Industry Lifecycle of Nigeria’s Telecom Sector: Possible Trajectories after Deregulation

Abstract

This current study examines Nigerian telecom sector status change caused by the arrival of a new wireless mobile technology. Nigeria’s telecom industry had been a state owned industry due to its highfixed cost of operation until it was deregulated in 1999. Availability of wireless mobile phone technology drastically reduced the high fixed cost of operation which paved the way for deregulation. The study used data obtained from the Nigerian Communication Commission. The study finds that Nigeria’s telecom sector after it was deregulated follows typical industry life-cycle stages as shown in Gort and Klepper (1982). Although, it has not reached the shakeout stage (a sharp decline in the number of firms). It, however, shows signs of two possible trajectories after stage three. They are steady or shakeout states. These findings help the Nigerian Communication Commission form a better guideline to predict the sector.