A review of the current internet market in the country Исполнитель

A review of the current internet market in the country

       Prompt development of the world telecommunication market in full scale is reflected in rates of ICT growth in Uzbekistan. With gradual improvement of social - economic condition of the population, and also as a result of realization projects on modernization and development of a telecommunication network of republic of service of access to the Internet become more and more accessible for a wide range of users. Also throughput of the access channel to the international networks of data transmission is increased (Figure 2.1.1).

Figure 2.1.1The overall rate of use of international information networks

       In connection with the development of the telecommunications services in the country is constantly increasing the number of operators and Internet service providers - as of October 1, 2009, the number of businesses that provide services to access the Internet, was 921, while the total number of access points to the Internet the country was 96,312 and  the number of providers and operators of Internet services and data networks, there are 903, and the total number of access points in the country reached 968 as the data of first quarter,2011 (Figure 2.1.2). In comparison, at the beginning of 2002 the number of companies was only 88.

Figure 2.1.2The number of providers and operators of internet services and data networks

Despite the fact that most providers and operators are located in Tashkent, has been a steady increase in the number of providers and service operators in the regions of the country, particularly in Samarkand and Bukhara regions. State Statistics Committeedata show that in 2008 increased the number of ports, transport access to data networks, including the Internet. During this period, the number of transport port reached 3,949 units with 130% growth from in 2007.  The most intensively growing number of subscriber ports - up to 322,274 across the country. Nevertheless, the majority of access ports are located in Tashkent - 99% of subscribers and 96% of transport ports throughout the country, significant increase in traffic and subscriber ports observed in Bukhara, Samarkand, Ferghana, Syr Darya and Tashkent regions by the end of 2010.

Along with increasing bandwidth and the increasing number of operators and service providers, significant rate increases the number of subscribers of dial-up and broadband Internet access. According to State Statistics Committee of Uzbekistan, on 01.01.2009 the number of users connected to transmission networks data[1], consisting of 840 191. This means that the 2008 increase in the total number of subscribers increased by 2.5 times (258%) compared to 2007.Increasing the number of subscribers was observed in many areas of the country, but it should be noted that this was achieved mainly due to increase of subscribers in Tashkent,which amounted to more than 99% of the total number of subscribers of the country in 2008.

Considering the dynamics of growth of subscribers connected to the Internet, provided by official statistics, one can note a positive growth in total subscribers of Internet users in the country more than doubled to 595,187. This means that on average, for every 1 000 people actively of population has 36.96 Internet users. This dynamic development also indicates a gradual transition of Internet users to more modern technology to access transmission networks data.

If we consider the dynamics of growth of Internet subscribers by region of the country, then again it may be noted that the increase in the number of subscribers is mainly accounted for by the city of Tashkent. 
State Statistics Committee of Uzbekistan statistics show that with the increasing number of Internet users, have improved economic performance and market these services in Uzbekistan. During 2008, total revenues from sales of telecommunications services reached over 44.8 billion soums (about 32 million U.S. dollars), representing 19% growth rate for 2007.

Total sales of services of Internet access in the country in 2008 reached the sum of more than 17 billion soums (approximately U.S. $ 12 million), an increase of 2.28 times compared with the annual rate of 200,718 years. Although in many areas of the country saw an increase of indicators for the proceeds from the sale of services of Internet access, the bulk of revenues (96%) amounted to revenue in the capital. 

Trend shows that the demand for household Internet access services in the regions of the country is also increasing. Estimated UzACI the beginning of October 2009, the total number of Internet users in Uzbekistan exceeded 2.6 million and amounted to 9,3% of the total resident population. According to the World Bank the figure for 2007 was set at 4% 20. ICT development plan of the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan stipulated that by the end of 2010 the number of Internet users would increase to 3.4 million, but time has showed that it has reached to 7,4 million in the beginning of the 2011and continuing to increase to 7,55 million in April, 2011.(Figure 2.1.3).

Figure 2.1.3The number of users of the internet in Uzbekistan (thousand people)

In Uzbekistan, the mobile Internet, following the global trend, is sharply gaining popularity and has in some cases, staking a claim to part alternatives to wired access to the Internet.The reasons for the growth of mobile Internet in Uzbekistan are the same as in other countries - the emergence of new technologies (WiMAX), availability of cell phones that support the standards and technologies to connect to the Internet, and the desire of mobile operators to diversify sources of income due to falling revenues from traditional services and proximity to the limits of expansion subscriber base (saturated mobile market). To date, the mobile Internet in Uzbekistan seems to all cellular operators and traditional Internet service provider.

In Uzbekistan today has the highest rate of growth in the number of mobile subscribers in CIS countries, and according to www.comnews.ru, revenues from mobile services in the first half of 2009 compared with the same period in 2008 increased more by 34%. A year earlier, in the first half of 2008, this figure grew by 86% compared to the same period of 2007. In terms of 2010, this trend showed a further gain of 32% according to “Avesta Research”. Despite the highest rate of growth in the number of mobile subscribers in CIS countries, income growth of mobile services rendered fall. The main driver of subscriber growth is the lowest cost of 1 minute of talk among the 12 countries of the region that is the reason for the lag income growth on the growth of mobile subscribers. This, in turn, affects the decision of the operators Mobile to expand the list of services, offering new value-added services to their subscribers.

Initial attempts to develop a service to Internet access via cell phone were taken in 2004 by Uzdunrobita, although the protocol WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), allowing you to view wap version of Internet resources was first introduced in 1997.However, the wide popularity of this method of Internet access has not received due to expensive ($ 0.1 / minute seansa31 at a cost of $ 0.54 per hour access by the method of dial-up), low speed (9.6 Mbit/s33), a small number of Internet resourcesengineered to browse through WAP, and the initial stage of cellular communication. Therefore, it was impossible to talk about the mobile Internet in Uzbekistan as a significant phenomenon until the deployment of 3G networks in 2007-2008. Beginning in 2007, cellular operators in Uzbekistan are beginning to deploy next generation networks, particularly 3G, and begin to focus on the idea of ​​"additional" services and thus provide a new source of revenue and to fight for a niche clientele. 

The development of cellular technology in Uzbekistan, as in many other countries, goes through various scenarios. If one group of operators chose to develop the "European" way, GSM-GPRS-EDGE-UMTS - LTE (MTS, Beeline, U-Cell), the other team chose the "American" way of development – cdmaOne - CDMA-2000- EV-DO (Perfectum Mobile, UzMobile).

If we consider the number of subscribers of cellular communication, in Uzbekistan, "European" technology is dominant. And the mobile phone operator MTS Uzbekistan and UCell introduced the newest standard LTE (long term evolution) in 2010. Pilot zone LTE in Tashkent, and has already received official permission to use the available bandwidth from the company to build a network. Technology standard LTE, which is positioned as a new generation of communications 4G, provides a new level of bandwidth: LTE is theoretically allow for data rates from 100 Mbps to 326.4 Mbps from base station to user and from 50 Mbps to 86.4 Mbps in the reverse direction. In addition, the LTE networks achieved a significant reduction in signal delay time (less than 5 milliseconds for small packages), which suggests that the mass provision of services such as online gaming, mobile social networks, mobile TV in high definition.

Unlike standard LTE, which while still at the stage of implementation in Uzbekistan, the other, according to some experts, the competing standard WiMAX, which enables high-speed mobile and fixed wireless Internet is already in commercial use.The first mobile Internet appears in 2008 with entry into the market of Uzbekistan of Super IMAX, operating under the brand EVO. This company started to provide services to fixed and mobile Internet access based on WiMAX standard, 802.16d and 802.16e (operates at 2.3 GHz), respectively. For the sake of completeness of coverage and other technologies for the mobile Internet, presented in Uzbekistan, it is necessary to note the existence of Radio Ethernet, which was first presented in 1997. Radio Ethernet technology allows connection to the Internet without the usual cable network and if necessary, to move within a certain radius. Currently, the service access to the Internet using this technology provides only two providers UzNet and Sarkor - Telecom. Due to the limited radius of action, this segment is not included in the analysis. 
According to a review of ICT development for 2006-2008, conducted by UNDP in Uzbekistan, 2.33% of the respondents use the Internet via mobile phone. 
An interesting fact is that the popularity of this kind of access to the Internet in rural areas more than in the city – 6.5% to 1%.Despite the small number of subscribers of mobile Internet in Uzbekistan, the growth rate times the estimated, and this segment of the wireless Internet has enormous potential for development. 

According to the State committee on de-monopolization, support of competition and business services market of mobile Internet access provided by mobile operators in Uzbekistan in 2008 increased more than 4.5 times. The volume of mobile Internet services in Uzbekistan in 2008 amounted to 5.5 billion soums, against 1.2 billion soums in 2007. Number of mobile subscribers who use the mobile Internet access, according to the Committee, amounted to 1.3 million by December 2008, which is10,3% of the total number of cellular subscribers, whereas over 4 million users in 2011, constituting more than half of the total internet users. In this case, the majority of subscribers are concentrated in Tashkent and several large cities. 

Uzbekistan in 2011, plans to increase the capacity of international Internet access to 4 times and increase the number of Internet users through a fixed stationary contact with 3,0 million to 3,5 million users.