Share this story!            

Number of cellphone subscribers crosses 18m

By Imran Ayub

KARACHI: The number of cellphone subscribers crossed 18 million mark last month leaving behind the authorities’ forecast, which predicted 16 million mobile phone users by December 2005.

The figures compiled by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority suggest that by October 2005 cellular density in the country stood at 11.95 compared with 10.98 registered in September 2005.

“The figures show that the country had some 18.4 million cellular subscribers by October 2005,” said a PTA official. “In absolute terms, the figures are 18,400,233 with a growth rate of 18.5 percent compared with September 2005.”

He said the PTA had not released companies’ share by October 2005 as the regulator had decided to issue operators’ subscribers base on quarterly basis.

The cellular subscriber base has registered a phenomenal jump during the past one and a half years and has registered a 154.26 percent growth during the previous fiscal compared with 2003-04.

The operators believe with cheap calls on top of falling handset costs, demand for mobile phones is rising rapidly in the country, as though 12 in 100 now own a mobile phone connection compared with five in India - the world's fifth-largest telecom market.

The PTA official said by the first quarter of the current fiscal Mobilink was leading the market share with 9.01 million subscribers across the country followed by Ufone – a sister concern of the Pakistan Telecommunica-tion Company-- with 3.83 million customers.

“Since the arrival of two new operators earlier this year the competition grew at much faster pace and cellular subscriber registered an almost 150 percent increase during 2004-05,” said the official.

The PTA in April 2004 awarded two cellular licences to Norwegian Telenor and the UAE-based Al Warid at $291 million each. The two foreign companies, which launched services early this year, have registered rapidly grown subscriber base during the past six months. “By September 2005 Al Warid was serving 1.50 million users and Telenor was being used by 1.20 million people across the country,” said the PTA official, showing quarterly compiled companies’ share.

Similarly, he said Paktel, which offered both GSM (global system for mobile communications) and AMPS (advanced mobile phone system) services, enjoyed a total of 954,528 subscribers by September 2005.

“Instaphone, which offers a comparatively older technology of AMPS, had the least number of 440,159 customers by September 2005,” added the PTA official.

The latest figures have left the PTA predictions well behind, which predicted more than 16 million mobile phone subscribers by December 2005, but the regulators suggested its estimates could prove ineffective due to rising popularity of cellular service.

"With subscriber base increasing every day and mobile penetration increasing every month, the mobile cellular sector of Pakistan is likely to cross all estimates,” said the PTA annual report.

“Timely launch of two new cellular companies, expansion of network by a leading operator on monthly basis, renewal of an expiring licence, expansion in networks, reduced taxes and handset prices are all right ingredients for best possible growth pattern any mobile sector can have.”

The country’s cellular subscribers growth has also inspired the international bodies, which paint an impressive picture of Pakistan’s telecom scene.

“Pakistan's mobile telecommunications growth continues at an astonishing pace,” said a GSM Association report issued recently. “With six competitors in the market, declining prices, increasing affordability and the next round of competition focusing on price, quality, and enhanced services, Pakistan will continue to be among the fastest growing markets in the world in the next several years.”

Home | Business

Share this story!