- GSMA Names 26-Member Board to Serve from January 2013 through December 2014

LONDON, Dec. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The GSMA today announced that it has elected new members of the GSMA Board for the two-year period from January 2013 through December 2014. The GSMA also has re-elected Franco Bernabe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Telecom Italia Group, as its Chairman, and Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO, Telenor Group as its Deputy Chairman, for a second term in these roles. Mr. Bernabe has served as GSMA Chairman since January 2011, overseeing the strategic direction of the organisation, which represents nearly 800 of the world's mobile operators, as well as more than 230 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem. Mr. Baksaas has also served as Deputy Chairman since January 2011.

"I am gratified and honoured to have been elected by our Board as Chairman of the GSMA for a second term," said Mr. Bernabe. "We are at an important time in the development of the mobile industry - following years of unprecedented growth, we are now faced with new challenges, as well as further growth potential, as we see nearly everyone and everything in our lives becoming connected by mobile. This has implications not only for individuals and businesses around the world, but also for mobile operators and other players across the ecosystem. Together, with Jon Fredrik Baksaas as Deputy Chairman and our Director General Anne Bouverot, I look forward to working with the GSMA Board and our entire membership to renew the innovation that has been the very foundation of the success of GSM and mobile."

The GSMA Board has 26 members, including 25 operator representatives from the world's largest operator groups as well as smaller, independent operators with global representation. The GSMA's Director General Anne Bouverot also serves on the GSMA Board. In addition to Mr. Bernabe, Mr. Baksaas and Ms. Bouverot, the GSMA Board for the 2013-2014 term comprises:

• Alejandro Magana Perez, Vice President of International Relations and Value Added Services of Productivity, America Movil
• William Hague, Executive Vice President of International, AT&T Group
• Jamaludin Ibrahim, Managing Director, President and Group CEO, Axiata Group Berhad
• Sanjay Kapoor, CEO, India and South Asia, Bharti Airtel Ltd.
• Sha Yuejia, Executive Director and Vice President, China Mobile
• Lu Yimin, President and Vice Chairman, China Unicom
• Wolfgang Kopf, Senior Vice President for Public and Regulatory Affairs, Deutsche Telekom
• Ahmad Abdulkarim Julfar, Group CEO, Etisalat
• Jean-Paul Cottet, Senior Executive Vice President, Marketing, Innovation and New Activities, France Telecom-Orange
• Tadashi Onodera, Chairman of the Board of Directors, KDDI Corporation
• Dr. Suk-Chae Lee, Chairman and CEO, KT Corporation
• Sifiso Dabengwa, Group President and CEO, MTN
• Kaoru Kato, President and CEO, NTT DOCOMO
• Dr. Nasser Marafih, Group CEO, Qtel Group
• Sung Min Ha, President and CEO, SK Telecom
• Srinath Narasimhan, Managing Director, Tata Teleservices
• Julio Linares Lopez, Vice Chairman of Board of Directors, Telefonica
• Lars Nyberg, President and CEO, TeliaSonera
• David Thodey, CEO, Telstra
• Hakam Kanafani, Group CEO, Turk Telekom
• Anthony Melone, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Verizon Communications
• Jo Lunder, CEO, VimpelCom Ltd.
• Nick Read, Regional CEO, Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific, Vodafone

About the GSMA
The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. Spanning more than 220 countries, the GSMA unites nearly 800 of the world's mobile operators with more than 230 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset makers, software companies, equipment providers and Internet companies, as well as organisations in industry sectors such as financial services, healthcare, media, transport and utilities. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as the Mobile World Congress and Mobile Asia Expo. 

For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at www.gsma.com or Mobile World Live, the online portal for the mobile communications industry, at www.mobileworldlive.com.