The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoIT&T) issued a policy directive to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for the auction of the Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) spectrum in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJ&K) and Gilgit-Baltistan with the base price of $0.87 million for 2×1 MHz (1 MHz paired) spectrum in both 1800 and 2100 MHz bands respectively.
The spectrum auction will generate revenue and help to improve mobile broadband services.
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Currently, five Cellular Operators, including a Special Communication Organization (SCO), are providing Cellular Mobile services in AJ&K and GB. A significant surge in the demand for mobile broadband services has been witnessed particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. This ever-increasing reliance on mobile broadband services necessitated the demand for the availability of more spectrums to meet the connectivity needs of the citizens of AJ&K and GB.
The policy directive detailed that after the consideration of the recommendations of the Auction Advisory Committee constituted by the federal government, based on the inputs from the Consultant, PTA, and the Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) have issued the policy.
It is issued in exercise of powers under sub-section (2) of Section 8 of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act, 1996, as enforced in AJ&K by virtue of the Azad Jammu & Kashmir Council Adaptation of Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act, 2005 (including all amendments made from time to time) and in GB by virtue of the Gilgit-Baltistan Council Adaptation of Laws Act, 2012 (including all the amendments made from time to time), for carrying out the auction of the radio frequency spectrum in 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz bands as made available by the FAB for compliance by the PTA.
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The policy states:
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The terms of payment will be:
The tenure of the frequency assignment will be for 15 years, and the spectrum won through the auction process will be incorporated by the PTA into the renewed cellular licenses (due for renewal in June 2021 i.e. of Jazz, Telenor, and Ufone).
In order to align the expiry dates of the cellular licenses in AJ&K and GB, the tenure may be accordingly adjusted by the PTA for the CMPAK license which will expire in August 2022 with the necessary payments and adjustments.
The provisions for active infrastructure sharing, and Spectrum Trading and Sharing will be incorporated in the new licenses and will take effect as per the approved regulatory framework.
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Terms and conditions relating to enhanced coverage, and enhanced Quality of Service (QoS), etc. shall be incorporated by the PTA to enhance mobile broadband proliferation in the region.
This policy is issued in supersession of the Policy Directive for the Next Generation Mobile Services in AJ&K and GB, No. DII-1/3/2013-AJ&KC dated 17 August 2017.