Pakistan’s Telecom Market

Pakistan’s telecom market had been has been a booming sector but struggling for a long time with the transition from a regulated state-owned monopoly to a deregulated competitive structure. The competitive structure is wished by many as the players will be allowed to freely compete in the deregulated market.

According to latest telecom news in Pakistan, the internet penetration remained low across the country. Broadband growth had almost been negligible for many years, but there were some promising positive signs in recent years. The big change has been the arrival of mobile broadband in 2014. This has boosted overall broadband growth, helped also by the intense competition in the market place. The granting of 3G and 4G licences has certainly changed the broadband landscape. The people have also started to access other supporting services and devices. For example, the sales of android phones have increased with an access to 3G and 4G services.

The fixed line market in Pakistan remains underdeveloped due to the dominance of the mobile segment. Further, the number of fixed telephone lines is slowly declining as the mobile segment continues to expand. Overall penetration dropped from 2.6% in 2014 to 1.6% in 2015 and 1.3% in 2016. The drop in fixed line usage on the other hand means an increase in the mobile services usage. For the future of this industry, free market competition is the only hope.