1911 Social Service is the latest VAS from Telenor. It brings you all the professional advice you might ever need via one portal on the go. If you are ever in need of any kind of expert medical or legal advice, guidance on how to chart your career path or any other information, simply dial 1911 (one-nine-one-one) to talk to our professional agents and get the personalized attention that you both need and deserve.

Social Services available:

• Tele Doctor: Talk to professional doctors who will ensure that your issues are resolved and appropriate advice is given.
• Tele Lawyer: Talk to professional lawyers to seek expert advice on any legal matter or browse recorded legal tips.
• Career Counseling: Talk to professional counselors to get guidance regarding your career, take an IVR based personality assessment test.
• Tele Genie: Talk to professional agents to get any sort of information or browse through amazing facts.

Calls to 1911 are charged @ Rs. 10 + Tax per 3 minutes.

Bookmark It

ISLAMABAD: The growth in cell phone sector has witnessed a bit of a squeezing trend as Pakistan Telecommunication Authority started blocking millions of unregistered connections after the launch of SIM information system-668.

Although the new system was introduced officially in mid-October, the subscriber’s based widened only by 10,452 in this month, which showed that users base may contract after blocking of unregistered numbers.

In October, the overall customer base reached 95.918 million with only 0.01 percent growth from preceding month. Besides Ufone, all four cellular phone companies witnessed minimal addition of users on their network.

Owing to downfall in revenues, most of the telecom operators adopted ‘cost-cutting measures’ during the year 2008-09. Throughout the year, the sector’s financial health could not be improved in accordance with the expectations owing to taxes and falling exchange rates, which placed unprecedented burden on the operators import bills.

A senior official at a cell phone company said due to economic slowdown, saturation in the market and global financial crisis, the total investment in the telecom sector during 2008-09 has reduced.

He said despite the fact that the operators have speedily rolled out their infrastructure, reaching out to most of the population, there still remains huge areas like Broadband, WLL and manufacturing, where investment opportunities exist.

To cope with the financial crunch, telecom operators adopted optimization of human resources and cut in employees perks.

As per data, the leading mobile operator, Mobilink, slipped from green to red zone in earnings because of the falling exchange rate and rapid drop in the subscribers’ base.

A dismal situation in fixed-line penetration is the major area of concern for the policy-makers and the regulator in Pakistan. After issuing a number of licenses to the fixed-line operators, the regulator believed that the market forces would play their due role for its expansion, but unfortunately, this could not happen.

However, despite these difficulties, the sectors revenue grew by 19 percent which poses confidence in the government and regulators’ policies. Unlike expectations, most of the fixed-line operators could not roll out the infrastructure maintaining the incumbent operator still the dominant player with its old copper based infrastructure a main hurdle in the sector’s growth.

It was also expected that a rapid roll out by wireless technology (WLL) would compensate the declining fixed line penetration, which too did not happen due to lack of investment by WLL operators. Furthermore, the WLL operators like Wateen and Wi-tribe have smartly diverted their resources to Broadband expansion in 3.5 GHz and invested on new technology like WiMax.

This, too, caused slow growth in the fixed line sector. Issues like right of way and lack of unbundling also proved major hurdles in the fixed line sector’s growth. A huge investment is required to roll out new generation of fibre networks in the country.

This gives a major opportunity to large scale investors to secure their investments in Pakistan in this segment of the industry. During the year, a total of $1.6 billion worth of investment has been made by all the operators, of which the cellular mobile share is about 75 percent.

The WLL has marginally increased investment from $52.8 million in 2007-08 to $82.11 million in 2008-09. However, the rest of all of the sectors have reduced the level of their investment. During this period, Pakistan attracted FDI worth $3.7 billion altogether. In the current year, the telecom sector received over US $815 million FDI.

Major countries which invested more than 70 percent in last five years in Pakistan’s telecom sector included United Arab Emirates, United States of America, Norway and China. The UAE emerges as the leading country investing over 36 percent of the total FDI in the telecom sector in the last five years. UAE invested in companies like Wateen, Warid Telecom and PTCL.

Etisalat, UAE based company, bought out 26 percent shares of the PTCL worth $2.4 billion. The UAE has invested over $2.3 billion in the telecom sector of Pakistan since 2004-05. China Mobile has its first overseas adventure in Pakistan cellular mobile sector, in addition to telecom manufacturing, through companies like ZTE and others. Investment from China exceeded US $599 million in the telecom sector of Pakistan during the last five years.

Telenor, a Norway based company, also brought about half a billion US dollars foreign investment into Pakistan during the last five years. The telecom sector contributes 1 to 2 percent in the total GDP, making its share in total tax revenue as 6 to 7 percent per annum. During the year 2008-09, the sector continued to contribute handsome amount in national kitty through various taxes and regulatory charges. – APP

Bookmark It

ISLAMABAD: Cellular subscribers rose 6.3 million in fiscal year 2008-09 as compared to 25 million net additions in 2007-08, suggesting that the saturation in the market, economic slowdown and heavy taxes could be major reasons for the slow growth, annual report of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) showed.

Regarding complaints received by the PTA from consumers of cellular operators during July 2008 to June 2009, total complaints stood at 7,479 out of which 45 per cent complaints were related to misuse of service, obnoxious and fraudulent calls or SMS.

Amazingly, the PTA report states that only nine per cent complaints were related to quality of service (disruption/faults in service). However, consumer complaints regarding PTCL showed that out of total 5,288 complaints, 73 per cent were about quality of service, disruption/faults in service in 2008-09. On the issue of market share in terms of subscriber base of mobile phones, the report states that the main contributor to the net increase was Telenor, which added about 2.8 million subscribers while Zong and Warid added 2.4 million each during last year.

Having more choice available to consumers resulted in a reduction in the share of Mobilink by 15 per cent while other operators show increase in their market share.

Although Mobilink is still enjoying major market share in cellular subscribers, it receives a setback by losing around three million subscribers in 2008-09.

During the reported period, Mobilink continued to stay at top in the country’s mobile market with 29.14 million subscribers, followed by Telenor and Ufone competing fiercely for the second position with 20.9 million and 20 million subscribers respectively. Both the companies registered a subscriber growth rate at 16 per cent (Telenor) and 11 per cent (Ufone) correspondingly; however the growth in subscribers of Telenor (69pc) in the preceding year was much higher than that of Ufone (29pc).

Warid ended this year with a total subscriber base of 17.8 million. However, Zong has been reported a subscriber base of 6.4 million.

In 2009, total number of Mobilink subscribers stood at 29.136 million, Ufone 20.004 million, Zong 6.386 million, Instaphone 34,048, Telenor 20.893 million and Warid 17.886 million. Total revenues of telecom service rose to Rs333.882 billion in 2008-09 against Rs278.508 billion in the last fiscal year 2007-08.

Out of total revenues, the share of cellular operators in revenues stood at Rs212.423 billion, Local Loop Rs62.640 billion, LDI Rs47.969 billion, Wireless Local Loop (WLL) Rs2.670 billion and VAS (estimated) Rs8.179 billion during the fiscal year 2008-09.

Bookmark It

BARCELONA, Nov 19 (Reuters) – Norwegian telecoms company Telenor (TEL.OL), which has operations in 13 countries in Europe and Asia, said it supported consolidation when asked about reports it was looking to buy a Pakistani rival.

“We we are in Pakistan for the long term,” finance director Trond Westlie said on Thursday at an investor conference. “We are not making acqusitions that call for a lot a cash in the next two years,” he said, adding he supported consolidation.

Asked about speculation Telenor was in talks about Warid Telecom, a Pakistani joint venture between Abu Dhabi Group & SingTel Group, Westlie said: “We have not commented on any discussion with anybody. We are aware the market is moving but we will not comment before we deliver”.

The number of mobile phone subscribers in Pakistan stood at 95.9 million at end-September, according to the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority.

Mobilink, which belongs to Egypt’s Orascom Telecom (ORTE.CA) is the dominant operator with a market share of 31.3 percent followed by Telenor with 22.6 percent.

Smaller players, apart from Warid Telecom, are Ufone, part of Emirates Telecommunications Group, and Mobile China’s Zong.

Total wireless subscribers in Pakistan were seen reaching 132 million in 2013, according to consulting firm IE Market Research.

source: http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssTechMediaTelecomNews/idUSLJ44922220091119

Bookmark It

Islamabad, 19th November 2009. Tameer Microfinance Bank and Telenor Pakistan have announced launch of Money Transfer, the second in a suite of products being offered under easypaisa. Money Transfer is a secure, easy and convenient way of sending and receiving domestic remittances through easypaisa retail outlets. Users will have the convenience to access the service from more than 4,000 easypaisa merchants, a figure expected to reach 20,000 by the end of year 2010.

CEO Tameer Microfinance Bank, Nadeem Hussain considers domestic remittances a key point in providing financial access to the rural population. “Remittance flow plays a valuable role in supporting the economy. It also offers significant potential to support income of poor and vulnerable groups. Remittances are often the first and sometimes the only financial service used in low income households. Hence the potential for an accessible banking agent in remote areas of the country is immense.” He said.

At the launch of Money Transfer, CEO Telenor Pakistan Jon Eddy Abdullah said, “Providing Money Transfer service is the next step in the development of easypaisa as a unique branchless banking solution. World Bank estimates the domestic transfer volume in Pakistan to be at $6.95 billion per year. Through this service we not only aim to target all current users of domestic remittance services but also to help bring some portion of $ 2 to $ 4 billion transacted through informal channel into mainstream.”

Tameer’s original branchless banking pilot was developed in partnership with the technology program at Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), a microfinance center housed at the World Bank. The program is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Telenor Pakistan & Tameer Microfinance Bank’s easypaisa portfolio, which now includes Bill Payment solution and Money Transfer, is scheduled to come up with services such as, mobile wallet accounts, cash deposits and withdrawal facilities in near future. The services offer innovation, freedom, security and convenience.

Media Clarification

Islamabad, November 05, 2009: Recently, media has reported that IESCO and LESCO have asked their customers to not deposit their bills at Tameer bank’s easypaisa retailers. IESCO and LESCO have taken the position that they do not have an agreement with Tameer bank for bill collection through this channel.

Tameer Bank has a contract with KASB authorizing it to collect bills and deposit them through KASB’s aggregator service. Tameer Bank entered into an electronic bill collection arrangement with KASB Bank under their “eUBS” service in 2007. This Service Level Agreement was enhanced in February 2009 to cater for its Branchless Banking approval. The channels covered under this arrangement include IVR, ATM, Call Center, POS and other Over the Counter (OTC) modes. We would like to highlight that all utility companies, which have electronic billing arrangements with KASB have been made available to member banks as well. Therefore, Tameer Bank rightly availed this electronic collection under its umbrella agreement with KASB.

As per contract, KASB is responsible for all negotiations and arrangements with utility companies, and we are asking them to resolve this issue with IESCO and LESCO as soon as possible.

In the interest of our valued customers, Tameer Bank and Telenor Pakistan have decided to temporarily suspend the service from IESCO at easypaisa merchants. This service will be resumed as soon as the agreement issues between IESCO and Tameer Bank are resolved.

Tameer Bank and Telenor Pakistan would like to reassure all easypaisa customers who have already paid their IESCO and LESCO bills that their amounts have safely been deposited with the relevant utility companies. Furthermore, our dedicated helpline, 111-345-100 is available 24/7, to address any customer concerns related to easypaisa or previous transactions. Customers are requested to contact with their transaction ID.

Telenor Pakistan & Tameer Bank launch ‘easypaisa’

Islamabad, 15th October 2009. Telenor Pakistan and Tameer Microfinance Bank together have announced the launch of easypaisa, a uniquely convenient and safe way for everyone to carry out financial transactions. easypaisa users will have the freedom to make bill payments and send and receive money at thousands of outlets and in addition manage their bank accounts over their mobile phones. easypaisa combines the best from the financial and mobile sectors, offering the first branchless banking solution of its kind in Pakistan and neighboring countries.

Presiding over the easypaisa launch event, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, Syed Salim Raza in his address emphasized government’s focus on promoting financial access in the country. He said, “Helping people to get access to financial services is central to improving their livelihood. Branchless banking has been used internationally as a successful tool to reach customers who cannot be served by conventional branch-based financial services. That is why State Bank has been very supportive of innovative synergies in this field, a prime example of which is easypaisa by Tameer Bank and Telenor Pakistan.”

Director Telecom, Ministry of Information Technology & Telecommunications, Mudassar Hussain highlighted the critical role mobile industry has to play in providing financial access to the un-banked. He said, “The total life of mobile industry in Pakistan is less than 20 years while formal banking channels have been around for some 60 years. However, interestingly, in comparison to more than 90 million mobile subscriptions, the number of bank accounts is less than 30 million. The Ministry is of the view that this presents an immense opportunity for the mobile industry to add value to the financial sector and serve the un-banked. We have been actively supporting the consultation process and hope that easypaisa becomes a resounding success story for the industry and country.”

Chief Executive Officer, Telenor Pakistan, Jon Eddy Abdullah called easypaisa a revolutionary solution. He said, “easypaisa will allow users across the board to access convenient and secure financial services. In an environment where only 12% of adult population is formally served with financial services, easypaisa will promise tremendous financial empowerment. It will provide opportunity for everyone to utilize well-priced, secure, and efficient financial services at the corner store without opening a bank account, or through ones own handset with a Tameer Bank account depending on the transaction type. The inclusion into the general economy will create opportunities to save, pay for services more efficiently without the loss of productivity, and to utilize more advanced financial instruments in the future.

Chief Executive Officer, Tameer Microfinance Bank, Nadeem Hussain talked about how branchless banking can help the low-income customer segment currently served by Tameer Bank.  “Tameer has been a pioneer in scalable retail micro finance operations with initial focus on lending. Tameer has always embraced new technologies to lower operating costs. Mobile phones – along with other technologies and banking agents are beginning to offer the opportunity of giving financial services to the many millions of people and low cost who have never had a bank account.”

Telenor Pakistan & Tameer Bank’s easypaisa portfolio, initially launched with Bill Payment solution, is scheduled to come up with services such as money transfer, mobile wallet accounts, cash deposits and withdrawal facilities in near future. The services are for everyone offering innovation, freedom, security and convenience.

About Telenor Pakistan
The Telenor Group is an international provider of high quality tele, data and media communication services with mobile operations in 13 markets across the Nordic region, Central and Eastern Europe and in Asia. The Telenor Group is among the largest mobile operators in the world with over 168 million mobile subscriptions and a workforce of more than 40,000. Telenor Pakistan is 100% owned by Telenor ASA and adds on to its operations in Asia.

Growth comes from truly understanding the needs of people to drive relevant change.

About Tameer Bank
Tameer Bank, a fast growing microfinance bank licensed by State Bank of Pakistan in August 2005, rated A- (single A minus) and A-2 (A two) by JCRVIS, has a current network of 31 on-line branches and 35 on-line sales & service centers across Sindh and Punjab. It has given new complexion to the microfinance sector by induction of innovative technology driven financial services to the under-served population through choice of bank tellers, ATM machines and Point of Sale (POS) terminals. Its product set includes loans, deposits, overdrafts, insurance, payments and domestic remittances.  Since inception, Tameer has disbursed more than Rs 3.5 billion with an active portfolio of Rs. 1.4 billion and over 70,000 loan customers with delinquency trend of under 2% supported with a deposit base of more than Rs 940 million. The total customer base of Tameer has crossed 145,000 with staff strength of 1,100.

Bookmark It

It is being reported that Norway’s Telenor is close to purchasing a controlling stake in Pakistan’s Warid Telecom for around US$1.3 billion. If completed, the Dhabi Group will retain 7 percent of the company, while other 30 percent will stay with Singtel.

Citing unnamed sources, Pro Pakistani reported that the talks went through in a smooth way, especially when Telenor agreed on paying the value that was pretty acceptable for Dhabi Group. The blog also confirmed that the telecoms regulator, the PTA is aware of the talks and would not be expected to object to them.

The largest operator in the country is Moblink, with just over 28 million customers. Both Telenor and Ufone have just under 20 million customers, while Warid Telecom comes in with just over 17 million. China Mobile’s Pakistan subsidiary, Zong is the smallest of the 5 main operators in the country, with just under 6 million customers

China Mobile had previously tried to buy out Warid Telecom but reportedly failed to reach an agreement on the price. China Mobile then turned its attention to Telenor concerning a merger of their respective Pakistani mobile networks, but evidently nothing happened.

Last year, Telenor said that it was likely to invest $2.5 billion more in the country if it gets a 3G license. “We have invested almost $1.8 billion out of our commitment of $2 billion by the end-2007 and would go for a further $2.5 billion depending on the situation if we get a 3G license,” Jon Fredrik Baksaas, also the president of Telenor Group, told Dow Jones Newswires last August.

Bookmark It

Zumbeel played a wonderful part to get top notch telecom industry professionals to speak on trending technology topics at their event ‘Are You Online’.

One of them was Mr.Ahmer Arsalan, Customer Solution Manager from NSN (Pakistan and Middle East). He has worked as a subject matter expert for network planning and also on various projects mainly Greenfield networks and 3G/HSPA in Europe, UK, Middle East and Africa. He delivered a presentation on the most heated topic in our telecom industry, ‘3G and Pakistan’, calling it Pakis3Gstan.

The presentation focused on realization of the 3G potential for emerging countries like Pakistan. It discussed the market readiness factors, services 3G can be offer with 3G/HSDPA, strategies to implement and much more all supported by statistics.

“3G drives data use, not the other way around”
– Ovum, 2008

I have always advocated 3G/HSDPA for Pakistan and in my last post about this I also questioned on when will it happen? At out neighbors India, the 3G is already playing its services with government run BSNL and MTNL, which were allotted 3G spectrum ahead of the auction expected to take place in January 2010. And here is Pakistan we have been delaying it. The authority must realize on this and act promptly for license auctions in the coming year.

Coming back to the presentation, it also mentions that the operator’s ARPU is likely to increase with 3G services. Also the first operator to launch it is likely to create stickiness and have a bright chance to raise the brand image.

You many download the complete presentation slides from here and below is a short clipping of the session.

Bookmark It