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Pakistan Press Foundation

Government’s priorities shuffle as politics heats up

By: Farooq Baloch KARACHI: The abrupt departure of Farooq Awan from the chairmanship of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has created a vacuum within the telecom regulatory body, which most likely, cannot be filled anytime soon. The rising political unrest in the federal capital and Supreme Court’s verdict on the rental power project case, on […]


As Pakistan Telecommunication Authority chairman departs, industry breathes easier

By: Farooq Baloch KARACHI: He came, he saw, but he just could not conquer. Farooq Ahmed Awan was the government’s most-trusted bureaucrat, given the responsibility for taking the third generation (3G) mobile spectrum licencing process to its logical end. His tenure as chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), however, came to an abrupt and […]


Mobile phone services resume

KARACHI: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) resumed mobile phone services in Karachi after a closure of about 10 hours on Monday. The PTA, acting on the directives of the Interior Minister, issued instructions to all cellphone companies pertaining to the resumption of mobile phone services across the city. Earlier, mobile phone services were suspended indefinitely […]


Lahore High Court orders removal of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority chairman

Pakistan Press Foundation

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday issued directives to remove the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) chairman Farooq Awan from his post after the court declared his appointment to have been made on a political basis, DawnNews reported. Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah heard the case at LHC on Tuesday. Barrister Sardar Muhammad Ali […]


Pakistan Telecommunication Authority blocking cell service along route of march

IT By: Usman Cheema ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Interior has officially asked Pakistan Telecom Authority to block cellular service in different locations along the route of Tahirul Qadri’s long march. As the first step, complying with the orders from the Interior Ministry, PTA blocked the service in Lahore that was restored with the exit of […]


Mobile services suspension on 14th: Industry to suffer Rs 1b loss

By: Usman Cheema ISLAMABAD: It is expected that the mobile services will remain blocked in several areas of country on March 14 as a preventive measure to stop any possible terrorist activity in long march announced by Tahir-ul-Qadri. Industry would have to suffer a loss of Rs 1 billion again due to blockage of mobile […]


Filtration system being put in place to reopen YouTube

By: Zulqernain Tahir LAHORE: Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf said on Tuesday the government would reopen YouTube after completion of work on a filtration mechanism. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority directed internet service providers and mobile phone firms to unblock YouTube on Dec 29 but within an hour the prime minister re-imposed the ban because the […]


AFTER the Lahore High Court’s decision for reverting the new tax levied on long-distance calls from overseas, when should all overseas Pakistanis expect to have a notice coming out from the PTA to all overseas operators of long distance call providers to decrease the rates for Pakistan back to the Oct 1, 2012, level? I […]


PTA’s long distance saga

AFTER the Lahore High Court’s decision for reverting the new tax levied on long-distance calls from overseas, when should all overseas Pakistanis expect to have a notice coming out from the PTA to all overseas operators of long distance call providers to decrease the rates for Pakistan back to the Oct 1, 2012, level? I […]


No chance of localised version of YouTube anytime soon

By: Farooq Baloch KARACHI: In all likelihood, YouTube will remain inaccessible in Pakistan for the foreseeable future. Islamabad’s negotiations with Google – the internet giant that owns YouTube – may prove fruitless unless Pakistan ensures legal support to the regulation of digital content, The Express Tribune has learned. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has been […]


The saga of YouTube ban

The saga of YouTube outage in Pakistan is a classic case of starting over without a closure. Hence, the YouTube opening last Friday brought only ephemeral joys to those eagerly waiting after the Prime Minster himself reportedly annulled the move. Since Google didn’t oblige to PTA’s request to block the contents of the sacrilegious anti-Islam […]


Lahore High Court bars chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority from performing his duty

By: Hina Mahgul Rind KARACHI: A Lahore High Court judge Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, while hearing a writ petition on Monday which challenged the appointment of chairman of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Farooq Awan, passed an interim order restraining the chairman from performing his duty without the approval of two members of the authority till […]


Cellular phone firms seek alternative sale channels

KARACHI: Cellular phone companies are mulling to set up sub-franchise or model outlets to maintain their sales of SIMs cards again under direct supervision of their officials or franchises. Sources in the telecom sector said that cellular phone companies’ proposed different options to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) in order to resume the SIMs sale at […]


3G: Pakistan Telecommunication Authority members squabble over hiring of auction consultants

By: Farooq Baloch ISLAMABAD: Despite a common goal – an early auction of the third generation (3G) mobile cellular spectrum licence, the officials responsible for the auction are far from reaching a consensus on the legality of hiring 3G consultants. Because of the difference of opinion among its members, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has […]