Participants at the seminar criticised previous govt’s failure to proliferate 3G spectrum and stressed moving directly to 4G.
TeleCON is an annual platform that gathers telecom and IT experts from the industry, the academia and the government to hold dialogues and provide recommendations on key issues facing the IT and telecom sector. The theme for the sixth edition was ‘The next wave in telecommunication: the digitised society/consumer’.
Presenting a holistic picture of the telecom and IT sector, keynote speaker and former minister Javed Jabbar said it was important that the impact of this ‘new wave’ moves beyond the telecom sector. The new wave should have an equal impact on the national institutions as well as the four pillars of the state, ahe said.
The day-long annual conference kicked off with a heated debate among distinguished speakers and panellists on specific areas of development and shortcomings in the telecom and the IT sector. The previous government’s failure to proliferate the third generation (3G) mobile spectrum, now an outdated technology, was repeatedly criticised while some participants recommended that the country should move directly to 4G.
“Whatever the problems have been, we need to leave the past behind and move on. We have an opportunity here so let’s take the next steps for the benefit of the people of Pakistan,” Pakistan Telecommunication Company SEVP Furqan Qureshi said. 3G and 4G applications are already available, Qureshi said, once these technologies are launched they can be used in the areas of tele-medicine and e-education.
Salman Ansari, former adviser, Ministry of IT and Telecommunication and Dr Khawar Khokhar, former member technical of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority also moderated sessions of the conference.
The telecom industry, Ansari recommended, should also have a representative body similar to the Pakistan Software Houses Association that represents the IT industry on all forums.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 14th, 2013.
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Doesn't make sense. Why ? Because the Govt can earn more money by first issuing 3G licenses and then again when issuing 4G licenses. But if we jump directly to 4G, we may get only one chance to earn the money. Better for the National Exchequer to have two licenses issued at separate times.
4G is a relatively immature technology even in the developed countries.
In Pakistan, 4G wouldn't even reach out to 1% of total population. 3G however would be beneficial because of lower equipment costs for the end consumer.
3G - necessary. 4G - not just yet. The demand isn't there.