Archive for the 'Business' Category

Mobilink Infinity: Changes in Rates and Plans

Mobilink Infinity has announced that they will no longer offer 256Kbps package. It means that you have to use the upgraded package and pay more. It is great for those who were looking to upgrade but not good for those who are not interested in paying more. The official announcement is below. Somehow the message is not very clear and some people may be surprised to see the extra charge after a couple of months. This is related to our rants about clear messages and billing issues.

We are excited to inform that your 256Kbps Mobilink Infinity Wi MAX account has been upgraded to 512Kbps under a special promotion!!

The Data allowance will be the same as of your 256Kbps package, but with double the speed and performance. You can experience blazing fast browsing, downloads and streaming with this upgrade and enjoy it at *Absolutely No Additional Cost for the Next Two Months*.

This promotion will give you a free speed upgrade for initial two months however, you will have to pay the 512Kbps package monthly charges according to the tariff from the third month onwards.

Here are the tariff details.

mobilink-wimax-infinity-data-rates

China Mobile Makes Strategic Move For M-Commerce Services

It looks like e-wallets and mobile commerce are on top of agenda for large telecom companies. China Mobile agreed to buy 20 percent of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank for 39.8 billion renminbi ($5.8 billion) to expand its electronic payment business.
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Cellphones Let Shoppers Point, Click and Purchase

I came across an article in New York Times on advances in shopping technologies. The effort to turn people’s mobile phones into information displays and ordering devices is on. Here’s a quick list of the technologies you could see on a cell phone soon:

  • Scan and shop (various apps)
  • Presence (IBM)
  • Mobile Concierge (Cisco)
  • Mobile Loyalty Cards

Shoppers will soon be able to stand outside the designer Norma Kamali’s boutique in Manhattan, point a phone at merchandise in the window and buy it — even late at night when the store is closed. How? By using technologies such as ScanLife which allows customers to scan bar codes on merchandise. Other apps allow users to do perform product search and price comparison through barcodes.

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New Poll – Billing Errors by Telecom Companies

We are conducting a poll to collect consumer feedback on telecom billing errors, resolution process and improvements that can be made. As one example, PTA recently issued a show-cause notice to PTCL for, among other things, a high number of billing error (79 errors per 10,000 bills). Below are some statistics for reference.

ptcl-billing-error-survey

These are from a survey conducted by PTA and PTCL in 2009 and represent the average of the nationwide results. We often hear that consumers of other telecom companies have similar issues with billing and we would like to get your opinion about this. We also want to know if the process of resolution of these issues is working well or not.

Telcordia: Caught in Indo-Pak Politics

This WSJ article on Telcordia shows how telecom is also getting caught up in the intense politics of South Asia. Telcordia had helped with mobile number portability and now that has come under scrutiny by Indian government. Quite funny. We had heard the same kind of concerns about Telenor. Is this an isolated instance or does this mean more trouble for telecom vendors who are doing business in South Asia?

Telcordia Technologies Inc. sold its software to several cellphone companies in Pakistan a few years ago, just as it has done in 14 other countries. Now that fact is making life difficult for the U.S. company in Pakistan’s archrival, India. Telcordia makes back-end software for wireless and fixed-line networks.

Millions of Indian cellphone users are awaiting the chance to switch wireless providers while keeping the same phone number. Telcordia, which is based in Piscataway, N.J., was one of two companies the Indian government selected to provide crucial services to carriers in the transition to so-called number portability.

But in recent months, India’s Home Ministry has raised objections that partnering with Telcordia could compromise national security, effectively putting the company’s plans on hold.

The Indian ministry noted its concerns that Telcordia “has presence in Pakistan,” according to notes from a January meeting of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board, the government body that reviews foreign investments.

Read more about this after the break.

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Mobile World Congress 2010

Here’s a video report from Mobile World Congress 2010 at Barcelona, which talks about the  innovation and cool new gadgets.

What To Read On TelecomPk.Net

Here are some of the recent favorites from TelecomPk.

Price Fixing By Mobile Telecom Companies

Rohan Samarajiva of LIRNEAsia has published a post titled “Pakistan Competition Commission appears to have mobile telcos on the ropes“. The post describes how evidence emerged on price fixing for balance inquiries and steps taken by Competition Commission of Pakistan. The details of this case are quite interesting and offer many insights into the minds of telecom decision makers.

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On Customer Service via Twitter: Lessons and Mistakes

Telecom companies have started using  Twitter and other social media platforms for effective customer service and brand promotion. The quality of how companies use these new media channels varies a lot. I wanted the readers to take a look at how customer service should be done - as shown by T-Mobile -  and the mistakes that Mobilink and Ufone are making.

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PTCL Roundup: Earnings Up 13%, Rs. 5.354 billion Net Profit. Changes to Student Package

PTCL is in the news as it reported earnings: a net profit of Rs. 5.354 billion for the half year ended on 31st December, 2009. This is a 13% growth compared to same period last year. At the same time, PTCL has withdrawn its high-speed Internet discount for students. In a recent press release, it announced that “PTCL is offering special 30% discount package for the students on 1 Mbps connection on high speed broadband services.” The previous connections of 2MBps and 4Mbps offered to students will be downgraded. To me, this business strategy seems odd. Why would you downgrade a popular package at a time when earnings are good?

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Late Night Offers Under the Gun – Right or Wrong? You Decide

There is a lot of talk about the news that Punjab Government has unanimously passed a resolution banning late night offers/packages by mobile phone operators. Daily times reports it as follows:

Members of the Punjab Assembly (MPAs) on Tuesday unanimously passed a resolution banning late night packages offered by mobile networks at cheap rates in keeping with “moral and social values” and to “maintain the youth’s health and prevent vice”.

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Djuice Promotes Local Soccer Talent, Sponsors RedBull StreetStyle

Djuice is known for appealing to youth. In a search for local talent, Djuice has sponsored a freestyle soccer contest in Pakistan. After the first rounds of competition in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore, the finals are on 31st January in Karachi from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. For more detail on “Red Bull Street Style!” see below and go to Djuice site. This will be fun!

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