Internet usage and e-commerce in Oman
The Arab Advisors Group of Jordan, a specialised research, analysis and consultancy company, has just published a report entitled, 'Oman Internet users and e-commerce survey 2009,' based on research carried out in January 2009.
Since the report itself costs non-members of the group US$2750 to buy, I have to rely on the published press release which has been reproduced in various media outlets in the Gulf. You can download a table of contents of the Arab Advisors' report.
The author, Mr Hussam Barhoush, was careful to emphasise his methodology, and that the results "passed rigorous quality control checks." 696 respondents were selected randomly from an email shot in cooperation with Omantel. It's not clear if the original survey request went to all registered Internet users in Oman.
On the basis of this sample, and presumably independent data from Omantel, AAG estimated the total number of Internet users in Oman who had used e-commerce was more than 158,000, representing 5.62% of the total population of Oman, and 40.2% of all adult Internet users in Oman.
The 100 page report contains various graphics showing the breakdown of Internet users by nationality, age and gender. The table of contents promises a lot, but you'd need to see the report to judge.
E-commerce users in Oman spent US$236 million online in 2008. That's roughly US$1494 per user on average. That seems to me a lot of money, given the level of salaries in country. So presumably one could assume that the people who spent online were from the wealthier segment of society.
The report doesn't appear to give details of what was actually bought online. Holidays? Flights? Investments? Banking? Bill payments? etc but it also probes the extent of use of mobile phone transactions, and whether respondents were aware of 3G services.
I was intrigued by the reference to use of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) using Skype and Google Talk. While over 73% of the respondents had not used VoIP, 20.7% of the respondents did use this software in 2008! I was under the impression that VoIP services, such as Skype, were banned in Oman. How did they beat the ban? And I wonder if the report's author was aware of this ban?
Since the report itself costs non-members of the group US$2750 to buy, I have to rely on the published press release which has been reproduced in various media outlets in the Gulf. You can download a table of contents of the Arab Advisors' report.
The author, Mr Hussam Barhoush, was careful to emphasise his methodology, and that the results "passed rigorous quality control checks." 696 respondents were selected randomly from an email shot in cooperation with Omantel. It's not clear if the original survey request went to all registered Internet users in Oman.
On the basis of this sample, and presumably independent data from Omantel, AAG estimated the total number of Internet users in Oman who had used e-commerce was more than 158,000, representing 5.62% of the total population of Oman, and 40.2% of all adult Internet users in Oman.
The 100 page report contains various graphics showing the breakdown of Internet users by nationality, age and gender. The table of contents promises a lot, but you'd need to see the report to judge.
E-commerce users in Oman spent US$236 million online in 2008. That's roughly US$1494 per user on average. That seems to me a lot of money, given the level of salaries in country. So presumably one could assume that the people who spent online were from the wealthier segment of society.
The report doesn't appear to give details of what was actually bought online. Holidays? Flights? Investments? Banking? Bill payments? etc but it also probes the extent of use of mobile phone transactions, and whether respondents were aware of 3G services.
I was intrigued by the reference to use of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) using Skype and Google Talk. While over 73% of the respondents had not used VoIP, 20.7% of the respondents did use this software in 2008! I was under the impression that VoIP services, such as Skype, were banned in Oman. How did they beat the ban? And I wonder if the report's author was aware of this ban?
Comments
newsbriefs wrote:
03/19/09 18:58:47
Hussam wrote:
Hello Sue,
Yes, we, at the Arab Advisors Group, are aware of the VOIP ban in some Arabic countries that have not liberilized IDD services, such as the UAE. Though, there are methods, such as proxy servers, and/or others, used by Internet users to beat the ban.
Thanks,
03/26/09 15:35:27
Press release 'Oman Information Technology Report 2009' published 18th March 2009. http://www.pr-inside.com/om...
Reviews prospects for growth of IT market and services in Oman.