Forbes Arabia, the Dubai based Arabic edition of the internationally acclaimed Forbes business magazine, unveiled its latest edition of the annual survey on "Top 40 Arab Brands" recognizing Etisalat as one of the Top 10 Arab Brands. Ranked #8, Etisalat is the only telecom service provider to be featured in the top 10 list. A new entrant to the annual listing, Etisalat is several notches ahead of the next mentioned telecom operator in the Middle East region, Zain from Kuwait; which is listed at Rank #15.
The ranking, based on a brand survey carried out by TNS in the Middle East region, on behalf of Forbes Arabia, not only acknowledges Etisalat as one of the leading telecom service providers across the world but also reinforces Etisalat’s commitment to become one of the top 10 telecom service providers by 2010.
Commenting on this nomination, Mr. Essa Al Haddad, Chief Marketing Officer, Etisalat said "Being appreciated by world renowned publication like Forbes Arabia, is indeed a proud moment for Etisalat. Etisalat would like to thank its customers, partners, employees and stakeholders for their incessant contribution that resulted in this world acclaim. This recognition demonstrates our continued commitment towards strengthening the Etisalat brand across the globe by providing unparalleled, innovative and technologically advanced solutions to our customers around the world. We feel honored by this acknowledgement."
Khuloud Al Omian, Editorial Manager, Forbes Arabia, elaborated on the ranking process, "I congratulate Etisalat on being ranked in the Top 10 Arab brands based on the study conducted by Forbes Arabia and TNS. The Brand Goodwill Index (BGI) from TNS measures the strength of brands within any given peer group, thus enabling cross category comparisons. Based upon the popular and globally tested Conversion Modelâ„¢ methodology, an online survey was carried out with over 1,200 Arab respondents, both male and female between 18 to 55 years in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Morocco, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and Yemen. And Etisalat, of course emerged as the strongest Telecom brand, based on this extensive research."
Earlier this year the Financial Times recorded that Etisalat had achieved a market valuation that placed it amongst the 14 largest operators in the world. In a separate study, Etisalat was also named the fastest growing operator in the world. Etisalat has also been selected as the "best over all operator in the Middle East" for consecutive five times in the last three years.
The Forbes Arabia Top 40 Arab Brands list, the first of its kind, looks at companies that not only have created strong brands in Arab countries, but that are gaining recognition worldwide. The Top 40 Arab Brands list considers not only current brand performance but also future growth prospects. It reflects the trust that customers in Arab countries place on these brands.
