Qualcomm and Mobily are working together to uplift KSA's mobile application developer community. Through a broad collaboration arrangement, the companies plan to offer Mobily developers a combination of technology resources, development tools and training, and special developer events to reinforce and encourage the creation of new mobile applications and Arabic language applications for the Saudi region.
Immediate plans include Qualcomm's involvement at the Mobily Developer Forum in May 2012. At this event, Qualcomm will work with participating members of the Mobily developer community, providing real-time information on technology and tools that enable developers to differentiate their products in the competitive mobile apps market.
Speaking to the collaboration, Mohammed Saad Beseiso, chief consumer officer of Mobily, said: "Qualcomm is one of the world's leading providers of technology to the mobile industry and to application developers. This collaboration will strengthen the mobile community in Saudi and will ultimately benefit consumers who use the apps, as well as the local economy, which benefits from entrepreneurship.
A recent survey of cellular users by research firm Arab Advisors Group revealed that 47% percent of the respondents who use applications in Saudi Arabia prefer to use them in the Arabic language compared to 8.2% in each of Jordan and the UAE. The firm projects the smartphone applications combined annual revenues in Saudi Arabia, UAE and Jordan to grow from US$ 44 million in 2011 to US$ 210 million in 2015.
Commenting on the alliance, Jihad Srage, President of Middle East, Africa and Central Asia operations at Qualcomm, said: "Saudi Arabia has one of the highest rates of mobile usage in the Arab world, and consumers are demanding content that is relevant to their location, their language and their culture. By providing apps developers with sophisticated development technologies and guidance, Qualcomm and Mobily are working together to empower Saudi Arabia's growing legion of entrepreneurial apps developers and the entire Saudi mobile ecosystem."
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© Press Release 2012
