PTA & Federal Govt Working For Cellular License Renewal

mobile towersThe delay of license renewal policy for Cellular Mobile Operators was raising concerns among the Telecom industry from past few months but now PTA & Federal government are working to introduce the new policy.

The issue became more highlighted after it was revealed that the licenses for two mobile operators are expiring, this reflected the urgency of the issue.

Many issues worried the telecom industry such as the renewal fees, the currency in which the fees will be paid, the time period and spectrums.

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is aiming to formulate a new policy after taking considerations of all stakeholders in the process. A clear policy with efficient mechanism will be helpful for all stakeholders including PTA and Telecom Operators.

PTA expects that the license renewal will generate an income up to Rs. 2 billion in the process.

The formulation of the policy was pending from a long time, the change of government and new appointments in the Ministry if Information and Technology (MoIT) also delayed the process.

The process renewal is a detailed task which includes assessing the telecom market, regulatory, financial & technical challenges in Pakistan and consultation with stakeholders to formulate a policy which will be helpful for growth of the sector along with revenue generation for the government.

Prime Minister Imran Khan also constituted a five members committee which includes:

  • Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Dr. Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui
  • Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance Hafeez Sheikh
  • State Minister for Revenue Hammad Azhar
  • Advisor to Prime Minister Abdul Razzak Dawood
  • Federal Minister for Privatization Mian Mohammad Soomro

This committee is responsible for reviewing the report and policy prepared by PTA.

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