Telecom & Digital
Altai Consulting is a recognised authority in the telecommunication and digital sectors in emerging markets having advised operators (mobile & fixed), ISPs, digital players, television channels, regulators and governments across more than 30 countries. Altai Consulting’s expertise centers around operational and marketing issues helping our clients make the most of the technological changes reshaping those industries and markets.
Segment Identification and Geo-marketing Tools for a Satellite Communications Company in Eight Sub-Saharan Africa Countries
In a context of rapid 4G deployment in Sub-Saharan Africa, grasping the potential of increasing data consumption and of a more sophisticated demand in poorly covered areas requires a tailor-made approach for satellite operators. Altai Consulting was contracted by a satellite communications company to provide segment identification and to develop geo-marketing tools to allow for multi-criteria target detection. Altai Consulting combined field research as well as data analytics from sister company Masae Analytics to produce granular analyses and embed the results in action-oriented tools enabling the client to directly identify and access target customers.
Strategic Advisory for Mobile Network Operators in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia
Altai Consulting supports mobile network operators in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia in the development of winning strategies. Our engagements cover a wide range of areas such as market sizing and positioning, product development, road-to-market and distribution strategies, assessment of customer experience (with a focus on customer journey), performance of portfolio, pricing and business planning. Our approach combines a mix of in-depth immersion in the markets we cover to capture local knowledge and insights, data analytics and the formulation of actionable recommendations to our clients.
Market Segmentation for Mobile Network Operators in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia
Altai Consulting conducts market segmentations of the telecom sector all over Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. Our methodologies combine usage-based information as well as socio-demographics in order to build the most meaningful market segments. The work consists of reaching out to large cohorts of interviewees in the targeted countries to grasp the realities on the ground. Then, robust analytics are performed using a framework relying on four successive steps: variable categorisation, algorithm calibration (via two-step clustering), segment interpretation and decision-tree design. The outcomes are the definitions of meaningful, homogenous and actionable market segments along with marketing and product strategies to best capture value for the clients.
Assessing the Potential for Demand Aggregation of Telecom Services for Aid Delivery in Sub-Saharan Africa
While mobile-enabled communications channels (mobile channels) can help deliver services to the underserved and support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), many projects do not scale beyond the pilot stage, falling short of their intended reach and impact. The assumption was that demand aggregation could address the low volumes arising from individual Non-Government Organisation (NGO) deployments that make it difficult to arrange volume pricing. Altai was commissioned to test this assumption through comprehensive fieldwork, build a market model for mobile channels use by Aid players and design a white paper.
Mapping of the Future Internet Industry in Ghana for a Pan-African Digital Operator
Africa stands out as a promising market for Internet. The sharp increase in demand observed over the past few years is expected to continue and is driven by several robust “macro-trends” such as demographic dynamism, robust economic growth, improved level of education and more affordable devices. If demand is increasing, it has been also the case for supply leading to drastic price reductions. Africa has experienced major upgrades to its broadband infrastructure, with new sub-marine cables bringing down the cost of international connectivity. In this challenging context, Altai Consulting has been contracted to conduct extensive fieldwork among SMEs and large corporations in Ghana to understand the supply and demand for internet services and establish appropriate solutions for the industry. The deliverables have been a strategic workshop with the top management of the operators to assess the medium and long term strategy on these markets in terms of organic growth and potential acquisitions.
Conjoint Analysis for Mobile Operators in Several Middle Eastern Countries
In the context of decline in MTR (Mobile Termination Rates) and considering the need to develop improved price positioning by market segment, Altai Consulting has supported mobile operators in several Middle Eastern countries to redefine their pricing strategy based on hard data and market scenarios. The work consisted of testing the impact of proposed portfolios on the market leveraging an ad hoc market simulator to decide on the specifics of the offering to launch based on i) share of preference (a proxy for the market share), ii) ability to meet strategic objectives, iii) revenue generation and iv) gross margin maximisation. The projects have allowed the clients to best leverage market opportunities ahead of competition.
Mobile Gender Gap Study in 12 Low and Middle Income Countries Worldwide
Altai Consulting has been appointed by the GSMA to conduct a study on the “mobile gender gap”. The study is a refresh of the GSMA’s report “Women & Mobile: A Global Opportunity” that was launched by Hillary Clinton. This new study examines the "gender gap" in mobile phone ownership and usage in low and middle income countries and looks at the barriers and opportunities for mobile operators and other stakeholders to closing this gap. Our approach included primary research in 12 countries worldwide, mobile operator data to enrich the analysis, and interviews with experts from different stakeholder groups such as industry, academics, thought leaders and the development community.
Formulation of Road-to-Market Strategies for “Value Added Services” (VAS) and Identification of Potential Partnerships in Kenya for a Global Telecom Operator
For one of the world’s largest telecom operators, Altai Consulting has conducted a prospective study in Kenya to define future product offerings and develop associated road-to-market strategies with a plan to establish partnerships between the operator and players from other sectors on “value added services” (VAS). These opportunities range from B2C services to B2B and B2B2C services in sectors such as health, education, ICT and agriculture. The deliverables of the project have been strategic recommendations to the client substantiated by product and services roadmaps targeting Sub-Saharan African countries.
Feasibility Study for a mHub Project in Central Asia – The World Bank / infoDev
Altai Consulting has conducted a feasibility study for the World Bank / InfoDev to foster the development of a mobile applications sector in Afghanistan. The assignment included a full review of the sector ecosystem, an assessment of the potential and needs of the main actors, with a deep dive on tech businesses and mobile applications. The work led to the formulation of a set of recommendations and business plans on the way forward to create a mobile applications incubator looking at different models. Altai’s work on this has been published by the World Bank.