Internet making inroads in Mongolia as mobile takes off

Details: James Barton; Category: Trends & Forecasts; 30 August 2012; 9309 views

Since the Mongolian Government's telecommunications reform program in the mid-1990s, there has been effective liberalisation of all market segments, partial privatisation of the fixed-line incumbent operator, Mongolia Telecom, and establishment of an independent regulator...

Competition is in place for both fixed and mobile telephony including local, long-distance and international, internet, VoIP and VSATs. The internet market is a small but growing sector. Government initiatives such as the e-Mongolia National Program are helping to spread internet awareness and usage throughout the country.

The fixed-line network is declining rapidly while the mobile phone market has undergone a remarkable boom. The national policy has been to have a competitive telecommunications segment with two CDMA and two GSM mobile telephone service operators. Accordingly, two additional mobile licences were awarded in 2005/06 to Unitel (GSM) and rural mobile operator G-Mobile (CDMA).

As part of the transition to a market-based economy, Mongolia committed itself to modernising its telecommunications network and steadily introducing advanced communications services. The government considers national infrastructure development as a high priority and, in particular, it has focused on the development of the telecoms sector, seeing it as central to the overall development of the country, the improvement of living standards, increasing foreign investment, boosting tourism and private sector development, and implementation of innovative changes.