Cellular Subscribers in Pakistan Top 50 Mln; MNP on March 23
‘Pakistan Times’ Special Report

KARACHI: With Mobilink touching marvelous heights of swift popularity among people of all ages as the leader, cellular subscriber base has crossed the 50 million mark and experts see the service adding another 10 million users by the end of current financial year.

Latest figures compiled by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) suggest the total number of cellular service users stood at 50.75 million by January 2007, which were 34 million by end-June 2006.

“In absolute terms, total number of cellular subscribers stands at 50,756,505 (50.75 million), which shows an increase of 47 per cent during the first seven months of the current fiscal,” the source said.

“There is also a 4.1 per cent increase if we compare such figures with the previous month. In fact, there is an exceptional jump in cellular subscriber numbers.”

In the calendar year 2006 almost 29 million new connections were sold by the six cellular companies on comparatively cheaper tariff offers and increased network reach of the service providers.

“So there was over 147.44 per cent rise in the cellular subscriber base in a single calendar year,” said the source.

“With Mobilink atop as the market leader, three companies - Ufone, Al Warid and Telenor - got better market share during the first seven months of 2006-07, who attracted subscribers with diverse types of tariff packages and incentives.”

The PTA figures show by January 2007 Mobilink led the market with 23.29 million subscribers, followed by Ufone, which was serving 10.55 million people across the country.

With the arrival of the UAE-based Al Warid Telecom and Norway’s Telenor, both competition and subscriber base grew at a faster pace, as they attracted 7.9 million and 7.6 million subscribers respectively by the end of January 2007.

The cellular density witnessed a phenomenal jump in the last two years as the mobile phone subscriber base grew by an amazing 170 per cent during 2005-06, outnumbering almost over six-decade-old fixed-line telephone service of Pakistan Telecom by more than 500 per cent in 16 years of operation.

The MNP

Though, analysts see the cellular service growth in line with expectations, but say 2007 appears to be some-what challenging for the cellular companies, when the MNP (mobile number portability) system is expected to be put into operation.

“The cellular operators may well continue such growth in times to come,” said Anwaar Ahmed Khan, Head of Research at Inter Securities Management Limited.

“In fact, reduced tariff and increased number of destinations have made the cellular service within reach of the low income group.”

The cellular operators expect a lively and healthy competition after the MNP system is implemented across the country as it would help improve the services – still more.

The MNP is a system that enables a mobile phone subscriber to carry the same number while changing the service provider. The system, which requires an investment of over Rs. 500 million, was initially due in November 2005 but got delayed.

Now March 2007 has been set as the new deadline for project completion and seems confident to meet it.

“The MNP is almost ready to be launched,” said a cellular company official.

“There were some complications in the project, which have been removed and proper service would be available to the subscribers from March 23, 2007,” he remarked.●