stc participates in ‘Telecom Review Leaders’ Summit 2022’ and receives award for its 5G infrastructure

stc has participated in the ‘Telecom Review Leaders’ Summit 2022’, one of the largest C-level industry gatherings, bringing together leaders of the ICT industry and government from around the world. stc’s executives, represented by the CEO, Eng. Maziad Alharbi and the CTO, Eng. Fahad Al Ali, joined two panel discussions during the summit, sharing their views on key topics related to the industry and economy. On the last day of the summit, an award ceremony was held where stc won the ‘Best Middle Eastern 5G Infrastructure Deployment’.
Held from December 7th to the 8th at the Intercontinental Hotel in Dubai Festival City, the summit provided industry leaders with an opportunity to discuss important topics, share their views, and listen to the opinions of other market leaders. The summit aimed to provide valuable insights on some of the most trending and innovative concepts within the ICT sector. stc’s participation in the summit builds on its strategy to participate in platforms that showcase the Company’s extensive experience and progress, while simultaneously forming relationships with innovative players within the market.
Engineer Maziad Alharbi, Chief Executive Officer of stc, participated in ‘The ICT Leaders’ panel discussion which shed light on government expectations from ICT leaders to enhance digital services, transform the ease of network access, as well as how to keep up with expanding technology demand and retain an expanding qualified workforce in today’s world. Alharbi, alongside other industry CEOs and executives, shared their views while touching on key points within each topic.
On the other hand, engineer Fahad Abdul Rahman Al Ali, Chief Technology Officer of stc, shared his views on the topics discussed during ‘The “potion” for the right infrastructure deployment’ panel discussion. The topics discussed included a comparison between 5G and fiber, the pros and cons of infrastructure sharing, an overview of the right infrastructure investments, as well as the importance of tower management in 5G. While covering some of the topics, Al Ali shared some of the milestones and challenges in stc’s journey to building its innovative 5G infrastructure and nationwide 5G deployment with panelists and the audience.
As part of the summit and during the Excellence Awards ceremony , stc was awarded the prestigious ‘Best 5G Infrastructure Deployment’ award, in recognition of the Company deployment of advanced 5G infrastructure solutions in the region. In 2019, stc was the first operator to deploy nationwide 5G coverage at the C-band, while providing advanced technical solutions to strengthen its 5G offerings. The Company then launched a 5G end-to-end Standalone (SA) network and an advanced billing system in 2021 with the ability to support both 5G Non-Stand Alone (NSA) and 5G Stand Alone (SA). This year, stc became the first operator in the region to launch the first fully converged core network which supports not only 5G SA and 5G NSA architecture, but also 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. While these are a few of the notable milestones achieve, the award reflects the accomplishments stc has accumulated over the years with regards to its innovative network.
Commenting on stc’s participation in the summit, Alharbi said, “Our strategy at stc is fueled by our pioneer mindset that enables us to explore new innovations and technologies that can enhance the experience for our valued customers. Upon participating in platforms that bring together leaders within our industry, we can share valuable insights with one another and discuss important topics that are impacting our industry. In this regard, I would like to thank the organizers for putting together a great event that drives innovation within our industry, as well as our fellow peers for their critical participation, and the audience for attending.”
Alharbi touched on some of the initiatives the Company embarked on at an early stage, which have provided fruitful returns, positioning the Company to where it is today. Prior to the pandemic, stc had initiated its own digital transformation strategy, while investing in developing and expanding its 5G infrastructure. This in return supported the Company in navigating turbulent times that erupted due to the Covid-19 breakout in 2020. The Company is now recognized for its innovativeness within 5G and the ICT sector, as well as its position in the market as an enable of digital transformation. Through its specialized business arm, solutions by stc, and the acquisition of e-portal holding, the Company can deploy innovative and new-to-market solutions in minimal time and cost-efficient strategies that support their unique objectives.
Alharbi added, “stc’s journey within the telecom and digital solutions industries has been an exceptional one with great milestones and challenges that we had to overcome, especially through disruptions. Participating in key events within the industry falls in line with our strategy to enable digital transformation and enrich our customer’s journey. Through its strategic investments across its core functions, stc has successfully evolved into a pioneer offering digital, cloud, internet of things (IOT), data centers, as well-advanced IT solutions within the integrated communications technology sector. stc can now support the vision of enterprises, government, and SMEs through innovative solutions that are custom tailored to suit their diverse needs and requirements.”
Alharbi concluded, “For the first time since its inception, stc leads the Kuwaiti telecom sector in Q3 2022 with a revenue market share of 39.8%. stc managed to achieve this growth in revenue with the significant support from the increase in its customer base which has reached 2.3 million customers by the end of September 2022. The revenue was also attributed to other factors and initiatives that were implemented by the Company to support its core functions. In line with our digital transformation strategy, we will continue to invest in evolving our 5G infrastructure while exploring the latest development in this digital era to support our pioneering mindset and leading position in the local and regional markets.”