The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is finally granting a free three months 3G to the leading telecommunication companies in Pakistan.
The trial period, which is expected to begin this month, will provide the telco giants to modify their services and prepare for the next generation technology adoption.
While speaking to The News, Chairman PTA, Dr Syed Ismail Shah confirmed that the limited permission by the Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) will facilitate the cellular mobile operators to identify their technical challenges before rolling out the actual 3G plan to public.
The much-awaited technology will definitely be a turning point for the nation who has been patiently waiting for 3Gfor a long time now.
With 3G in action, Pakistanis will be able to enjoy high speed internet and clear and consistent worldwide application usage right on their smartphones.
While there is a lot for the people, the government of Pakistan is also expecting to earn 1-2 billion dollars by issuing 15-year license for 3G to telecommunication companies in Pakistan.
The spectrum auction process, which is to be launched in March this year will be supervised by an international consultancy, Value Partners Management Consulting, hired by PTA to assist in the auction process.
The consultancy firm would provide professional advice and analysis to the government on the base price, packaging of spectrum, auction methodologies and other issues related to the auction.
“Our focus is not only on short-term benefits, like revenue generation, but also on long-term gains, such as creation of new job opportunities and promotion of technology, enhanced knowledge and research and overall economic growth as can be seen from the policy directive issued by the ministry of information and technology,” he said.
He further added, “Luckily, we have good and bad examples from other parts of the world. We will learn from the mistakes and follow the good practices by optimizing the benefits for the country.”
Considering the fact that Pakistani Government hardly offers anything for free, We hope that the telcos would take the maximum advantage of the given opportunity to prepare for the biggest technological turnaround in the history of Pakistan
