ISLAMABAD - Telecom sector’s total revenues for fiscal year 2015-16 stood at Rs 452.8 billion, slightly up from Rs 446.2 billion reported during the previous year, revealed Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).
PTA annual report released here on Friday revealed that the revenue figure is yet to reach the mark Rs 463.49 in 2013-14. At the end of fiscal year 201516, total telecom contribution to the national exchequer remained at Rs 157.8 billion against Rs 126 billion during the same period of previous year, but this contribution was Rs 243.8 billion during 2013-14.
Total telecom investment during fiscal year 2015-16 remained at $719.7 million against $1001 million in 2014-15. The country attracted $659.4 million from Cellular Mobile companies in 2015-16 against $977.6 million during the same period of previous year.
PTA figures further states that telecom sector grew by less than 2 percent during the year, mainly due to decline in LDI revenues after dismissal of ICH, increased competition and stagnant growth in voice revenues.
Mobile phone operators generated a total of Rs 348.83 billion in revenues during 2015-16 up from Rs. 317.02 billion during the same period of last year. LDI operators made Rs 23 million during 2015-16, down from Rs. 80.81 million that they had generated an year ago. This sharp decline in LDI revenues is mainly due to withdrawal of ICH, a drive that allowed long distance and international operators to fix international incoming call prices at higher rates.
Local loop operators showed Rs 76.415 million in revenues during the reported period, almost double of Rs 40.765 million that had generated an year ago. Class Value Added Services showed remarkable growth and generated Rs 43 million in revenues, up from just Rs. 3.78 million revenues a year ago. Despite all the tall claims and increase in 3G, 4G usage, the tax collection for the government has decreased almost 10 percent.
GST collection by telecom operators stood at Rs 41.65 billion, down from Rs 45.8 billion an year ago. This GST collection from telecom operators once touched Rs 60.1 billion in 2013-14, but has been declining ever since.
PTA’s deposits during the report period stood at Rs 34 billion, up from Rs. 7 billion a year ago. Total funds collected from telecom sector stood at Rs. 157.85 billion, up from 126.3 billion a year ago. Major contributor for increase in telecom’s contribution towards national exchequer include the proceeds from spectrum fee that PTA received from telecom operators.
Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has said that it received 38, 741 complaints from telecom consumers against different telecom (operators including cellular operators, PTCL, LDIs, WLL operators and ISPs) during July 2015 to June 2016. PTCL leads the chart with 15,529 Telenor to stand at second position for most complained telecom operators with 6120 complaints.
PTA said that it was able to get 99.6 percent complaints resolved.
Cellular mobile subscribers constitute major part of overall telecom subscriber base, therefore, maximum number of complaints belong to this segment. Total number of complaints against CMOs during FY2015-16 stood at 22,866.
In terms of the segregation of complaints on operator basis, a total of 6120 complaints were received against Telenor which is 27% of the total CMO related complaints. Zong stood second in the row with 5392 complaints i.e. 23 percent were received against it and Mobilink which has the largest number of consumers remained third in the row with 5276 i.e. 23 percent complaints were received against it.
Ufone, despite, being the fourth biggest operator subscriber wise, had 4296 complaints against its various services which make up 19 percent of the total CMO related complaints, followed by Warid with 1782 i.e. 8 percent complaints.