Recently my father wanted internet connectivity at his work site in the vicinity of Port-Qasim (Karachi), I suggested him to go for wireless broadband. So, my father asked me to get the best wireless broadband connection. This was not an easy task and above all my finding surprised me even more.
When compared with cellular phone growth, Broadband has been slow to take off in Pakistan. However the last two years show some progress in terms of growth (a little over 20K subscribers per month), more choices of services in more places and most importantly a significant drop in cost for broadband access (~Rs.1200 per month on average). Another welcome trend is to move towards unlimited broadband.
PTCL has taken the lead with its DSL and EVO offerings while WorldCall, Mobilink Infinity, Wateen / WiMAX, Qubee, NayaTel and Wi-Tribe have also offered their services.
According to PTA, “broadband subscriber base grew by 146% adding 245,727 subscribers during July 2008 – June 2009, while broadband connection charges for 1Mbps connection dropped below Rs. 1000. There were 413,809 Broadband subscribers in June 2009 as compared to 168,082 in June of 2008.”
At the current rate of broadband growth we can cross the half-million mark by December 2009. We need to get to 1 million much faster.
Daily Times recently wrote about broadband, excerpt below.
The Sustainable Development Policy Institute’s (SDPI) Study Group on Information Technology and Telecommunication in its 56th meeting discussed the problems that hinder broadband growth in Pakistan. Relevant stakeholders participated in the meeting. Wahaj ul Siraj of NayaTel and Zamir Bhatti of Wi-tribe reviewed the existing policy and infrastructure sharing issues.
Qubee – ‘An Augere Brand’, we discussed earlier, have now been officially launched in Karachi. Qubee has become the fourth player offering WiMAX services in Karachi, the other three being Wateen, Mobilink Infinity and Wi-tribe. The website says that services also are expected to be launched in Lahore, Islamabad, Hyderabad and Quetta in 2009.
Qubee Packages
Qubee offers variety of packages to home users.
| Package | Speed | GB | PKR/month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discover 6 | 512 | 6 | 750 |
| Discover 12 | 512 | 12 | 1,000 |
| Explore 8 | 1024 | 8 | 1,000 |
| Explore 12 | 1024 | 12 | 1,250 |
| Explore 16 | 1024 | 16 | 1,500 |
Business users have a chance to customize their package on basis of their needs using the qubee tariff planner.
For more information visit their website here.
Since 2006, WiMAX in Pakistan has been the topic of news, articles and blogs. The views range from optimistic and positive to those who think that WiMAX will not survive against competing technologies. Regardless, the number of companies offering WiMAX based broadband has increased. At the same time, foreign press has also started noticing this trend. Here’s a recent article in Wi-FiPlanet magazine about WiMAX and its possibel role in online and distance education in Pakistan. I provided some information for this article as well. Here’s the link to the article.
At least three companies already have WiMAX networks up and running. In major cities, such as Islamabad, the capital, there is even some competition. Prices as a result have come down recently. KZO is only paying about $21 a month for 1 Mbps service at the two schools in its pilot, Cruver says.
Wateen, part of the Abu Dhabi Group based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is offering its Wateen Home service in 22 Pakistani cities, including Islamabad, Karachi and Rawalpindi. It was first to market, launching service in 2006.
Since then, the country’s largest cellular operator, Mobilink, a subsidiary of another Middle East company, Egypt’s Orascom, has launched its Mobilink Infinity service in Karachi. It has plans to roll the service out to other cities, including Lahore and Islamabad.
Wi-tribe, a wireless broadband-only company, again with roots in the Middle East, launched this year in Lahore, Islamabad, and Karachi. All three use mobile-capable 802.16e WiMAX technology in the 3.5 GHz band.
According to WiMAX Forum, at least two other operators, Supernet (owned by Telecard) and Burraq Telecom, also plan to launch WiMAX service in Pakistan.
WiMAX in Pakistan appears well on its way to becoming a key component of the country’s telecom infrastructure, one that leap-frogs it over better developed countries. But WiMAX still faces challenges, says Babar Bhatti, the U.S.-based chief editor of TelecomPK, a blog covering the industry in Pakistan.
Wi-Tribe has now officially launched its Wi-MAX services in Pakistan. The official launch press release is as follows.
Launches largest wireless broadband Internet service in Pakistan
Doha, June 30, 2009: wi-tribe, a Qtel Group company, today announced the official launch of its wireless broadband service in Pakistan, its largest market to date. The launch phase will include the cities of Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore, and Rawalpindi.
“Today, a new milestone is achieved in the evolution of wi-tribe and the realization of our vision to become one of the top 20 telecom players by 2020,” said Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, Chairman of The Qtel Group. “Following our launch in Jordan, Pakistan marks a major stepping stone towards our expansion strategy and our intention to leverage the scale and strengths of The Qtel Group in order to deliver the latest technologies to our customers and continue to enhance services across our operations,” added Sheikh Abdullah.”
Dr. Nasser Marafih, CEO of The Qtel Group and Chairman of wi-tribe, commented: “Consumer broadband is at the heart of the Qtel Group strategy and a major pillar of growth. The launch of wi-tribe in Pakistan is a very important moment for all of us at The Qtel Group as it reflects a major stepping stone towards our commitment to bring broadband wireless access to more people, to connect individuals and businesses more easily and to improve access to the internet in all new and emerging markets.
“Broadband penetration levels in new emerging markets are currently very low compared to markets in the region. However, consumer demand for wireless services is growing at a fast pace. So we will continue to focus on this area in the future as we see good business opportunity and significant growth potential,” added Dr. Nasser.
Shaikh Abdulrahman Ali Al Turki, Chairman and CEO of A.A.Turki Group A.A. Turki Group of companies (ATCO), commended on the growth and success achieved by the wi-tribe group stating, “At ATCO we are extremely pleased with wi-tribe’s developments since its establishment in 2007. The addition of Pakistan to our tribe is proof of our firm commitment to bridge the digital divide and bring to emerging markets the best in connectivity and ease of access. It is about time these markets got excellent quality service.”
“wi-tribe uses WiMAX technology to provide customers with the advantage of broadband internet access wirelessly, giving them the option of accessing the internet whenever and wherever they choose within the network area,” commented Sami Hinedi, CEO, wi-tribe Group. “We strongly believe in improving the lifestyle of our customers by understanding their needs and offering them the best personalized customer experience. We want to provide solutions that are simple, easy and valued by individuals, businesses and the Government,” he added.
wi-tribe is a focused and dedicated consumer wireless broadband provider and will offer instant connectivity with applications tailor-made and simplified to accommodate the needs of every customer. The wi-tribe service will deliver broadband internet access through the ‘plug in and play’ option offering speeds of 256Kbps, 512 Mbps, and 1 Mbps. The process of becoming a wi-triber is extremely simple and beneficial. The wi-tribe service uses an efficient and highly effective plug and play modem which provides online access on the go. Internet users in Pakistan will experience the best in consumer wireless broadband service and wi-tribe’s unique customer care experience.
The official website has details for packages that wi-tribe is offering in Pakistan.
With this launch the WiMAX competition will definitely boom in Pakistan.
Those who have used the wi-tribe services, do share your experience with us.
[Press release via Zawya.com]
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