Du, the UAE’s second telecoms operator, could finally equal rival Etisalat for mobile phone market share by the end of 2012, analysts at Frost & Sullivan have said.
Jonas Zelba, research analyst, Information and Communication Technologies Practice, predicted Du would continue to to cut into Etisalat’s dominance this year.
The operator, which currently has a 46 percent of the UAE mobile market, said five million people use its services.
According to Zelba, an additional investment of $408.3m in building faster mobile networks will further increase du’s value proposition in the market.
“Once the infrastructure is upgraded it will have a sizable impact knowing the high uptake of smartphones and high mobile data usage in the UAE.
“If du is able to sustain its growth and existing subscribers’ base, Frost & Sullivan expects to see equal mobile market share between du and Etisalat by the end of 2012,” Zelba said in a statement issued by Frost & Sullivan.
Earlier this week, du said its full year profit declined 16 percent as royalties to the government increased.
The Dubai-based firm, also known as Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co, said net income declined to AED1.01bn ($275m) from AED1.31bn a year earlier.
That profit figure was affected by a one-off AED268m charge relating to a change in estimate for 2009 royalty payments.
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