YouGov Siraj reports on UAE mobile service movements

According to the study, 68% of the UAE use Etisalat as their sole mobile service provider, as opposed to 6% who indicated Du. The remaining 26% said they use both. When asked to indicate which they consider to be their main service provider (the service provider whose services they use most of the time), Etisalat's figure bumped up 11 points to 79%.

"While these figures aren't surprising at first glance," says Amir Bozorgzadeh, Business Development Associate at YouGov Siraj, "it is when we look at a question further along in the survey when we discover something far more interesting."

When respondents were asked if in the future they would consider switching from their current mobile phone service provider 57% indicated they would probably or definitely do so. In fact, 22% indicated that they would 'definitely' consider the change.

"This is certainly a clear signal that albeit assumptions that Etisalat maintains a strong, monopoly-like, position in the market, there is apt room for du to aggressively take market share should its marketing mix continue to exploit the current gap in consumer loyalty," says Bozorgzadeh. "Etisalat, for its part, will have to stand steady on its toes and summon up innovative approaches to bolster its current position at the top of the hill."