Mobile marketing takes off with a storm

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Over the past 3-4 years, the market has shifted from the dominance of state-owned monopoly operators to a substantially more competitive and complex marketplace with the arrival of new entrants.

Consequently, the market is witnessing very high penetration levels as due to the rapid subscriber growth in emerging markets such as the Middle East and Africa, Nokia have amended their forecast to expect 2 billion mobile subscribers globally by 2008, from 1.6 billion in 2005.

Parallel to this, customer loyalty, market share and the average revenue per user (ARPU) have become the top priority for telecom operators in the Middle East. 'In order to achieve these objectives the leading Telcom Operators such as Etisalat in UAE or MTC Vodafone in Kuwait are enriching their portfolio of products and services with, for instance, WAP, MMS, GPRS, IVR & SMS based value added services and at the same time launching the Third Generation Network (3G) to enhance the end users experience with video messaging or video streaming, positioning, de facto, their customers at the centre of their strategy', said Dr. Amor Ben Dhia, former Business Development Manager, Etisalat and current President & CEO of Cellempower, a business recently established at Dubai Internet City.

'In the mobile marketing arena, the mission of Cellempower is to improve lifestyle through technology. Our wide range of products and services, allow us to be the preferred value added service provider in the region. We offer comprehensive end-to-end solutions to telecom operators, content providers, handset manufacturers, TV stations, banks, airlines and FMCGs' said Mr. Bharat Jashanmal, Chairman of the Board at Cellempower and a shareholder.

Statistics have shown that between 2003 and 2005 wireless advertising will grow from a $4 billion to a $16 billion industry that serves over 500 million wireless data consumers worldwide. 'The marketing sector certainly reflects this marked growth in wireless communications which is climbing almost parallel to the growth in the industry', said Mr. Jihad El Eit, General Manager, Mobile Value Added Services for Cellempower Ltd.

The success of wireless advertising stems from its individualized approach, where it is sent to consumers on a one-to-one basis, allowing it to be customised, updated and refreshed as opposed to traditional mass advertising through TV , radio or press. Cost has also played an important role in the success of wireless advertising as it is significantly more cost effective than mass communication. Research has shown that 76% of consumers considered SMS information services added value, and 62% appreciated receiving targeted messages based on their profile. 'At Cellempower, we are aware that people find it intrusive to receive spam, therefore, with our customers we strive to maintain a high level of ethical communication where we ensure that the privacy of the end users is respected at all times', commented Mr. Jashanmal.