While this summer’s civil upheaval in the country is a major setback for investors in general, the growth that had made Turkey so alluring for investors before mid-2013 is still apparent in certain sectors. Indeed Smartphone ownership is growing - with leading operators Turkcell and Vodafone reporting that 22 per cent of their subscribers were smartphone-users at the end of March 2013, according to Market Research. Fixed connections to support multiple services are also growing and ‘cable and fibre connections continue to hold up well’, adds Market Research. Internet ownership is rising at the rate of 12 per cent per annum, according to September 2013 statistics from ITCA, the regulator (The Information Technologies and Communication Authority).

Law firms

Telecoms clearly presents significant opportunities in the view of the multinational law firms. Allen & Overy became a presence on the ground in May 2012 through a co-operation agreement with local firm Gedik Eraksoy Avukatlik Ortakligi. It mentions its project work on telecoms as an area of expertise. Baker & McKenzie added an Istanbul office to its network in late 2011, according to The Legal 500. Bakers lists four people in this office as experts on the new e-privacy rules which, after various postponements, are due to take force in January 2014. ‘The e-Privacy Regulation introduces a series of significant changes, not least of which are the severe new penalties for violations,’ write Istanbul managing partner Daniel Matthews and colleagues in a review of the law. Delays in the introduction of the rules by regulator ITCA  are widely seen as being a response to criticism from companies that they had not been given sufficient time to comply. 

The Turkish legal market is a mixture of local and international firms. Hergüner Bilgen Özeke, with its 82 lawyers, has played a ‘key role in restructuring the Turkish telecom sector’s regulator framework’, according to Chambers. 

Competition

The liberalisation of the Turkish telecom market dates back only to 2000 when ITCA was established, as the first sectoral regulator in the country. Its ability to promote competition is still far from proven as Turkcell still dominates the market. Turkcell was the first Turkish company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Back in its home market, Turkcell has 51 per cent market share of the 68 million mobile phone subscriptions. There are 477 operators in total, providing services to the 74 million population. Vodafone has a 29 per cent market share, and Area 20 per cent. Virgin Mobile has confirmed that it has been having discussions with mobile virtual network operators in the country. 

The Olympic effect

Istanbul is on line for a $19 billion spending increase on its infrastructure, according to the Financial Times. Although at least half of that is committed to roads and railways, some will go to the technological infrastructure. Coming second to Tokyo in the bid for the 2020 Olympics has set back the immediate need to overhaul technology - but the 2020 bid was the fifth that the country has made in 20 years, and it will no doubt make a sixth fairly soon.     

Turkey and its ambitious prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan want to play the role of bridge between east and west, Europe and the Middle East, Muslim and non-Muslim. Technology is a priority for the country in carving out its new profile.