[News] Warid trun Pakistani Technology into 4G LTE Publicly

Warid Telecom of Pakistan today went public with press ads (produced above) about its plans for going 4G LTE, to possibly become the first operator in the market to deploy 4G LTE network in the country.
A single sentenced message along with mention of 4G LTE clearly indicates that Warid is pretty much done with its homework and is now all set to go up with the 4G plans.
Despite not participating in recently held 3G / 4G auction, Warid has decided to go 4G LTE with its available spectrum that it had bought in 2004.
If you are not familiar with how they will do it, then go ahead and read our previous coverage on the same topic here.

While there were hints that Pakistan Telecommunication Authority might not allow Warid for deploying 4G LTE, today’s press ads hint that PTA and Warid have reached a settlement. We don’t have confirmations from PTA on this though.

Last we heard was that PTA might not allow Warid to deploy 4G since it could unbalance the industry. Moreover, according to IM for 3G and 4G licensees, no new operator would be allowed to launch 3G / 4G services for 18 months as part of government’s agreement with spectrum winners.
While we don’t have official confirmation on regulatory approvals, as we said above, it is now certain that against all odds Warid has managed to convince PTA for the 4G LTE deployments.
We know that Warid CEO was to meet with Chairman PTA during this week and apparently things went successful on Warid’s part.
If sources are to be believed then Warid is aiming to run the test on 4G LTE in last week of May 2014, while its already in process of deploying 4G LTE network in 5 cities, which it will announce after successful tests accordingly.
On a related note, Warid sent an SMS broadcast to its customers the other day to tell them that Warid will announce new data technologies in days to come.
Warid has currently around 12 million subscribers. It has 8.8Mhz spectrum from 1800Mhz band in addition to 5Mhz in 900Mhz band, which it had bought at the time of launch in 2004.
Not to mention, Zong has said that it may take several months to launch 4G network, however, this may change after Warid’s announcement today. Zong was only 4G spectrum winner in April’s 3G and 4G Auction.

Source: Fun at Pakistan

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Vimpelcom, the owner of Mobilink interested in Warid

Russian telecom giant, Vimpelcom the owner of Mobilink, has shown interest in bidding for Warid Telecom, the smallest cellular operator in Pakistan, which has been shelved for sale by Abu Dhabi Group (ADG).

Reuters reports that Vimpelcom is looking for opportunities and for that reason it has decided to off load extra burden by selling Telecel Global that has operations in Burundi and Central Africa to Neil Telecom for $ 100 million.

Although, spokesperson for Vimpelcom denied to comment on a possible bid for Warid Telecom but members of the company were present in the meetings with Abu Dhabi Group that took place in the previous week, sources confirmed.

MoreMag had reported on July 23rd that three telecom operators from Pakistan are keen to bid for Warid Telecom. Officials from all three companies met with owners of ADG to discuss various possibilities.

Vimpelcom, Etisalat and China Mobile are eyeing to buy Warid Telecom, the fifth operator by number of subscribers.

It is very premature to make any kind of guess at this stage, but an official of Warid Telecom hinted that whoever buys the company will run it by its own brand name. The name ‘Warid’ will cease to exist.

In case it is bought by Etisalat or China Mobile, the resulting operation will have almost equal number of subscribers as the market leader Mobilink which is a cause of irritation for Vimpelcom Group. A late entry from them in the buying process suggests that situation is alarming for them.

Following table shows a hypothetical picture of a possible Warid deal with any of the existing operators.

Subscribers in million
	Vimpelcom	Etisalat	China Mobile	Vimpelcom
	Mobilink	Ufone	Zong	Telenor
Existing Subscribers	36.74	23.86	20.19	31.69
Warid Subscribers	12.50	12.50	12.50	12.50
Total	49.24	36.36	32.69	44.19

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Ufone, Mobilink Increase Balance Inquiry Charges; Others to Follow!

During a latest development in telecom sector, Ufone and Mobilink has announced an increase of 5 paisas for balance inquiries. Zong, Telenor and Warid are likely to follow the move in coming days.

Ufone said that new balance inquiry charges will be applicable from May 25th, while Mobilink hasn’t mentioned any date for new charges yet. We are sure that other operators will announce similar increase in balance inquiry with-in weeks.

After this increase, balance inquiries will be charged at 20 paisas per transaction, excluding taxes – or 24 paisas per balance inquiry including taxes.

It maybe recalled that idea of paid balance inquires was first introduced in July 2009, and all balance inquires – which were previously free – were charged at 10 paisas plus tax.

Later, in April 2012, operators revised this rate and increased balance inquiry charges to 15 paisas plus tax, which are now again increased to 20 paisas per balance inquiry plus taxes.

It is interesting to note here that customers keep on innovating new ways of checking their balance for free, such as, through web portals or through various USSD codes that aren’t charged.

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Warid Launches Bus Schedule App

Warid telecom announced the launch of a bus schedule app aimed at providing its customers with all the information they need about routes and timings for Daweoo bus service.

Now Warid Telecom users can download the Bus Schedule application which will allow users to check intra city bus routes along with their travel charges and timings. The app displays all the bus routes across Pakistan.

Customers will be able to check the routes for DAEWOO initially with many more to come soon.

This way the user will not have to call any help lines every time he/she needs to get some information on the bus time and destinations. All destinations will be covered in the app, providing the user with the convenience to check the timings and travel fare of their desired destination.

No, currently you can can’t make reservations, but we can hope that Warid will offer in-app reservations for various Daweoo and other bus service routes soon.

Here are features of the Bus Service App:

• Covering all Daewoo destinations’ timings and travel fare
• Contact information of all the terminals
• Find the terminals locations on the map
• Easy to use In-App call feature will allow the user to directly call the helpline for booking
• Share the app with your friends and family through SMS, Email and Facebook
• The application is available for all Android based (Version 2.2 and above) mobile phones.
• *More Intra city routes and transport companies

The app can be downloaded by all Warid customers with Android user systems. This is another innovative app from Warid to facilitate its customer’s mobile experience.

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Warid Launches IDD Offer for Bangladesh and India

Warid Telecom has announced its latest International Dialing offer for  Warid Prepaid subscribers in Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur regions.

Customers from these regions can make international calls to their loved ones in India and Bangladesh for just 7 paisas+tax per second without any hidden subscription charges.

Warid Prepaid or Glow customers in the vicinity of Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur regions will be automatically eligible to make calls at this discounted rate.

This offer is valid for making calls to both mobile and landline connections in India & Bangladesh. Warid Prepaid and Glow customers in the vicinity of Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur regions will be automatically eligible to make calls at this discounted rate. This is the first time in Pakistan that such an offer will be enjoyed by our prepaid mobile subscribers.

This latest offer is another step by Warid Telecom in creating an atmosphere conducive for communication on both sides of the border and an important measure to ensure that loved ones around the globe stay in touch at the most affordable rates and with voice quality.

Terms and Conditions:

• This offer is valid for Warid Prepaid & Glow subscribers only.
• This offer is restricted for Warid Prepaid subscribers in Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur regions.
• Prepaid customers in the mentioned regions of Pakistan will be automatically eligible to make calls to India & Bangladesh at this rate.
• Zero Subscription fee.
• International calls can be made on both Landline and Mobile numbers of India and Bangladesh.
• Limited time offer.
• All mentioned rates are subject to applicable taxes.

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