ISLAMABAD: The number of cellular subscribers increased from 189.26 million by end-November to 189.44 million by end-December 2023, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) data revealed.

The number of 3G and 4G users in Pakistan increased from 126.24 million by end-November to 127.68 million by end-December.

The cellular teledensity, however, declined from 78.98 percent by end-November to 78.93 percent by end-December. Total teledensity decreased from 80.06 percent by end-November to 80 percent by end-December.

Next Generation Mobile Service (NGMS) penetration increased from 52.68 percent by end-November to 53.2 percent by end-December.

Jazz’s total count for 3G users declined from 3.569 million by end-November to 3.492 million by end-December. Jazz 4G users increased from 42.754 million by end-November to 43.867 million by end-December.

Zong 3G subscribers decreased from 2.265 million by end-November to 2.217 million by end-December while the number of 4G users increased from 33.869 million by end-November to 34.202 million by end-December.

Telenor 3G subscribers decreased from 2.477 million by end-November to 2.380 million by end-December while the number of 4G users of Telenor increased from 23.196 million by end-November to 23.300 million by end-December.

Ufone 3G users stood at 2.188 million by end-December compared to 2.230 million by end-November. The number of 4G users of Ufone increased from 14.349 million by end-November to 14.484 million by end-December.

The PTA received 16,053 complaints from telecom consumers against different telecom operators and cellular operators in December 2023, out of which, 15,974 (99.5 percent) were resolved.

Official data revealed that the complaints were received against various telecom operators, including cellular mobile operators (CMOs), Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), long-distance international (LDI) operators, wireless local loop (WLL) operators, and internet service providers (ISPs), during November.

Cellular mobile subscribers constituted a major part of the overall telecom subscriber base. Therefore, the maximum number of complaints belongs to this segment. The total number of complaints against CMOs by December stood at 15,583, out of which, 15,519 (99.6 percent) were addressed.

According to the PTA data, 6,755 complaints were received against Jazz, out of which, 6,744 (99.8 percent) were resolved. Further, 2,698 complaints against Telenor were received, out of which, 2,682 (99.4 percent) were resolved. Likewise, 4,273 complaints were received against Zong, out of which, 4,261 (99.7 percent) were addressed. A total of 1,835 complaints were received against Ufone, out of which 1,811 (98.7 percent) were resolved.

The PTA also received 153 complaints against basic telephony, out of which, 146 were addressed during December with a resolution rate of 95.4 percent. Furthermore, 295 complaints were received against ISPs, of which, 288 (97.6 percent) were addressed.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024