connected future, it is essential
that operators continue to improve quality of service,
and work on further enhancing their data plan
offerings, especially in markets where consumers are
cost-sensitive. Also, it is imperative that governments
and regulators who are actively following the WRC-154
agenda continue to secure additional spectrum resources
to support the forecasted growth in mobile broadband
traffic. Regional harmonization of spectrum allocation
would ensure benefit from economies of scale.
For slower
networks, location
determines users’
connectivity
preferences
Network speed has a significant
effect on user behavior
The figure below shows Saudi Arabian smartphone data
users’ preference for using mobile broadband versus
Wi-Fi. The results are divided into whether a user is on
a slower mobile network or a faster mobile network, and
their connection preferences while indoors and outdoors.
User profiles are very similar regardless of network speed;
however, the enhanced user experience on faster mobile
networks has led to greater usage of mobile broadband.
Wi-Fi was the preferred mode of connection indoors for
users on slower mobile networks at 46 percent. Mobile
broadband became the preferred mode of connection
indoors over faster mobile networks, with only 29 percent
of users preferring Wi-Fi.
4
WRC-15: World Radiocommunication Conference 2015
A good mobile broadband experience across locations leads to higher mobile broadband usage
Smartphone users on
slower mobile networks
Smartphone users on
faster mobile networks
Source: Ericsson ConsumerLab, Life in the Fast Line, Saudi Arabia study (2014)
Base: Mobile broadband smartphone users in Saudi Arabia, aged 15–69
Prefers Wi-Fi most of the time Prefers mobile broadband most of the time
54%
Outdoors OutdoorsIndoors Indoors
16%
46%
19%
18%
48%
29%
34%
Over
faster mobile
networks, mobile
broadband is the
preferred mode of
connection
indoors

8. EAB-15:026359
© Ericsson AB 2015
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