Category Archive

Many GSM industry supporters have looked at WiMAX as a competitor - though others disagree and call attention to its complementary uses as I’ve covered before in the post Why WiMAX?. In Pakistan Wateen is an interesting case because it wants to have a two prong strategy and cover all its bases. However in India there’s some resistance to WiMAX which gives an idea of the uphill battle WiMAX is facing.

Here’s a (story) which tells about the internal struggles in India about WiMAX standards. However the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the body representing all GSM operators, has cited compatibility / interference issues and wants more time before agreeing to the proposed standards.

The global WiMax Forum has sought the Indian government’s support in its endeavour towards getting the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to include WiMax as part of International Mobile Communications - 2000 (IMT-2000) standards.

The forum has asked the Department of Telecom (DoT) and the Wireless and Planning Wing to support its cause in the upcoming ITU meet in Kyoto, Japan. Indian cellular operators have, however, opposed the move and said that the DoT must not support the forum’s proposal until further details such as compatibility and interference issues with regard to WiMax are available.

IMT-2000 is the global standard for third generation (3G) wireless communications as defined by the International Telecommunication Union. It has defined five standards which are followed globally for 3G services. In January 2007, a proposed sixth standard (WiMax) was submitted into ITU by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and supported by the WiMax Forum.

Read the rest of this entry »

The annual conference of CTIA, the wireless association, was held last week of March 2007 in Florida. The CTIA annual event is said to be ”the world’s largest technology event dedicated exclusively to wireless, broadband convergence and mobile computing technologies”. It is a great place to showcase new technologies, network and socialize with top decision makers and create buzz about upcoming work. For example the much awaited voice search applications from Google and Yahoo were announced here.

The event covers the entire industry from network infrastructure to microprocessors to applications to content to end-user hardware. More info at the CTIA site.

The covered topics for 2007 conference include:
- The Quadruple Play
- Mobile Enterprise
- Mobile Payments
- Mobile Entertainment
- Social Networking & Mobile Communities
- Advertising
- Globalization
- WiMAX

See the webcasts of the conference here.

One of the major highlights is the Emerging Technology Forum track at the conference. The forum focussed on the following four tracks:

For detailed roundup of the conference see this post.

I have written about Business Monitor International’s coverage of Pakistan Telecom before here. In the past BMI has made interesting projections about growth of Pakistan’s telecom industry. This time they have extended their forecast to 3G services in Pakistan. A subscription is required to view the detailed reports but here’s a summary as reported by Business Recorder. I think their forecast of 6% handsets by 2010 is a bit high.

According to BMI’s 3G forecasts for Pakistan, a difficult exercise given that no licences have yet been awarded to other operators. The PTA is eager to kick-start the process in 2007, which would mean that there are unlikely to be any active paying 3G subscribers until well into 2008.

With GSM the main mobile technology in use in Pakistan, as accessed by Mobilink, Ufone, Warid Telecom, Telenor, and local group Paktel (since its emigration from AMPS in 2004), the preferred 3G technology would be UMTS.

It is likely that the PTA will stage an auction in mid of 2007. It is even possible that licences could be awarded later still. It is improbable, therefore, that any commercial 3G launch would happen before H1 2008.

The introduction of EDGE services (such as the one by Telenor) and popularity of WLL may hinder the development of 3G, but BMI forecasts that by the end of 2010, about 6 percent of all mobile subscribers in Pakistan will have a 3G handset. This, however, remains very much in the hands of the PTA, the operators themselves and, of course, Pakistan’s consumers.

The 26th meeting of the Asia Pacific GSM Association (GSMAP) was held in Pakistan, The Nation reported. Pakistan had won the GSMA Government Award for 2006. Pakistan Warid Telecom sponsored and hosted the event for this international body.  CEO Warid Telecom Hamid Farooq said that the holding of conference in Pakistan was yet another landmark achievement for the telecom sector in Pakistan.

Chairman GSMAP, Mehboob Chowdhry said that GSM operators were present in 217 territories and countries. He said that the GSM Association was taking a close look at the numerous telecom indicators of these countries to process their analyses on the status of a country’s telecom sector, regulatory framework and quality in the GSM framework.

CEO Warid said that the primary goals of the GSMA was to ensure mobile phones and wireless services work globally and are easily accessible, enhancing their value to individual customers and national economies, while creating new business opportunities for operators and their suppliers. The Association’s members serve more than 2 billion customers - over 82% of the world’s mobile phone users.

Speaking in the conference  the PTA chairman admitted the quality surveys conducted by the PTA could not serve the purpose and MNP was there to serve the purpose.

He said that the telecom industry in Pakistan had attracted $9 billion foreign investment in the last three years, and another $ 4 billion are expected during the next 3 to 4 years. He said that 1.5 million new subscribers are being added each month.

CEO of Warid said that special sessions have been reserved to converse on Roll out of 3G, Regulations in IP world, Interconnection in IP world and the proposed direction for the operators and GSMA Public Policy update. The Warid CEO said that an exclusive case study ‘Inherent complications in emerging markets’ would also be shared with the participants.

If anyone has access to this study please share or let me know.

The GSM Association, a trade assoication of GSM mobile operators worldwide, has released the preliminary results of a study prepared by Deloitte, which estimates that the mobile industry has created 220,000 high-paying jobs in Pakistan and accounts for 5% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and approximately 6% of the total taxes collected by the Central Board of Revenue, as reported here. The study also found that Pakistan’s economy and society is benefiting from rising mobile phone usage and low tariffs, which lowers the cost of doing business and improves productivity, while helping families and friends to connect to each other at home and abroad.

Deloitte estimates that over a period of 10 years the elimination of the activation tax would generate an additional 132 billion Rupees (US$2.17 billion) in total tax revenues through the positive impact on the mobile industry and its spill over into the broader economy, above what the government would obtain maintaining the tax. The study shows that tax collections from the mobile industry would grow consistently year on year in the period 2007-2017 due to increased penetration and higher revenues.  Last year, mobile operators invested US$2 billion in Pakistan, 54% of the total foreign direct investment in the country, according to the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority.

These findings were released when GSMA CEO Rob Conway visited Pakistan in last week of March. “It is very important that the government of Pakistan sends a clear signal to the mobile industry and its investors that it will continue to help operators to connect the unconnected by eliminating the activation tax of 500 Rupees in the next budget,” said Mr. Conway, citing the Deloitte report.

Rob Conway, Chief Executive Officer of the GSMA, met in Islamabad with President and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. He also met with CEO’s from Ufone (Mubashir Naqvi), Mobilink (Zouhair Khaliq), Paktel (Guo Yonghong), Telenor Pakistan (Tore Johnsen), and Warid (Hamid Farooq), as well as the Minister of Telecommunications & IT, Awais Leghari, and Chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA), Shahzada Malik.

“By lowering barriers to connectivity, the mobile industry can connect the unconnected in Pakistan. The activation tax is a significant barrier for people looking to own a mobile phone and represents a constraint for operators seeking to expand into rural areas,” said Mr. Conway. “With 50 million mobile users and 30% penetration, Pakistan is now a leader in mobile usage in south Asia. The next step is to build on that achievement by eliminating the activation tax and securing further economic and social benefits for the Pakistani people.”

In this post I’ll look at the options for those who are visiting Pakistan and need temporary mobile phone service there. It addresses questions such as: Which cell phones work in Pakistan, what is a SIM, how to choose a service provider and how to pay for your calls.

Different parts of the world use different phone technologies (GSM, CDMA … see this post).  Therefore you need to have the right handset with the right settings for a given country. Most providers in US use CDMA but Cingular and T-Mobil use GSM. Europe, Africa and most of Asia, including Pakistan is on GSM. However GSM service providers in different countries may operate at different frequencies. GSM phones use a small chip or card called SIM, which stands for ‘Subscriber Identification Module’. SIM holds subscriber’s information and phone settings and it can be easily switched from phone to phone - thus making your phone an attractive target for snatching. In some countries (in US for example)  mobile phones are “locked” by the phone company to work only with specific SIM cards. For more about GSM and SIM cards see this post and the last section of the post.

You will need a SIM-unlocked GSM 900 compatible phone in Pakistan. You can take your own (you’ll need a 220V charger), rent one or buy a new or buy a used one from Pakistan. See this site for more on unlocking .

Phone Rental Service for Pakistan: Rental works best when for some reason you do not want to get into the hassle of choosing a set and provider and want prompt and preplanned service. Usuall the package includes a phone and a bucket of minutes with instructions on how to get more minutes.  Two of the companies which provide such serivces for Pakistan include Cellular Abroad  and Telestial. 

There are many factors which play into your choice of a provider: cost, signal and service features. Visit the page for service providers on this blog for a brief overview and browse their web sites for more information. If you are going to stay in the major urban cities then any provider should work fine. If you are looking for data or Ineternet service or for service in rural or remote areas you’ll need to do more research.

For those who have a working phone (perhaps a borrowed one!) and want their own number and service the best option is to go to the service center of one of the providers (see this page for providers) and fill out the paper work, pay the fee  and get a package of SIM card with a phone number. You will need to provide copy of your national identity card and a landline number.  My assumption here is that you want a prepaid service. If a service center is not nearby, many retail and convenience stores also carry and sell SIMs (for example see a list of where to buy from Telenor) - they will forward your paperwork to the service providers. In either case, you can start using the service fairly quickly.  Phone cards are available almost everywhere to recharge your account. Incoming calls and text messages are free. 

If you are travelling to areas outside cellular coverage you need a satellite phone. Read the rest of this entry »

In another sign of positive expansion for Pakistan’s telecom industry, Telenor has signed deals worth $750 Million with Nokia and Siemens, as reported here and here. However this rapid expansion is also causing issues especially with regard to how foreign companies execute and transfer knowledge to Pakistan. In a related statement the telecom minister said that Pakistan’s telecom sector had received about Rs 550 billion investment so far while Rs 300 billion were likely to be added to the sector in the coming two to three years.

The minister said that while the pace of growth in the telecom sector had been impressive, it had also raised few issues of concern for the government, with the lack of good implementation service-based companies in Pakistan being a real concern.

He said big vendors such as Nokia and Siemens were merely relying on sub-contracting equipment installations to small local players whereas the sector had grown to a point where they needed to come to Pakistan in a big way by raising companies of scale whose human resource, products and services could also be exported outside Pakistan.

Nokia and Telenor Pakistan have announced that they will be extending their existing frame agreement on GSM radio network equipment and services until 2009. Over this new three-year period, Nokia will deliver +2000 base stations, while continuing to plan, build and manage the radio network in close association with Telenor Pakistan.

Under the agreement, Nokia will provide Telenor Pakistan with its state-of-the art radio and transmission network, including microwave radios. A wide range of services will support the radio network roll-out and operation, including turnkey maintenance services, hardware support services, and services for the deployment of the GSM network, including network planning, site acquisition, civil works and telecom implementation.

The cooperation aims at increasing Telenor Pakistan’s network coverage and capacity in most of Punjab, North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan- Administered Kashmir and northern regions of Pakistan, including the capital city of Islamabad.

GSM Association world congress was recently held in Barcelona (12-15 Feb 2007). This annual conference is the largest venue for GSM echosystem and attracts movers and shakers of GSM industry  from all over the globe. See a video here to get a flavor.  

One of the interesting featuresof this annual conference is the award ceremony which recognizes leaders and innovators in the mobile GSM area. The complete listing of GSM Award Winners is here. I’ll highlight a few mobile award winners here.

Best 3GSM Mobile Handset
* Sony Ericsson - K800 (shown on right)
* Samsung Electronics - SGH-Z560

 Best Ultra Low Cost Handset
Motorola - MOTOFONE. I am happy to say that I recently commended this phone here. Judges quote: “A sleek and full featured handset demonstrating that style and functionality are not irrevocably connected to price. Motorola once again shows the way in helping to bridge the digital divide.”

A FEW OTHER NOTEWORTHY AWARDS

Polymer Vision won the award for most innovative technology. Polymer Vision has developed the world’s first rollable electronic display. For the first time in history a display can be rolled out to a greater size than the actual mobile device itself.

ShoZu won award for most innovative mobile application. Its mobile multimedia delivery platform enables automatic delivery of published multimedia content to mobile phones with no user intervention; and allows one-click upload of multimedia files from the handset to photo sharing sites.

In the category of mobile enterprise product Telepo was the winner. Telepo provides fixed-mobile convergence. Its software solution converges business communications on desktop, fixed and mobile phones. Employees are able to access the same services and call handling features, with a consistent user experience on any device.

Thre are plenty of other winners which you can see at www.gsmawards.com. I’ll write another post about the winners in social impact category.

Consider some statistics about Pakistan’s mobile handset market.

Source: PakTribune. Read the complete article.

The price of handsets is one of the most important factors for mobile growth. This is especially true for rural markets which is the next stage of competition. It is also an important factor for 3G and next generation technologies to take hold in emerging markets. If people can afford phones with more than voice capabilities they are more likely to try out these value-added services. The picture below was taken from the GSM Asia conference brochure.

As illustrated beautifully above there’s plenty more than voice coming our way through a combination of high network speeds and better handsets: games, multimedia messaging, videos/TV, advertisements, mobile commerce (payments via phone etc). It may take a while though as technology struggles with a multitude of challenges (user interface complexity, battery life/weight, lack of standards) which has resulted in slow adoption of the such services in Europe and US. For now simpler features such as text messaging and ringtones are boosting revenues for operators and handset makers.

When expatriate Pakistanis visit Pakistan they are often impressed by the latest glitzy models available in Pakistan. Camera phones became popular very quickly and music phones followed soon. The mobile phone has become a status symbol in Pakistan and in many emerging markets. Of course with all this trend mobile phone snatching has increased. The recent introduction of a system (based on phone serial number) to block stolen/snatched phones has come under attack as it can be foiled without too much effort, depending on the phone set. However many consider prefer it to no action by the government - the better approach would be multifaceted: to educate the consumers, actively work towards a better technology and to crack down on illegal reseller market. Note that I skipped “catch the snatchers” as that is way too much to ask for our police. Another impact of these gadgets is on the social scene in Pakistan - I don’t have any stats on this but these phones are radically changing the ways boys and girls socialize and interact. For conservatives (and/or parents of teenagers), this must be a concern.

Now something at the global level. GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade association which represents more than 680 mobile operators worldwide, runs a program called “Emerging Market Handset programme” in which mobile operators in developing countries buy ultra-low cost handsets from Motorola. “Motorola is set to exceed the programme’s target of 12 million phones, proving that there is a huge appetite for mobile communications beyond the affluent markets traditionally served by this industry,” said Rob Conway, CEO of the GSMA.

GSMA estimates that there are more than one billion people worldwide who still won’t be able to afford a mobile phone for the foreseeable future. To help give these people access to telecommunications, the GSMA is funding projects designed to stimulate the rollout of ‘shared access’ mobile solutions across the developing world. Grameen phone in Bangladesh and Sharedphone in South African are examples of the shared access business model.