Mobilink helps PTA to boost tech.

LAHORE: Mobilink has supported PTA in promoting new technologies. Naguib Sawiris, Chairman of Mobilinks parent company Orascom Telecom was also recently strongly asserted that the company will definitely vie and get the 3G license whenever Government of Pakistan starts the bidding process, says a press release. March 31 (THE NATION): Telenor too has been pushing the case since 2008. With two of the players who hold more than 50pc of the market share geared for 3G: elenor too has been pushing the case since 2008. With two of the players who hold more than 50pc of the market share geared for 3G, there is no reluctance as far as the market leaders are concerned. That said, the hoopla around 3G makes one nervous. For one, the cost of the 3G license is but the tip of the ice berg. The caveat is the incumbent investment of millions more in the roll-out. At the end of the tunnel, however, are expectations that a better experience on mobile internet will drive the data revenues. This is really where the future income streams for telecom lies and must be cultivated sooner or later. In a country like ours, where we hardly have data usage, this is not a significant motivator. The PTA is aware of this situation which is why they are reported to have taken the limited auction approach: there are 3 slots and 5 players. Currently, there is very little differentiation amongst the operators. With cut throat competition, mobile number portability (MNP) not to mention the multi SIM phenomenon, no operator would want to miss the opportunity of becoming a differentiated player using 3G. While this may seem like a good move to PTA, going 3G only makes business sense if the spectrum fee is reasonable and an appropriate approach for allocation of the spectrum. A cautious approach is an absolute must to avoid what happened in some Europe (this being the second reason). At the beginning of 2000, mobile network operators in Europe were offered auction of the 3G radio spectrum. The nature of the auctions was to offer a limited number of licenses (less than the number of operators likely to bid) and have these as sealed bid auctions. This put the telephone operators in a difficult position: if they lost the auction they were out of the next technological phase of the business. They therefore took risks and made high sealed bids, incurring large debt. In the UK auctions raised 22.5 billion (GBP) and around 30 billion (GBP) in Germany. This was 10 times more per megahertz than the TV companies are administratively charged for national broadcasting.

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