On the 31st of August, MMRD Research services submitted the final report “Broadband Internet Landscape in Myanmar” to its client.

About the client

The client is an Asian Telecom operator looking to start operations in Myanmar. Its technological approach differs from those of most of its competitors. The client was especially interested in obtaining the following insights:

• Current internet penetration and forecasts
• Current ISP market shares
• ISP subscriber profiles, preferences, current product and spending
• Non-subscribers profiles, preferences, current mobile internet spending, potential willingness to pay
• Competition analysis and market forecasts
• Market segment analysis

Methodology

The preparation of the report involved:

• A survey for non-subscribers (310 respondents)
• A survey for ISP subscribers (171 respondents)
• A survey for business subscribers (107 respondents)
• 8 key stakeholder interviews including existing players, new entrants and government officials
• Desk research

Context and challenges

The internet market in Myanmar is peculiar and obtaining simple data such as internet penetration requires a specific approach:

• All internet access solutions are expensive in Myanmar: the introduction of cheaper offers, especially affordable data plans from the three main mobile operators MPT, Telenor and Ooredoo, has created a major catch-up effect. This means the penetration rate has changed at a very fast pace over the course of a few months. Obtaining the latest available data was challenging.
• Fixed-broadband connections accounts for a very small portion of all internet accesses in Myanmar: there are now more than 300 connected smartphones for every fixed-broadband connection. Traditional ways of assessing internet penetration are obsolete in Myanmar as they rely primarily on counting broadband connections and then making assumptions on household size, internet sharing etc.
• All preliminary results showed very significant local variations in responses, especially between highly populated cities and rural areas. The team was able to deploy a significant portion of its interviewers to rural areas.Read our article 5 Facts about the Internet Market in Myanmar to learn more.

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