ISLAMABAD: Cellular teledensity - the number of connections for every 100 individuals in the country, decreased from 79.55 percent by end April to 79.48 percent by end May 2024, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) data revealed.

The regulator’s data revealed that total teledensity also decreased from 80.6 percent by end April to 80.5 percent by end May.

The number of cellular subscribers increased from 192.19 million by end April to 192.32 million by end May 2024. The number of 3G and 4G users in Pakistan increased from 132.73 million by end April to 133.26 million by end May 2024.

Next Generation Mobile Service (NGMS) penetration increased from 54.94 percent by end April to 55.07 percent by end May.

Jazz’s total count for 3G users declined from 3.242 million by end April to 3.145 million by end May. Jazz 4G users increased from 46.305 million by end April to 46.547 million by end May.

Zong 3G subscribers decreased from 2.063 million by end April to 2.026 million by end May while the number of 4G users increased from 35.984 million by end April to 36.220 million by end May.

Telenor 3G subscribers decreased from 1.834 million by end April to 1.700 million by end May while the number of 4G users of Telenor increased from 24.304 million by end April to 24.419 million by end May.

Ufone 3G users stood at 2.278 million by end May compared to 2.326 million by end April. The number of 4G users of Ufone increased from 15.072 million by end April to 15.306 million by end May.

The PTA received 18,261 complaints from telecom consumers against different telecom operators and cellular operators in May 2024, out of which, 18,095 (99.1 per cent) 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 May.

Cellular mobile subscribers constitute 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 May stood at 17,693, out of which, 17,603 (99.5 percent) were addressed.

According to the PTA data, 6,680 complaints were received against Jazz, out of which, 6,665 (99.8 percent) were resolved.

Further, 3,162 complaints against Telenor were received, out of which, 3,145 (99.5 percent) were resolved.

Likewise, 5,721 complaints were received against Zong, out of which, 5,692 (99.5 percent) were addressed. A total of 2,105 complaints were received against Ufone, out of which 2,077 (98.7 percent) were resolved.

The PTA also received 150 complaints against basic telephony, out of which, 139 were addressed during May with a resolution rate of 92.7 percent. Furthermore, 415 complaints were received against ISPs, of which, 350 (84.3 percent) were addressed.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024