Agenda

Morning

08:30 – 09:00

Morning Coffee and Registration

09:00 – 09:20

Opening Ceremony

Introductions from:

H.E Hamad Obaid Al Mansouri, Director General, TRA UAE
Francois Rancy, Director, ITU Radicommunications Bureau

09:20 – 10:20

Keynote Session

09:20 – 09:40

Presentation

Tariq Al Awadhi, Chairman, Arab Spectrum Management Group (ASMG)

09:40 – 09:50

Presentation

Abdoulkarim Soumaila, Secretary General, African Telecommunications Union

10:00 – 10:20

Presentation

Philip Marnick, Chair, RSPG

10:20 – 11:10

Session 2: Regulatory Roundtable: Spectrum Management in the Arab Region - an overview of the decision-making process

This session will bring together key regulators in the Arab region to provide an overview of the decision making process when it comes to the management and allocation of spectrum. It will give industry stakeholders in the room the opportunity to learn more about the spectrum regulatory process and how decisions are made.
- How are spectrum decisions made by regulators throughout the region, and to what extent are there differences in this process in different countries?
- To what extent are processes and procedures standardized and co-ordinated across the region?
- What can industry stakeholders be doing to help aid regulators in the decision making process?

Moderator: Mustafa Aykut, Head, Regulatory Strategy and Policy, SAMENA Telecommunications Council

Tariq Al Awadhi, Chairman, Arab Spectrum Management Group (ASMG)
Mohammed Sadeq, Spectrum Manager, CRA Qatar
Elsayed Azzouz, Vice President, Radio Spectrum Management Affairs, Board Member, National Telecom Regulatory Authority, NTRA, Egypt
Yousuf Al Balushi, Executive Vice President, TRA Oman

11:10 – 11:30

Morning Refreshments

11:30 – 11:40

Thinking Point: Digital Switchover

Istvan Bozsoki, Head of Spectrum Management and Broadcast Division, ITU

11:40 – 13:00

Session 3: Best practices in setting pricing and licencing conditions

Many MENA countries are in the process of awarding spectrum for 4G and starting the planning process for releasing bands that may be used for 5G. The award of these bands will play a key role in supporting roll-out of next generation services and shaping the competitive environment for mobile. This session will look at the approaches taken by regulators in the MENA region and beyond in setting prices and licence conditions, and discuss how they may impact the development of mobile services.
- For regulators who are expected to realize reasonable revenues, what is the appropriate approach for setting reserve prices?
- What role do licence conditions and award rules play in determining spectrum prices?
- What role do spectrum prices play in influencing the level of investment and incentives to compete in next generation mobile services?
- How damaging is it to the national economy if awards fail or spectrum allocation to the market is delayed?
- As new bands become available, will there still be spectrum scarcity and how will this affect prices for spectrum?

11:40 – 11:55

Presentation: How best practice in spectrum pricing can enable 4G and 5G deployment

Soren Sorensen, Associate Director, Nera Economic Consulting

11:55 – 12:10

Presentation: How will new spectrum releases affect the value of mobile spectrum?

Stefan Zehle, CEO, Coleago Consulting

12:10 – 12:45

Panel Discussion

Speakers include:

Soren Sorensen, Associate Director, Nera Economic Consulting
Stefan Zehle, CEO, Coleago Consulting
Alexandre Serot, Head of Regulatory, Vodafone Qatar

Afternoon

12:45 – 13:45

Lunch

13:45 – 14:05

Thinking Point: The Facebook Connectivity Lab - Innovative ways of making affordable internet a reality in the Arab region

Chris Weasler, Head of Global Connectivity, Facebook

14:05 – 15:45

Session 4: Spectrum Sharing - examining the promise and the reality

With a number of spectrum sharing solutions already in the market and many other approaches being considered, there is no doubt that spectrum sharing offers the potential to hugely increase spectrum efficiency and increase the capacity that is available. This last session will offer the opportunity to look at some of these approaches and assess the promise that they have and the challenges to be overcome in order for them to become a reality. The session will end with an interactive discussion on which offer the most potential.

Moderator: Marc Eschenburg, Partner, Aetha Consulting

14:05 – 14:20

Presentation

Ulrich Rehfuess, Head of Spectrum Policy, Nokia

14:20 – 14:35

Presentation: What future for Whitespace, carrier aggregation, and dynamic sharing?

Ben Wallis, Regulatory Policy Analyst, Microsoft

14:35 – 14:50

Presentation: Spectrum Sharing and Sustainability

Francois Rancy, Director, ITU Radicommunications Bureau

14:50 – 15:05

Presentation

Bassil Zoubi, Head of Transmission, Arab States Broadcasting Union (ASBU)

15:05 – 15:20

Presentation: The role of Licensed Shared Access in increasing capacity

Ali Cheema, Regional Manager Government & Industry Relations, MENA, Ericsson

15:20 – 15:45

Panel discussion: What sharing options and mix of technologies offer the greatest potential of long-term success?

Ulrich Rehfuess, Head of Spectrum Policy, Nokia
Ben Wallis, Regulatory Policy Analyst, Microsoft
Francois Rancy, Director, ITU Radicommunications Bureau
Bassil Zoubi, Head of Transmission, Arab States Broadcasting Union (ASBU)
Ali Cheema, Regional Manager Government & Industry Relations, MENA, Ericsson

15:45 – 16:00

Afternoon Coffee

16:00 – 17:45

Session 5: Addressing the future shape and spectrum requirements of Media, Satellite and PPDR in the MENA region

This session will address the future of three key spectrum users – broadcast, satellite and PPDR, at how the sectors are evolving and at how it can be ensured their future spectrum needs are met successfully and efficiently.
In both the Arab region and in the rest of the world, authorities are looking at developing plans for an evolution towards next generation public safety and critical communication networks(PS) communications with LTE capability. The challenge is to provide a framework that both ensures the highly robust and reliable connectivity that is required, and also to ensure that the spectrum that is used is being utilised as efficiently as possible. This session
will look at the work that is being done across the Arab region to achieve this goal and the band options that are being used and that are being considered for the future.
- Should there be dedicated spectrum made available for PPDR networks and critical communication services?
- What is the situation across the Arab region in the 380 - 470 MHz band, and should this band be dedicated for PPDR use?
- Should band 68 remain PPDR specific?
- What other band options are being considered for both PPDR and critical communications, and which offer the most potential?
- How important is it that a harmonized approach to spectrum policy for PPDR and critical communication is taken across the Arab region, and to what extent is this being seen?
- What systems and approaches are being seen around the world, and are there any examples of best practice that can be transferred to MENA countries?

Moderator: Imad Hoballah, Chairman and CEO, ICTTT Consulting

16:00 – 16:20

The future of media and ensuring that spectrum requirements are met

Walid Sami, Senior Project Manager, Technology & Innovation, EBU

16:20 – 16:40

The future of satellite and ensuring that spectrum requirements are met

Patrick van Niftrik, Vice-President Spectrum Management and Development, EMEA, SES

16:40 – 16:55

Presentation

Daniel Hamadeh, Director Government Affairs, Spectrum and Regulatory, Middle East – North Africa, Motorola Solutions

16:55 – 17:10

Presentation

Ismail Mashhour, CEO Systel, Board Member, MERC Egypt

17:10 – 17:45

Panel Discussion

Daniel Hamadeh, Director Government Affairs, Spectrum and Regulatory, Middle East – North Africa, Motorola Solutions
Aamir Riaz, Program Officer, ITU
Ismail Mashhour, CEO Systel, Board Member, MERC Egypt

17:45 – 19:00

Networking Drinks Reception

Morning

09:45 – 10:05

Keynote Presentation: Identifying and delivering the spectrum requirements of the next wave of wireless connectivity

Noel Kirkaldy, Lead Coordinator MEA, GSA, Head of Technology MEA, Nokia

10:05 – 11:50

Session 6: Spectrum for 5G - paving the way for the 5G revolution in the Arab world

A lot of the talk about spectrum for 5G is focused around WRC-19 and the decisions on bands that are likely to be made there. With this still almost 3 years away however it is important that 5G spectrum discussions begin in earnest because of the timeframes involved in making new spectrum available. This session will look in detail at the work that is being done in this respect both in the Arab region and around the world, and at what work needs to
be done over the course of the next few years in order to prepare for the 5G revolution ahead.
- What are the key challenges that Arab spectrum policymakers and stakeholders need to be addressing now in order to deliver the required connectivity for 5G, meet targets and ensure the region is at the forefront of 5G development?
- What is the situation in other parts of region 1 and in the rest of the world? Who are likely to be the early adopters of 5G technology? What is this likely to mean for the MENA region and the development of 5G here?
- How important is harmonization and co-ordination at both a regional and global level, how can this be achieved?
- Which bands are likely to see 5G deployment first, and to what extent can requirements be met by operators refarming existing spectrum rather than seeking new bands?
- Should we be looking at dedicated 5G spectrum bands and the technologies associated with it, or is a better approach to consider the additional spectrum that is required as being an extension of the 4G/5G ecosystem?
- Should regulators be holding back spectrum in anticipation for 5G technologies to arrive, or should they be looking to release additional capacity as soon as possible so that organisations are ready to exploit it?

Moderator: Marc Eschenburg, Partner, Aetha Consulting

10:05 – 10:20

Presentation

Khalid Al Awadhi, Manager Space and Broadcasting Services, TRA UAE

10:20 – 10:35

Presentation: Industry

Jawad Abbassi, Head of MENA, Acting Head of Africa, GSMA

10:35 – 10:50

Presentation: Industry

Fatima Karim-Peters, Technical Director, Spectrum & Regulation, Huawei Technologies

10:50 – 11:05

Presentation

Steven Doiron, Global Spectrum Regulatory Policy , ESOA

11:05 – 11:30

Panel Discussion

Speakers Include:

Khalid Al Awadhi, Manager Space and Broadcasting Services, TRA UAE
Fatima Karim-Peters, Technical Director, Spectrum & Regulation, Huawei Technologies
Steven Doiron, Global Spectrum Regulatory Policy , ESOA
Jawad Abbassi, Head of MENA, Acting Head of Africa, GSMA

11:30 – 11:50

Morning Coffee

11:50 – 13:20

Session 7: Meeting the long-term spectrum requirements of the IoT age

Whilst 5G will be hugely important in the development of IoT and M2M technologies, it can only be part of the solution. This session will look at the mix of spectrum that is required in order for the huge potential of IoT and M2M technologies to be achieved in enabling smart and sustainable urban environments, and revolutionizing the way in which businesses and consumers function everywhere. Focus will be given to how much spectrum is likely to be required and in what bands, as well as what the 'right' terms and conditions for access should be.
-­ For which aspects of IoT connectivity will 5G be critical, and where may 4G, 3G or even 2G be part of the solution?
-­ Is there a need for dedicated and harmonized spectrum for IoT, and in what bands could this be?
-­ What mix of technologies and solutions; licensed and unlicensed spectrum; and new and existing bands will best deliver the needs of IoT?
-­ With so many different IoT technologies entering the market, how can it be ensured that the different spectrum requirements of all these are met?
­‐ How important will Narrowband-IoT be for connecting devices and what affect will it have on spectrum efficiency?
­‐ What role can other standards and solutions like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ingenu, LoRa and SIGFOX play?

Moderator: Imad Hoballah, Chairman and CEO, ICTTT Consulting

11:50 – 12:05

Presentation

Abdulhadi AbouAlmal, Head of Sector, Technology Standardization & Spectrum, Etisalat

12:05 – 12:20

Presentation

Johann Adjovi, Principal, Analysys Mason

12:20 – 12:35

Presentation

Fabien Migneret, Senior Manager, Government Affairs Middle East and North Africa, Qualcomm

12:35 – 12:50

Presentation

12:50 – 13:20

Panel Discussion

Speakers Include:

Fabien Migneret, Senior Manager, Government Affairs Middle East and North Africa, Qualcomm
Johann Adjovi, Principal, Analysys Mason
Abdulhadi AbouAlmal, Head of Sector, Technology Standardization & Spectrum, Etisalat

Afternoon

13:25 – 14:30

Lunch

14:30 – 16:00

Session 8: Spectrum to deliver the 5G automotive vision

More and more intelligent, connected vehicles are expected to enter the market in the next few years, with the ability to not only communicate with each other (V2V), but also with pedestrians (V2P), roadway infrastructure (V2I), and the network (V2N). A number of different technology solutions (including the Cellular-V2X standard - developed by 3GPP with targeted completion by March 2017) and Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) technology) are being put forward to provide the superior, reliable communications necessary to enable this eco-system of connected vehicles, and this session will focus on the best way to deliver the spectrum that is needed to power these and drive forward this growing sector.
- How are transport services currently dealt with in the radio regulations, and is there a need to review this?
- What mix of high and low frequency spectrum is needed to provide superior reliable communications between V2V, V2P, V2I and V2N?
- What technology mix will provide the optimum solution and the ultra-reliable, low latency connections that are required?
- How can ubiquitous coverage be ensured?
- Is there a need for dedicated spectrum for the connected car ecosystem in either the 5.9GHz band or elsewhere, or is a spectrum-sharing approach the best option?

Moderator: Imad Hoballah, Chairman and CEO, ICTTT Consulting

14:30 – 15:45

Panel Discussion

Speakers Include:

Abdulla Al Madani, CEO Corporate Technology Support Services, Dubai Roads and Transport Authority
Fethi Filali, Head of Technology Development & Applied Research, Qatar Mobility Innovations Center (QMIC)
Amine El Ammari, Director Strategic Projects, Strategy and Business Development, Thuraya
Jawad Abbassi, Head of MENA, Acting Head of Africa, GSMA

15:45 – 16:00

Closing Presentation

Tariq Al Awadhi, Chairman, Arab Spectrum Management Group (ASMG)