DUBLIN–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The “North Korea – Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband – Statistics and Analyses” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering.
North Korea’s mobile services to fall under total state control following Koryolink’s demise
Egyptian mobile operator Orascom was the private sector partner with government-owned North Korea Post and Telecommunication Company (NKPTC) that set up the country’s 3G mobile network, Koryolink, in 2008 following the demise of the Sunnet GSM service that same year. Koryolink’s 25-year license gave it exclusive rights for the first four years along with a block on any foreign investors from entering the market for a further three years.
Orascom reportedly invested the hefty sum of $400 million to build infrastructure in Pyongyang and a few other major cities, however the high cost of handsets (designed and built in North Korea to allow the government to have full access to all of the communications going through the devices) meant that only the most wealthy (or privileged) could afford to subscribe. Mobile penetration, as a result, has only been able to reach 19%.
Nevertheless, Orascom was able to produce a reasonably healthy return from its venture – or at least it did so on paper. In 2012 (the last year of its monopoly period), Koryolink generated around $360 million in profit. Unfortunately for the majority shareholder, the North Korean government prevented Orascom from repatriating its share of the profit for the full value. Desperately in need of foreign exchange as international sanctions started to bite, the government demanded Orascom to repatriate profits at the unofficial (black market) exchange rate – roughly worth about one-hundredth of the actual amount.
The Orascom holding company in Egypt announced in November 2021 that it had, in effect, given up on North Korea and had written off its share of Koryolink in its stock market filing. Negotiations are continuing for Koryolink to become merged with one of the other state-owned mobile operators (Byol), but the final outcome inevitably involves all of North Korea’s mobile services moving under state control.
Key Topics Covered:
Key statistics
Regional Asia market comparison
Country overview
Covid-19 and its impact on the telecom sector
Telecommunications market
Regulatory environment
Mobile market
Digital economy
Digital media
Fixed network market
Telecommunications infrastructure
Companies Mentioned
For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/ca1fb
About ResearchAndMarkets.com
ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world’s leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.
Contacts
ResearchAndMarkets.com
Laura Wood, Senior Press Manager
press@researchandmarkets.com
For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470
For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630
For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900
ZHENGZHOU, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In central China’s Zhengzhou city, visiting museums has become a new trend of…
Mollie Pearce, star of the UK reality TV show ‘The Traitors’ who was diagnosed with…
QBA 2024 Announces 35 Finalists Competing for Hong Kong's Highest Honour in the Building Industry…
SINGAPORE - Media OutReach Newswire - 17 May 2024 - UXLINK, the Web3 social platform…
DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Australia Construction Market Size, Trend Analysis by Sector, Competitive Landscape and Forecast to…
Three-part podcast interview features The mechanism of action of ANKTIVA® activating NK cells, Killer T…
