As a sustainable and innovative digital communications company, Zain aims to become the data provider of choice and continue our transformation to become a service provider that exceeds customers’ expectations, enabling them to enjoy a truly digital lifestyle.
During 2019, the company continued to invest in network upgrades and IT infrastructure to further expand coverage and increase data capacities whilst launching numerous appealing and innovative data-centric services across its operating markets.
The future is exciting for Zain customers as the company will be at the forefront of fulfilling customer expectations, delivering world-class mobile experiences to customers across retail and digital channels.
Zain Business (B2B) - Leveraging the latest technologies
A comprehensive ICT portfolio and a world-class after-sales service make Zain the operator of choice for both Governments and Enterprises. Zain Business divisions leverage the latest technologies to expand our mobile, fixed, IoT, Cloud, IT security and Datacenter propositions to meet customers’ evolving needs. In 2019, Zain rolled-out extensive 5G networks in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Zain Business was the first to launch 5G B2B offers in these markets, offering the highest mobile data speeds and performance to both Enterprise and Government customers.
In parallel to our extensive mobile portfolio; all Zain operations have successfully implemented a fixed data and voice strategy, which resulted in increasing our addressable market, growing revenues and lowering churn.
We have expanded our ICT portfolio to include Datacenters and new Cloud-based services, such as Co-location, Cloud VMs, Virtual Private Datacenters, Disaster Recovery and Business continuity.
Our Hosted and Managed Services Strategy aims to provide hosted applications that are targeted to deliver on industry specific needs, as well as multi-industry horizontal solutions that include VSaaS (Video Surveillance as a Service) and UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service).
2019 was a year of significant growth for Zain Business, consolidating Zain’s leadership position in the Government and Enterprise markets. This growth was fueled by growth in market share in SME segments, fixed offer expansion, successful completion of major IoT projects, as well as the development of Datacenter-based offers and the launch of our IT security portfolio.
Throughout the year, operations across the Zain footprint implemented significant projects - digitalizing the customer journey through the launch of new functionalities covering contracting, service delivery, bill payment, service management through to after-sales support. These projects resulted in increased customer satisfaction and decreased operational costs.
Saudi Arabia
5G
Zain was the pioneer in Saudi Arabia launching 5G offers for B2B customers. Leveraging on the widest 5G network in the Kingdom. Zain Government and Enterprise customers now enjoy superfast 5G mobile broadband
Fixed-mobile substitution portfolio expansion
Zain Business was a pioneer in 2017 when it launched 4G LTE leased lines to build Virtual Private Networks (VPN) and Direct Internet Access (DIA). In 2019, the symmetric and dedicated bandwidths went from a maximum of 4Mbps to 10Mbps. These services are provided over Zain’s 4G LTE Advanced network. By leveraging on our mobile assets to provide fixed-like services, Zain KSA can meet the needs of business customers, providing high-performance symmetric and dedicated bandwidth, with a 24 hour installation lead time.
Banking Sector
There are around 30 local and foreign banks serving retail and business customers in Saudi Arabia. These banks have over 2,000 branches and operate over 20,000 ATMs. Zain is helping banks to reduce costs and improve network performance by migrating their ATMs from VSAT to mobile technologies.
Government
Zain partnered with the Government sector, winning major telecom contracts with multiple ministries in Saudi Arabia, including the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Health.
NEOM
A key pillar of the Saudi Vision 2030, NEOM is a visionary project to create a new region that will include towns and cities spanning three countries. A USD 500 billion project, Neom will include ports, an enterprise zone, sports and entertainment areas, hosting over one million residents. Zain has been actively working with the rapidly growing city, starting with providing 5G coverage to NEOM airport, as well as providing high-speed internet and VPN services to various NEOM offices.
Fleet Management Services
Zain Business launched a fleet management and optimization solution targeting Enterprises and Governments covering both small and large fleets.
Qaddiya
This entertainment-based sports city is being constructed on the outskirts of Riyadh. Renowned theme park operator, Six Flag is one of the key developers of this mega city that is set to house over 300 recreational and educational facilities. Zain is working to provide 5G mobile coverage and data services to various organizations involved in the construction.
Retail M-POS
An end-to-end mobile payment solution, including payment terminals and mobile connectivity, targeting the retail industry.
Saudi IoT Forum, Riyadh
In February 2019, Zain participated in the Saudi IoT Forum and presented several smart solutions such as Fleet Management, Video Analytics, Smart Meters, and 5G powered robots.
E-visa project
The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Heritage (SCTH) recently launched an e-visa application to approve Saudi visitors’ visas in less than 10 minutes. During the first month of operation, more than a million applications were received. Zain Business provided connectivity and Cloud solutions to SCTH to manage its e-visa services.
AI and RPA Show, Riyadh
Zain showcased its 5G capabilities at the Artificial Intelligence and Robotic Process Automation show in Riyadh.
Kuwait
5G
In June 2019, Zain Kuwait was the first operator in the market to launch its 5G network and to offer mobile and fixed-mobile substitution offers tailored for B2B customers.
VSaaS (Video Surveillance as a Service)
The integrated VSaaS platform features a wide range of services on Zain’s secure Cloud, offering customers the convenience of easily accessing and managing their recordings anytime and anywhere. Zain’s integrated VSaaS platform features a wide range of cloud-based services, including video recording, storage, remote viewing, management alerts, cybersecurity, and more. Video processing and management are securely performed offsite via Zain’s Cloud in Kuwait.
Kuwait Oil and Gas Show and Conference (KOGS)
Zain showcased its Business services and solutions through its interactive booth at the KOGS Exhibition. The company showcased NXN and Microsoft’s analytics solutions using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML); NXN’s Smart District & Smart City Solutions, and Nokia’s training and inspection solutions using Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR). Zain’s solutions also featured Huawei’s 5G Robot for remote firefighting and gas leak control solutions; Zain Drone services for oil & gas infrastructure digital inspections; VSaaS (video surveillance as a service); LASILKI - a reliable and secured wireless Push-to-talk service (PTT) over 4G LTE technology; as well as superfast and secure Express Route solutions in collaboration with Microsoft, Oracle, and Amazon.
Datacenter certification by Uptime Institute
In May 2019, the Zain Kuwait Data center achieved M&O (Management and Operation) Data Center Certification from the Uptime Institute. This certifies that Zain’s data center operates at the highest international standards in relation to service reliability and consistency. Zain’s data center was evaluated across multiple standards and criteria, including its reliability as a service, state-of-the-art equipment, low risk, reduced downtime and operational efficiency.
Jordan
Bunker Datacenter
In September 2019, Zain Jordan inaugurated a world-class datacenter by transforming a military nuclear grade bunker into a high-security datacenter facility. The data center is a cornerstone of Zain’s ICT strategy, offering co-location, Cloud, virtual private data center and Business continuity services. The Bunker Datacenter is also home to Zain’s Network Operating Center, and Security Operating Center.
Push to Talk
Zain Jordan launched the PTT service and enhanced communications service designed for security forces; emergency services and large corporations that require a voice-based private network with one-to-many communications offering voice, video and location services.
Smart meters
Zain Jordan was successfully awarded a contract to provide connectivity to smart meter projects in Jordan, making it a market leader in this segment.
Iraq
Postpaid bundles
Zain Iraq launched innovative, personalized postpaid B2B bundles, fulfilling customer needs across multiple segments.
Awal telecom
Iraq acquired a controlling stake in Horizon, a countrywide ISP, which will boost Zain’s capabilities to offer fixed connectivity services to Business users.
Smart meters
Zain Iraq was awarded significant smart meter contracts with electricity companies in Iraq, positioning the company as the market leader in this segment.
Bahrain
Fiber Broadband
Zain partnered with the National Broadband Network to offer fiber connections to businesses and governmental institutions in Bahrain, providing them with secure, high-performance, managed Internet Connectivity and VPN services (Virtual Private Network).
Smart Bus Solution
This IoT end-to-end application improves the safety of buses, with an initial focus on schools. The solution monitors driving behavior and passenger safety through sensors, CCTV and a passenger counting system.
Fleet management
Zain Fleet Management solution providing vehicle tracking, geo-fencing, fuel consumption, vehicle maintenance alarms, and speeding alarms.
Smart meters
Zain was awarded smart meter connectivity projects in Bahrain, achieving a market leadership position in this segment.
Sudan
Zain Sudan has continued to grow its B2B business in the country by expanding service delivery within Government and Enterprise, as well as to new and existing customers.
South Sudan
The Zain operation in South Sudan has created a dedicated B2B function to serve emerging businesses, non-governmental organizations, and Government institutions with reliable mobile telecom services.
Data Monetization & Digital
With 5G services commercially launched in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia (KSA); together with our Fiber offerings in Bahrain, Jordan and KSA; customers are benefiting from the newest generation of broadband services.
Zain continues to invest in systems and digital partnerships that create tangible benefits, providing customers with relevant, personalized digital services that extend beyond mobile to fixed data towards rich content and gaming propositions.
In 2019 Zain expanded its Zain Group API platform, offering customers top-tier regional and international content. Zain’s API digital partnerships provided Direct Operator Billing and attracted key content providers such as Apple, Google, DOCOMO Digital, OSN, Digital Virgo, EROS and Centili across six key Zain markets.
Zain Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, and KSA partnered with On Mobile and DOCOMO Digital, leading providers of content and gaming services, to expand Zain Games offerings. Zain Kids was launched, a regional first, providing parents with a dedicated platform for children delivering top educational apps and content for pre-school and new school joiners.
touch Lebanon’s collaboration with OSN WAVO and Zain KSA’s bespoke price plan for Uber and Careem app users further contributed to a busy year of digital content partnerships, with customers able to access a wider range of rich digital content across their preferred digital channels.
Kuwait
2019 witnessed the 5G network launch in Kuwait by Zain; making Kuwait the first country to launch 5G commercial services in the region. The commercial launch introduced the first 5G router device in June, followed by the first hotspot device in the final quarter of the year.
Bahrain
Zain Bahrain launched OTT data add-ons to monetize apps such as YouTube and Netflix; and in parallel simplified the purchase experience across various data packages and services.
Iraq
Zain Iraq partnered with Tencent Games, one of the world’s leading gaming companies with top titles such as Fortnite, League of Legend and Call of Duty, providing in-app purchases via customers’ mobile account. Zain Iraq was the first operator in the Middle East to successfully launch a solution that allows data offers to be purchased through the Facebook app.
Jordan
Zain Jordan continued its focus on the home and further enhanced its FTTH and MBB offerings, to successfully grow its home connectivity customer base.
Saudi Arabia
Zain KSA launched the Kingdom’s first 5G network, spanning 27 cities. 5G was commercially launched with customers enjoying unlimited 5G plans. The operator also further enriched its data portfolio by introducing social media add-ons.
Sudan
Zain Sudan implemented a comprehensive suite of data monetization activities. The expansion of 3G and 4G resulted in double digit growth in the number of data users; and revenues. Innovative “Taktik” (flexible integrated data and voice) bundles were very well received in the market and resulted in higher rates of data adoption. 2019 was a successful year in terms of data growth and differentiation by leveraging on strategic partnerships with Facebook and LaLiga.
Customer Experience
Zain’s Experience strategy is to simplify customer interactions by implementing the latest digital technologies to improve customer experience, create moments of delight and to reduce the total cost of service.
The company’s Experience strategy fueled the advancement of Zain’s Chatbot offerings (interactive digital channel supported by AI); increasing the range of services and support available to customers across digital channels including WhatsApp and speech-to-text. 2019 also saw the launch of new digital self-service kiosks that sell SIMs and onboard new customers 100% digitally.
Kuwait
zBot (Chatbot) was expanded to offer a broader range of services and support, resulting in a material increase in customer self-service. Zain Kuwait also piloted a new concept store with a completely redesigned look and feel. The concept store will create new revenue streams by offering Zain Life Home Automation products, as well as lifestyle gadgets, supported by best in class customer support
Iraq
Zain Iraq was the first and only provider in Iraq to launch new digital touchpoints including their automated Chatbot “Abu ElZooz” providing smart service on Facebook and WhatsApp.
Bahrain
In 2019, Zain Bahrain reported record levels of usage within digital and self-care channels. The self-care mobile app enjoys a high rating in the app stores and is recognized as the best mobile operator app in Bahrain based on customers reviews and voting.
Jordan
Zain Jordan witnessed a significant growth in service via digital channels and introduced an Artificial Intelligence-driven Chatbot solution on Facebook Messenger. Zain Jordan opened a new contact center in Al Ghor in 2019, spreading the Zain values and service culture whilst supporting the local community and providing job opportunities for the youth segment.
Customer Value Management (CVM)
Customer Value Management remained a key focus area in 2019. Zain’s CVM initiatives focused on increasingboth customer tenure and lifetime value by providing tailored offers based on customers’ needs.
Investments were made in “know your offer” (dynamic weekly customer offers); real-time triggering; and in-browser notifications capabilities as well as in expanding our CVM teams.
Major CVM initiatives included:
Kuwait
CVM integrated embedded analytics and contextual foundations to their offerings, resulting in 25% growth in CVM incremental revenues compared to 2018.
In addition, CVM played a key role in driving 5G penetration, encouraging existing customers to adopt this new technology, and also migrated more than 30% of campaigns to the digital channels, resulting in better resource utilization and customer reach.
Bahrain
Increased focus on converting prepaid users to postpaid; and targeting SIM-only customers with device-based offers. Retention efforts were also bolstered resulting in lowering churn and better value management.
Iraq
Zain Iraq introduced customized offers and a micro segmented value management platform called “Know your offer” (*100#), delivering increased customer engagement, and tenure as well as generating incremental revenues.
Jordan
Upscaling of CVM activities in Jordan resulted in a doubling of the revenue contribution coming from Value Management. Zain Jordan continued to focus on offering the latest smartphones, as well as international and roaming minutes to enhance customer value, resulting in a 15% increase of consumer postpaid customers.
Saudi Arabia
Zain KSA launched numerous initiatives to provide additional value for its customers including Off-peak hourly data plans, social media bundles, double data on renewal. Personalized offers with a bundle of voice, data, international minutes, and social media were rolled out based on customer usage preferences.
Sudan
CVM represented a main pillar for increasing value contributing material revenue growth. CVM activities were expanded and resulted in reducing churn and enhancing ARPUs. The main focus was on more-for-more pricing, via targeted offers for integrated offers; upselling and cross selling their wide range of products and services.
Branding and Advertising
Achievements
In 2019, Zain took further steps in its transformation journey to become a leading digital lifestyle brand. Our ambition was to raise awareness that the Zain brand represents more than simply being a telecoms provider. Zain launched multiple initiatives that will help our customers keep pace with the rapidly changing, digital world in that we now live. Our products and services now extend beyond telecommunications into digital services, content, entertainment, wearables, home automation, health and fitness as well as smart cities and drones.
Since the initial Zain brand launch in 2007, the brand value has consistently exceeded USD 2 billion and over the years it has been our ambition and responsibility to develop our brand equity. As a result, we brought-to-life new elements from our brand refresh across all channels, including social media platforms and above-the-line (ATL) communications. Throughout 2019, we hosted seminars and events to maintain the momentum gained through the implementation of these new brand assets.
In May, we released our annual TVC advert which was a clear display of how the brand is developing and the direction we are taking, focusing on themes of togetherness and friendship
This year, Zain’s Livestreaming website was launched, where we collaborated with the renowned singer Nawal, who performed her latest songs live as a digital exclusive on our channel.
The repositioning of the Zain Business sub-brand was also a key highlight in 2019. With a refreshed look and feel, it now has an aligned focus, on how to ready enterprises (of all sizes) for the challenges that lie ahead, encompassing our promise of helping businesses to be ‘Futureproof’.
These initiatives demonstrate Zain’s desire to be recognized as a brand that serves all aspects of modern life, affirming our position as a leading digital lifestyle provider.
Looking to the future was a recurrent theme throughout 2019. All around the world, people were eagerly anticipating the launch of 5G technology, and we are proud to say that Zain has now successfully rolled out 5G services in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The launch in the Kingdom saw 2,700 5G sites in 27 cities go live, the largest 5G rollout in MENA and the third largest globally. The campaigns celebrating these historic milestones helped place Kuwait and Saudi Arabia on the global 5G telecom map, embodying our ethos of leveraging new opportunities for the benefit of our customers.
Awards
Our brand went from strength to strength in 2019, continuing to set the highest of standards, ensuring our customers, stakeholders and employees have the best experience with Zain.
We received two prestigious awards, the Best MENA Operator and Best Brand at this year’s Telecoms World Awards Middle East. This honor marks a record sixth consecutive year that Zain has won the ‘Best Brand’ award, having also been recognized as the ‘Best Telecom Operator’ across the MENA region on numerous occasions over recent years.
Zain also won the Best Overall Telecommunications Group for 2019 and Zain Saudi Arabia was named the Best MENA Telecom Operator at the CommsMEA Awards.
In December, Zain received an award for its Ramadan TVC. The TVC was recognized as the being most influential advertisement in 2019 during Kuwait’s 7th Creativity Award Forum
Across our footprint, all of our operations were recognized with popular awards, for achievements in marketing, sustainability initiatives and the introduction of innovative new digital services.
Social Media
Zain continues to successfully promote its brand and activities across its markets and the wider region through social media, bolstering customer engagement and attracting new customers. 2019 saw significant growth in customer advocacy with an increase in the number of fans, comments and views across all our social media channels.
Every year, the region’s Ramadan audience keenly awaits Zain’s annual campaigns. In 2019, Zain’s Ramadan television commercial attracted 10 million views on YouTube, while the Eid television commercial attracted over 16 million views on YouTube. Both commercials received thousands of positive comments from viewers across the region.
By the end of 2019, Zain Group and its operations counted over 20.6 million fans across our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn channels. Facebook reached 11.2 million fans (a 12% annual increase), with more than seven million followers on Twitter, and a further two million on Instagram (representing a 30% annual increase). During 2019, the YouTube channels of Zain Group and its operations counted over 100 million views, predominantly due to the success of various Ramadan campaigns and product service launches. In addition, Zain Group and its operations saw a significant increase in followers on LinkedIn reaching, over 450,000.