Late entrant mobile operators need to identify a 'white spot' in their markets.

1. Roland Berger's study: in markets with more than 80% mobile penetration at the time of the challengers' launch, the average market share for third entrants three years later was 16%
2. The actual market share per operator however, varies substantially: from a comfortable 42% to a paltry 1%
3. An analysis of 150 operators in three-operator markets confirms a strong relationship between market share and EBITDA margins
4. Operators which fail to achieve 10-15% market share often struggle to secure EBITDA margins around 20% which are needed to cover CAPEX investments, interest payments, and tax

Dubai, June 28, 2015

Roland Berger have published a study entitled "Succeeding as a telecom challenger – How to win facing strong competitors" which examines winning strategies for telecom challengers competing with at least two or more players. Looking at successful challengers' markets the study identifies key success factors needed to successfully compete with strong competitors.

Mobile telecom operators around the globe face the challenge of generating enough profits to recuperate their initial investments in spectrum licenses and network roll-outs, to cover the substantial recurring investments needed for new network technologies (e.g., 3G and 4G), and to improve their service quality. "Mobile operator challengers which enter markets with at least two players present have no guarantee of success – and many of them fall short of grabbing a large enough chunk of the subscriber base", says Kushal Shah, Managing Partner of Roland Berger Middle East.

"There is no 'one size fits all' for becoming a successful challenger, but the strongest performers tend to focus their efforts on capital/cost effectiveness, accentuated differentiation of products and services compared to the competition, and ensuring a regulatory framework that makes it possible for them to compete effectively", says Santiago Castillo, Principal of Roland Berger Middle East.

Based on successful players' efforts, struggling challengers in other markets need to ensure four key success factors to take market share: master the basics, bet on the future, ensure a favorable regulatory context and challenge the strategy.

Operators that do this will be sure to improve performance and to identify when yesterday's recipe for success is no longer fit for the market challenges of tomorrow. Challenging not only other operators but also their own strategy will help operators not only get ahead, but stay ahead.