Zain Group discusses ways to leverage mobile data boom at successful Technology Conference 2012

Mobilk - Zain Group, a pioneer in mobile telecommunications in 8 markets across the Middle East and North Africa, concluded its Zain Technology Conference in Dubai last week, describing the event as a resounding success.

The conference brought Zain Group and its operating companies together with the Groups leading technology providers and partners for three days of interactive discussions, presentations, technical solutions demos, and information exchange, helping to align technological outlooks. 

Mobile broadband and the huge rise in broadband traffic over telecom networks was a central theme of discussion at the conference.

Other pressing topics included the role of OTT (over the top) players in the telecom ecosystem; the need to further optimize radio and core networks for the dramatic increase in data traffic that is forecast in the coming years; the monetization of data applications; as well as ways in which to draw closer to customers and improve the customer experience further.

Zain used the Zain Technology Conference to highlight its Ghaduna Zain (Zain Tomorrow) strategy, which comprises a number of initiatives currently underway in the organization aimed at driving innovation. 

The operator has established well-defined partnerships with leading telecom vendors; the aim of which is for them to support Zain in the implementation of its compelling strategic initiatives. At the center of all of Zains efforts is for it to continually improve its customer service, and exceed the expectations of customer base at every contact point.

In a panel discussion hosted at the event and titled How can Zain handle the data boom?, participants acknowledged the profound impact the data revolution has had on traditional telecom services, and various few points on how to manage the surge and benefit from it were discussed.

Zain Group CTO, Hisham Allam, said, "The Zain Technology Conference turned out to be everything we wanted it to be and more. With more than 39 of our suppliers and partners present, this was a great show of support from them, and a fantastic opportunity for us to all brainstorm, look ahead, and focus on what needs to be done in order to achieve even greater results in the future."

Allam continued, "We are well aware that the telecom markets across the region are becoming more competitive, but there remain great opportunities in data as well as voice services for those operators that implement effective strategies. At Zain our aim is to align the choices and developments we are making now with the way in which we believe the industry is evolving, in order to remain relevant and close to our customers."

In a separate panel discussion titled, How to change the name of the game? Allam described how sustaining current levels of revenue is proving to be a significant challenge for operators across the region, and how Zain and other competitors need to implement efficient network Opex and Capex strategies in order to remain competitive. 

Zain is thus looking to its technological prowess in order to differentiate it from competitors, though at the same time, is not looking to confuse customers with technical aspects of how services are provided.

Allam said, "We are a commercially-oriented company that utilizes the right technologies to provide services to our customers in an efficient and effective manner. We also look to leverage our competencies wherever we are able to, so that the new areas that we branch into are synergistic to our existing operations."

In closing, Allam said, "He believes there is much to be optimistic about going forward, and that Zain, together with its partners shall continue to be communications forces in the region."

Allam concluded, "The Zain Technology Conference has reinforced many of the initiatives the company has been following, and we are reinvigorated by the discussions we were able to have during the three-day conference. We look forward to learning more and interacting more in such events in the future."

The Zain Technology Conference 2012 also hosted an exhibition for Zain partners in which they were able to showcase their latest services and solutions. Among the most prominent partners present at the exhibition were, Ericsson, Huawei, and Nokia Siemens Networks.