Pakistan Telecom and IT updates

[ghazi52]

Mobile internet subscribers reach record high

ISLAMABAD (APP): The number of mobile internet subscribers reached a record 40.56 million by the end of April 2017, according to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA). Pakistan is also one of many developing countries where the usage of internet is rising day by day. People across the country use mobile internet to connect to their family and friends via big social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Mobile internet users in the country have grown significantly in the numbers and reached a record 40.56 million active mobile internet users by the end of April 2017, an official told APP. He said, "29% of mobile phone users are now internet users as well. They were standing at 22% by the end of the previous fiscal year in June 2016". On an average, the number of mobile internet subscriptions stood at 976,600 per month compared to mobile subscriptions at 703,617 per month in the past 10 months, according to PTA.

Moreover, Ministry of Information and Technology has recently sought approval from the Federal cabinet to roll out 5G services in the country. The step is taken in a bid to promote and improve 5G services in Pakistan.

This approval will allow the Ministry of Information and Technology to test the latest technology in mobile communications in Pakistan.

Keeping in view the increase in mobile internet users, the government has reduced custom duty on smartphones to promote the usage of the smartphones and internet which could ensure a new era of evolution in the country.
__________________

 

[ghazi52]

Ride-Hailing Services: Help increase mobile internet usage

ISLAMABAD: Ride-hailing services Uber and Careem have contributed to an increase in the number of mobile internet subscribers since their drivers need to remain online during their hours of duty and for that they need mobile data.

Further increase in the number of drivers and users will lead to increased mobile internet usage. “In line with our vision to improve and simplify the lives of people, we want to bring technological and financial inclusion in addition to enhanced learning for the masses,” said Careem’s manager in Islamabad.

Pakistan is one of the fastest growing mobile internet markets amongst developing countries. According to the PTA, the number of mobile internet subscribers reached a record 40.56 million by the end of April 2017 which represents 29% of all mobile phone users in the country.

 

[ghazi52]

Pakistan Gets New Submarine Cable with Design Capacity of 40 TBs per Second


Pakistan is now connected with a new submarine cable system with design capacity of at least 40 Terabits per second across 5 fiber pairs as AAE-1 (also called Asia-Africa-Europe-1) announced the commencement of its operations just moments ago.

AAE-1 is worlds largest submarine cable spanning over 25,000 KMs and is one of the first cable system to connect Hong Kong, Singapore, Middle East with Africa and Europe.

AAE-1 consortium, that coordinated efforts to complete the project in 10 years, include China Unicom, CIL (HyalRoute), Djibouti Telecom, Etisalat, GT5L, Mobily, Omantel, Ooredoo, OTEG, PCCW, PTCL, Reliance Jio, Retelit, Telecom Egypt, TeleYemen, TOT, Viettel, VNPT and VTC.

In Pakistan, the cable will be operated and managed by PTCL.

AAE-1 will immediately increase Pakistan’s international bandwidth pipe multiple-folds and will make country’s international connection more redundant.

New submarine cable will also help Pakistan meet its bandwidth needs as the internet usage in the country is on the rise.

Pakistan’s current international links and bandwidth capacity include:

TW1 with design capacity of 1.28Tbps
Sea-Me-We-3 with 480 Gbps with two fibre pairs
Sea-Me-We-4 with design capacity of 1.28Tbps
I-ME-WE with Design Capacity of 3.86Tbps
AAE-1 with design capacity of 40Tbps
Sea-Me-We-5 with design capacity of 24Tbps

Following international links with landing points in Pakistan are under construction:

Silk Route Gateway-1 with design capacity of 20Tbps
Pakistan-China Fiber Optic Back-Haul

https://propakistani.pk/2017/06/29/p...bs-per-second/




Pakistan has now been connected to a new submarine cable network, AAE-1, that links different countries in Asia, Africa and Europe.

The Asia-Africa-Europe-1 internet system has launched operations with connecting countries from Europe to the Far East, the AAE-1 consortium has announced. The internet infrastructure is supported by a 25,000-kilometer submarine cable system which is being called the world’s largest submarine cable system built in more than a decade. The cable is being termed as the first such cable to connect countries in major Asian, African, Middle Eastern and European regions. The cable has a total of 21 international terminal stations of which 19 are now connected.

Being commissioned, the cable now provides the lowest latency express route for internet connecting more than a dozen countries in three continents. The underwater cable will have a route from Hong Kong and Vietnam in the far east, connecting, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Pakistan, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Greece, Italy and all the way to France in Europe.

The AAE-1 consortium is collaborating with different internet services providers in these countries including China Unicom, CIL (HyalRoute), Djibouti Telecom, Etisalat, GT5L, Mobily, Omantel, Ooredoo, OTEG, PCCW, Reliance Jio, Retelit, Telecom Egypt, TeleYemen, TOT, Viettel, VNPT and VTC. From Pakistan, PTCL is a part of the consortium. Right now this cable has the most highest design capacity that connects Pakistan with the outside world.

The cable has a minimum design capacity of 40 terabytes per second across 5 fiber pairs. Initially being designed on 100 gigabit per second technology, the cable can be upgraded to higher bandwidths in future.

 

[Major Sam]

Pakistan Gets New Submarine Cable with Design Capacity of 40 TBs per Second


Pakistan is now connected with a new submarine cable system with design capacity of at least 40 Terabits per second across 5 fiber pairs as AAE-1 (also called Asia-Africa-Europe-1) announced the commencement of its operations just moments ago.

AAE-1 is worlds largest submarine cable spanning over 25,000 KMs and is one of the first cable system to connect Hong Kong, Singapore, Middle East with Africa and Europe.

AAE-1 consortium, that coordinated efforts to complete the project in 10 years, include China Unicom, CIL (HyalRoute), Djibouti Telecom, Etisalat, GT5L, Mobily, Omantel, Ooredoo, OTEG, PCCW, PTCL, Reliance Jio, Retelit, Telecom Egypt, TeleYemen, TOT, Viettel, VNPT and VTC.

In Pakistan, the cable will be operated and managed by PTCL.

AAE-1 will immediately increase Pakistan’s international bandwidth pipe multiple-folds and will make country’s international connection more redundant.

New submarine cable will also help Pakistan meet its bandwidth needs as the internet usage in the country is on the rise.

Pakistan’s current international links and bandwidth capacity include:

TW1 with design capacity of 1.28Tbps
Sea-Me-We-3 with 480 Gbps with two fibre pairs
Sea-Me-We-4 with design capacity of 1.28Tbps
I-ME-WE with Design Capacity of 3.86Tbps
AAE-1 with design capacity of 40Tbps
Sea-Me-We-5 with design capacity of 24Tbps

Following international links with landing points in Pakistan are under construction:

Silk Route Gateway-1 with design capacity of 20Tbps
Pakistan-China Fiber Optic Back-Haul

https://propakistani.pk/2017/06/29/p...bs-per-second/




Pakistan has now been connected to a new submarine cable network, AAE-1, that links different countries in Asia, Africa and Europe.

The Asia-Africa-Europe-1 internet system has launched operations with connecting countries from Europe to the Far East, the AAE-1 consortium has announced. The internet infrastructure is supported by a 25,000-kilometer submarine cable system which is being called the world’s largest submarine cable system built in more than a decade. The cable is being termed as the first such cable to connect countries in major Asian, African, Middle Eastern and European regions. The cable has a total of 21 international terminal stations of which 19 are now connected.

Being commissioned, the cable now provides the lowest latency express route for internet connecting more than a dozen countries in three continents. The underwater cable will have a route from Hong Kong and Vietnam in the far east, connecting, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Pakistan, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Greece, Italy and all the way to France in Europe.

The AAE-1 consortium is collaborating with different internet services providers in these countries including China Unicom, CIL (HyalRoute), Djibouti Telecom, Etisalat, GT5L, Mobily, Omantel, Ooredoo, OTEG, PCCW, Reliance Jio, Retelit, Telecom Egypt, TeleYemen, TOT, Viettel, VNPT and VTC. From Pakistan, PTCL is a part of the consortium. Right now this cable has the most highest design capacity that connects Pakistan with the outside world.

The cable has a minimum design capacity of 40 terabytes per second across 5 fiber pairs. Initially being designed on 100 gigabit per second technology, the cable can be upgraded to higher bandwidths in future.

@Nilgiri @UKBengali what is total bandwidth use by India and Bangladesh?

i mean internet capacity.

 

[Nilgiri]

@Nilgiri @UKBengali what is total bandwidth use by India and Bangladesh?

i mean internet capacity.

Check these places for some info:

http://www.itu.int/net4/ITU-D/idi/2016/#idi2016countrycard-tab&AFG

Full report at: http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/publications/misr2016/MISR2016-w4.pdf

Internet data visualisation:

https://www.akamai.com/us/en/about/our-thinking/state-of-the-internet-report/

 

[ghazi52]

Number of mobile broadband users reaches 41.8 million

ISLAMABAD (APP): Number of mobile broadband users (3G & 4G Internet) has almost touched 41.8 million mark till May 2017, registering an increase of 1.16 million subscribers during one month. The number of mobile broadband users, which was 40.57 million till April this year, has reached 41.8 million. Statistics issued by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) on Thursday revealed that since launch of such services three years back, the number of such subscribers is showing a reasonable growth with each passing month. In January this year, the number of 3G and 4G users was 38.3 million while nearly 37.574m mobile internet users were found to have been using data connections in Dec 2016. As per statistics, Jazz subscribers stood at 12.5m 3G users and Jazz LTE 895,483 users by end of May 2017. The 3G subscribers of Zong have now extended to 8.67 million and 3.82 4G users by end of May 2017. The number of Telenor 3G subscribers was 10.473 million and 519,788 4G users till the period mentioned above.

An increase has also been observed in Ufone subscribers base, reaching 4.83 million 3G users by May 2017 from 4.74 million till April this year.

 

[ghazi52]

Pakistan's largest Telecommunications Company Jazz has paid the full licence fee plus taxes worth $330 Million for the 4G Spectrum which it has been awarded.

https://www.facebook.com/

 

[ghazi52]

SCO all set for 3G, 4G service in AJK


MIRPUR - The official telecom service provider has set to connect Azad Jammu & Kashmir with rest of the world through fast-speed telecom service of 3G and 4G strength to facilitate the users of the telecom products.

Special Communications Organisation (SCO) Acting Commanding Officer Major Tariq Bangish disclosed this while launching the S-Load - the pre-paid Super Card for the facility of its valued customers for swift recharge of their cell phone - in his office here on Saturday. Major Bangish told journalists that the SCO successfully completed the experiment of the execution and use of the fast-pace 3G and 4G internet service in AJK including in all three districts of Mirpur division.

He underlined that free experimental swift internet service at the 3G and 4G was provided to the subscribers of the SCO’s telecom products for past two weeks in Mirpur and various other parts of AJK till June 30. He said that the swift internet service at 3G, 4G strength would be available to the telephone/internet users in AJK soon after the final and formal approval by the concerned telephone authorities of the government of Pakistan - likely to be in the near future, he added.

Elaborating the phased upgradation of the existing 2G to 3G and 4G domain in Mirpur division, he said that in phase-I of the upgradation plan, 17 out of 41 sites were upgraded to 3G and 4G by March 31. The upgraded sites including 6 in Mirpur city, 3 in Dadayal city, 3 sites in Kotli city and rest of the sites in Bhimbher, Dhanderkot, Brnala, Islamagarh and Chaksawari towns.

The SCO’s acting divisional chief said that in 2nd phase, 24 remaining sites and 20 additional sites would be upgraded to 3G and 4G strength in Mirpur, Bhimbher and Kotli city. And in phase-III 47 new sites would be brought in to being in Mirpur division to facilitate maximum of the users of the SCOs telecom products, he added. Referring to the newly-launched Super Card - the S-Load for quick recharge of the cell service of SCOM, he said that the SCOM users would be able to recharge through the Super Card worth Rs300 and Rs500 for 15 days and one month, respectively.


http://nation.com.pk/business/02-Jul...service-in-ajk

 

[ghazi52]

ITU To Host ICTD Pakistan 2017 Conference in Lahore

The Information Technology University will host the 9th International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development (ICTD) Pakistan 2017 in Lahore from 16th to 19th November this year.

At the ICTD, researchers and practitioners can present their work and avail the opportunity to network with more professionals in related fields.

July 14, 2017 has been set as the deadline for the submission of short papers. Those who qualify will be given the opportunity to present their notes at the conference. Their presentations will also be made available in the ACM Digital Library.

The ICTD is a research conference that explores the role of information and communication technologies (ICT) in global development. The conference reflects the multidisciplinary and multi sectorial nature of ICTD work, with representation from a broad range of areas (anthropology, communication, computer science, design, economics, electrical engineering, geography, global health, information science, political science, sociology, and many others), as well as participation from academia, industry, civil society, and government.

The Information Technology University (ITU) and the Punjab IT Board (PITB) have been developing, testing and scaling up ICT applications in areas of healthcare, education, agriculture and livestock, and governance.The last decade has proven very significant in terms of progress for the IT industry in Pakistan. With the opening of incubators, accelerators and angel funding networks, there has been an exponential growth in tech startups coming out of Pakistan and raising venture funding from abroad.

Since 2006, ICTD conferences have been held at Berkeley, CA (USA), Bangalore (India), Doha (Qatar), London (United Kingdom), Atlanta, GA (USA), Cape Town, (South Africa), Singapore and Ann Arbor, MI (USA).

 

[ghazi52]

Telenor Headquarter in final stages at Gulberg Greens Islamabad.

 

[ghazi52]

Tax exemptions on IT exports to promote sector


ISLAMABAD: The federal government has extended exemption of taxes on exports of information technology (IT) products and services till June 2019 in federal budget 2017-18.

Government sources said that the exemption on (IT) exports is meant to incentive expansion and growth of the IT industry which can usher Pakistan into a new age of technological advancement.

Over the last few years, the Ministry of IT and Telecom (MOIT) has taken several initiatives for the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs) especially in areas such as access, skills, marketing and governance in pursuit of a ‘Digital Pakistan’, a Ministry of IT official said.

“MOIT has successfully created an enabling environment where citizens, companies and the government become technology enabled to avail opportunities being presented by the ‘4th Industrial revolution’,” the official added.

Every year, MOIT works with the Ministry of Finance, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and other agencies to introduce incentives and initiatives that can increase the pace of Pakistan’s transformation into a knowledge economy.

It is pertinent to mention that the federal excise duty on telecommunication services has been reduced from 18.5% to 17%, in the recently announced federal budget. Similarly, sales tax on sales of smart phones has been reduced from Rs1000 to Rs650 per set, while customs duties on imports of telecom equipment have almost halved from 16% to 9%.

Mobile phone subscribers have also been provided relief in the form of a 1.5% reduction in withholding income tax, from 14% to 12.5%. Recent skills advancement initiatives taken by the ministry include an ICT4Girls programme targeting thousands of school girls and a soon-to-be-launched programme for freelancers with a total capacity of over a million.


http://dailytimes.com.pk/pakistan/06...promote-sector

 

[ghazi52]

Capital to have state-of-the-art IT Park by 2020


ISLAMABAD - The federal capital will have Information Technology (IT) Park by 2020 as a new state-of-the-art facility is being established to facilitate the sector.

The IT Park, being established under financing from Korea Exim Bank through Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF), spreads over an area of 47.7 acres of land. The cost estimate for first phase is $88.25 million for which loan agreement has already been signed. Sources at Ministry of IT on Saturday said that Software Technology Parks (STPs) are a major factor in facilitating IT companies and play a major role in development of the IT industry.

The construction of IT Park is being done in two phases on 14.9 acres of land. It merits mentioned here that work on IT Parks in Lahore and Karachi would also be started soon. Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) has leased about 45 acres of land in Chak Shahzad, Islamabad to build state-of-the-art IT Park.

PSEB is mandated to facilitate Pakistani IT industry and increase exports of software and services from Pakistan. One of the major functions of PSEB is to set up and operate IT parks and provide conducive and enabling infrastructure for the development of IT industry.

PSEB has been conducting surveys periodically since 2004, the survey results indicate that absence of IT parks as one of the top three concerns of IT industry. Besides providing office space to IT companies,

IT Parks are necessary for creating a platform for information exchange and linkage between academia, industry and the government. IT Parks not only prove to be ideal research and development centres but also provide enormous boost to national economy; proven examples include IT parks in China and South Korea.

http://nation.com.pk/business/09-Jul...t-park-by-2020

 

[ghazi52]

Broadband subscribers cross 44.32 million

ISLAMABAD (APP): The total broadband subscribers, including for 3G and 4G services, have crossed around 44.32 million mark in the country, registering a reasonable growth rate with each passing month.

As per latest figures issued by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), major contribution has been made in shape of 3G and 4G subscribers by mobile phone operators which reached 41.73 million by May this year.

The number of broadband subscribers in other technologies included DSL 1,531,428, HFC 52,096, Wimax 171,011, FTTH 42,611, EvDO 786,211 and other 9,264 subscribers.

Experts of telecom industry are having a viewpoint that portable mobile broadband devices like MiFi and Wingles are one of the main reasons of this growth in 3G/4G subscribers and many more will follow this trend in upcoming days.

Meanwhile, the country's largest mobile phone operator, Mobilink has overtaken its competitors to become the number-one 3G/4G player after official figures were released by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

 

[Affan-khan]

why Telenor Zong Mobilink and Ufone are not allowed to start 3g 4g service in AJK and GB. depend on SCO to provide these services will take few more years.

 

[ghazi52]

Zong Captures Over 75% of 4G Market in Pakistan

While telecom companies are struggling on the financial front with declining margins and diluted usage (thanks to OTT services), Zong is gearing up with its 4G offerings to place itself as the top data network in the country.

Zong has apparently realized that telecom operators can’t race with OTT services — especially for basic telephony such as voice and SMS — but instead they can work on strengthening their infrastructure to become first choice operator for any OTT user.

This is usually possible only when you are able to meet bandwidth demands with high speed and reliability.

Zong has, for this purpose, made sufficient investments in hardening its network. In fact it has now more than 7,000 4G enabled towers to serve its customers with high-speed internet at a price that is affordable for everyone.

As mentioned above, the rise of smartphones and OTT services had created room for a solid and affordable data operator. While we agree that wireless internet can not beat wired or fixed broadband, Zong has managed to meet customer demand for solid and affordable internet.

As a result, Zong today sells more than 70% of all data SIMs in Pakistan. Not only this, they also hold 75% of the mobile broadband (MBB) device share in the country.

This actually means that if you want to buy a dongle or data SIM, Zong is the default choice — all thanks to its wide, deep and thorough 4G coverage.

Not to mention, Zong has announced that it will convert its entire tower-base of 10,500 sites to 4G by the end of the year. This essentially means that Zong’s entire network will be 4G enabled within next few months.

For now, their 4G market share is 75% and this will only grow further with added coverage and strong back-haul support.

While you may know that 2G and 3G ARPUs of Pakistani mobile phone users hover around Rs. 200 mark, the least possible average revenue per user for data SIMs and MBB devices is Rs. 1,500.

This actually means that for every MBB device or data SIM sold by Zong, other operators will have to sell at least 7 SIMs to match Zong’s throughput.

It is yet to be seen how other market players are going to respond to Zong’s placement, let alone come near to what Zong is offering.

https://propakistani.pk/2017/08/04/z...ket-pakistan/#