INTERVIEW: Mobile operators already have all the tools at their disposal to fight off and beat digital OTT platforms – they just have to make use of them, Turkcell CEO Kaan Terzioglu (pictured) argued.

The executive told Mobile World Live operators have many advantages over popular, global digital players. These, he highlighted, can be used to provide services converged into existing propositions.

Turkcell has developed a range of digital platforms for the Turkish market including messenger apps, cloud services and TV streaming. Terzioglu said it had 1,000 engineers working on the projects and, as a result, was able to deliver customer experience “beyond what the so-called global giants do”.

Around 50 per cent of the operator’s customers now take at least one additional digital service.

“Sometimes we overestimate the OTTs,” he said: “They are also a bunch of bright people passionately working about a dream they have, but we have engineers, we just have to make sure they passionately follow the dreams the company has.”

Terzioglu added: “We have to be at par or better than the OTT players, and we have all the means for that. We have funds, we have technological advances, we know locations, we have advantages in terms of billing the customers and making sure the customer is well taken care of with call centres, self-service tools.”

For the full interview, including the CEO’s views on the importance of sharing network capacity and Turkcell’s work with refugees, click here.