Telecom Egypt CEO Mohamed al-Nawawy said the company has no alternative but to obtain mobile carrier licence in order to compete in the market. During a press conference held by the company on Wednesday, Nawawy said that the Egyptian mobile market comprises 25 percent of the total regional market with half a million subscribers annually, making it a prize for any foreign mobile company. Telecom Egypt, according to Nawawy, earlier offered a mobile service between 1996-1998 but it cannot compete without license, being a governmental telecommunications company, especially since the sector's revenues exceed 36 billion Egyptian pounds annually. Telecommunications Minister Khaled Negm recently received a delegation from the company and said that not obtaining the licence endangers the company, according to Nawawy. Nawawy added that the company submitted proposal to reduce internet prices but the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority postponed the issue in 2014. In related news, the company revealed results of its work during the first quarter of 2015 showing that it achieved its plans of fulfilling subscribers needs. The total revenues during the first three months reached 2.76 billion pounds, marking a 7.7 percent increase from the same duration last year. Results also indicated increase in number of high-speed internet users by 25.1 percent, compared to the same period in 2014, marking an increase of around 220,000 subscribers. Its market share reached 76.3 percent of the high-speed internet market. Source: Egypt Independent
