Broadband subscriptions reach 100 million in Pakistan: PTA

The broadband services have reached 100 million (10 crore) people in Pakistan, tweeted Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

In 2012, only two million people had subscribed to internet services, but after the introduction of 3G services, the figures jumped to 16 million in 2014.

Press Release: Owing to supportive government policies, effective competition among telecom operators and PTA commitment to introduce and utilize innovative technologies, broadband subscriptions in Pakistan have reached a historic 100 million mark. pic.twitter.com/djZzVZSxIf

— PTA (@PTAofficialpk) April 2, 2021

Moreover, the average downloading speed and upload speed provided by broadband providers are 17.7/ 11.3Mbps. The internet speed is above the levels in comparison to other regional countries.

Mobile data prices are also affordable in Pakistan. According to the recent figures, mobile data prices declined to 0.70 per cent, which is well below the UN Broadband Commission’s recommendation of less than two per cent.

All four national cellular mobile operators (CMOS), fixed-line broadband operators, including Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) have collectively crossed 100m subscriptions, due to the higher growth rate in data usage.

Pakistan’s telecom sector has achieved many milestones previously also such as reaching 100 million mobile subscriptions in 2010, the introduction of the first-ever biometrically verified SIMs across the country in 2009 and implementation of the world’s first open-source Device Identification Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS) in 2019.

The PTA lauded the users and service providers for achieving this landmark and announced that crossing the 100 million benchmark would be formally celebrated soon with all the stakeholders and national and international telecom community.