ISLAMABAD           -          The first meeting of the Advisory Committee for 5G Planning in Pakistan (5G Pakistan Plan Committee) discussed the way forward, roadmap with timelines and key challenges for the introduction of 5G technology in the country. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Ministry of IT and Telecommunication Additional Secretary at Ministry of IT.  

The meeting discussed the way forward, roadmap with timelines, and key challenges including current 4G networks, spectrum availability & pricing, infrastructure related issues like Right of Way, 5G device ecosystem, market need of relevant use cases and telecom taxation. The meeting also decided to form five sub working groups including National Broadband Plan, WG-1 on Spectrum, WG-2 on Regulations, WG-3 on Use cases & Applications and WG-4 on Infrastructure.

Earlier, the ministry said in a statement that the competition over the test trial of fifth generation (5G) mobile technology is heating up between Jazz and Zong, the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication has formed a committee for the auction of 5G spectrum in the country on the directives of Minister for Information Technology Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui.

The 5G test by Jazz and Zong has triggered a war on social media between the supporters of both telecom companies.

Though the 5G test was launched by Zong in August 2019, the company showcased its 5G performance again in January after Jazz demonstrated its `fifth generation` (5G) mobile technology.

Jazz said that an average download speed of 1,452Mbps and upload speed of 68Mbps had been achieved along with successful HD voice and video calls. In a statement, Jazz CEO Aamir Ibrahim had said that the launch of 5G would meet the evolving needs of tomorrow`s customers.

`We are pleased with the initial 5G trials and are ready to fast-track the technology across Pakistan, whenever the process gets initiated by the government. These trials showcase our commitment towards a digital Pakistan, which is why we have been the front-runners in deploying the latest mobile technology, Ibrahim said.

He said that Jazz was ready to offer 5G`s game-changing potential whenever the government allowed for its commercial launch.  With the approval from the telecom regulator Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Jazz is showcasing its 5G capacity to ordinary customers for 20 days at its offices in F8, G7, E7 and Blue Area, where citizens with 5G compatible devices can experience the next generation high speed internet. Zong had also successfully completed its first 5G video call and reached the speed of over 1.5GB per second during testing. `We will be showcasing more technologically advanced and groundbreaking use-cases to enable Pakistan to become one of the most digitally connected countries in the world, Zong chairman and CEO Wang Hua said.