ISLAMABAD: Telecom sector is one of the most potential sectors that remained important contributor to the national economy by depositing Rs 363 billion during the year 2012 and showed increase of 5.4 percent compared to last year.
ISLAMABAD: Telecom sector is one of the most potential sectors that remained important contributor to the national economy by depositing Rs 363 billion during the year 2012 and showed increase of 5.4 percent compared to last year.
In line with the teledensity the cellular sector also has the highest share in telecom revenue as during 2011 cellular revenue increased by 11 percent to reach Rs 262,761 million as compared to Rs 236, 047 million in the previous year. During the first two quarters of 2012, Rs 197,686 million worth of revenue has been generated by the telecom sector.
According to the report of Pakistan economic survey 2011-12, companies have invested more than US$ 12 billion in building of infrastructure and other projects in the last six years.
In 2011, the telecom sector invested US$ 495.8 million with the cellular mobile sector being the major contributor. In addition USF invested Rs 3.5 billion in the 2011.
The telecom sector made its higher contribution to the national exchequer in 2011 as almost Rs 117 billion deposited by the telecom companies showering 7% growing in 2011.
According the report, foreign direct investment (FDI) by the telecom companies is more than 30 percent of the total foreign direct investment in the country during last six years.
Owing to terrain/security situation companies were reluctant to invest further however in 2011 telecom sector attracted over US$ 79 million FDI in the country which is about 5 percent of the total FDI in Pakistan in 2011.
Despite all the factors the cellular industry managed to double its growth rate from the previous year and according to the World Economic Forum's Global Information Technology Report 2101-11 Pakistan ranks no 1 in the internet and telephony competition. The total of mobile subscriber reached 118.3 million at the end of 2012.
The mobile market over the years has come more stable due to intense competition. Market shares are now more balanced among the five operators with almost insignificant changes over the years. At the end of March 2012 Mobilink had a market share of 30.25 percent followed by Telenor with 24.80 percent and Ufone with 19.54 percent.
The auction of 3G license is expected that will bring more investment into the country and improved economic condition of the country would further encourage investors to bring the capital into the country.
Economic survey further revealed that teledensity in the country stood at 68.3 percent showing 6.7 percent growth as compared to the previous year. Since the mobile sector contributes over 95 percent to the total density of the country an increase in mobile penetration from 60.4 percent in 201-11 to64.9 percent in 2012-12 resulted into improvement of 4.3 percentage points in total density.
Fixed teledensity has been declining over the year due to mobile substitution and today it stands at 1.93 percent in 2011-12 as compared to 2.1 percent last year showing a decrease of 0.17 percent.
End.
Can Apple Avoid Being ‘RIMMed’ by Samsung? - CNBC
For as much credit as the technology sector gets for being innovative, it doesn’t get nearly enough recognition for its influence in our words we use on a daily basis and its contributions to our English dictionary.
As an author and one who writes extensively about technology, I’m realizing that thanks to social media giant Facebook [FB Loading... () 
On Wall Street, however, names of tech companies have entered our lexicon, while also having become synonymous with either success or failures — to the extent that I have recently suggested, can Google “MySpace” Facebook? Or in other words, can Google one day render Facebook irrelevant? Samsung, which has recently overtaken both Nokia [NOK Loading... ()
This has now prompted me to ask, can Samsung “RIM” Apple? Or in other words, will Samsung be able to do to Apple what Apple has done to Research In Motion [RIMM Loading... ()
While many are quick to make it a foregone conclusion that Apple is the dominant power, recent evidence suggests that the race is closer than investors realize. Yet, Wall Street insists on handing over the trophy to Apple as if it’s a done deal to the extent that even Samsung’s name has become an afterthought and replaced with “Android device.”
The disrespect of Samsung has had a lot to do with what has clearly become on Wall Street a pro-Apple bias. Be that as it may, it does make me wonder how this reality has affected Apple’s ego since it has now become the world’s largest company but now has to look up to Samsung in the product category for which it has become the best known. As it stands both companies now account for more than 70 percent of the global smartphone device market.
However, what many fail to realize is that Samsung has taken the lead by focusing on the opposite of what Apple does well. It has figured out a way to use Apple’s strength for its own benefit by addressing areas such as consumers’ budgetary concerns and a focus on offering a wider selection of phones to meet the needs of any consumer at very reasonable prices — whereas Apple (for the most part) has appealed to the more affluent shopper.
Apple’s fall to second place is only part of the surprise because Samsung has no plans on stopping there and repeating the same mistakes that has killed off Research In Motion.
Now that it has overtaken the top spot in device sales, Samsung is looking to leverage that lead by attacking Apple in other areas, including its popular iTunes music distribution platform as well as its iCloud service. To that end, Samsung recently announced plans to launch its own mobile music service for its latest Galaxy smartphone model called Music Hub. It’s hard to imagine there will be an immediate impact to Apple, but it does put names such as Pandora Media [P Loading... ()
Samsung has made it so music that is purchased through the service will be stored on the cloud ![[cnbc explains]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u7AZnWh9Yev6MyX1j6ddyQ9e2RW0ywg11gXtIG3N5IzH9cG5XElYwbxD0985ZUlN-xHpmsKpP9a1SFqBT_Dqn5XY_aa8EdiDy_gZm2Kcx-ezywfP2jdgoaRX8RLqFWGB7YbaHfcwGIrTBLVvktAizgiBIvk3NrhNcmV90thqwK1xr1nVXPhhcuVzXzVD5KUw=s0-d)
I think this is a smart play for Samsung, as it seeks to capitalize on its leadership position in the fast-growing 4G LTE segment — one that has boosted increased demand for its family of phones, which includes the Galaxy, as well as superphones.
While Samsung in making tremendous strides by pricing its phones lower, however, what it needs to do in order to truly “RIM” Apple is to figure out of way to take away Apple’s margins in the high-end devices where Apple is the clear-cut winner. For Samsung to do that, it will need to get its current customers to pay for the higher-margin phones — a task that will not come easy.
Bottom Line
As we are quick to point out all of the great things that Apple is doing and offering standing ovations for its brilliance and creativity, the company has shown a history of not playing well from behind. We first saw this when the rise of software giant Microsoft [SIRI Loading... ()
While it is grossly premature to say that Samsung is on the verge of burying Apple, it is not out of the realm of possibility that it could happen. After all, although Apple appears unbeatable today, on Wall Street there is no such thing as infinite success.
Instead, it is a cut-throat industry where the market leader (in this case Apple) is always the target of every rival wanting what it has. The question is, will Apple be foolish enough to make the mistake of allowing Samsung’s ascent to dictate its next move? Or, worse yet, will it become complacent, rest on its laurels and do nothing?
—By Richard Saintvilus, Contributor, TheStreet.com
Additional News: Don’t Buy a TV, Apple Is Working on Something Big: Munster
Additional Views: Apple Doomed? Some Think So
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Samsung enters gaming space backed by Gaikai - gamesindustry.biz
Samsung is to enter the video game business, offering a cloud gaming service streaming PC titles to TVs, with beta testing beginning this July.
The technology is provided by David Perry's Gaikai business and will offer games from big publishing companies already onboard with the visionary games delivery service.
The two companies have been working on the deal secretly for some time and were originally going to announce the partnership at E3 2013. But the absence of new home consoles from Sony and Microsoft has left a gap in the market for early adopters looking for high-end gaming experiences delivered easily to the living room.
"As the consoles are reset to a zero audience, it's a wonderful strategic move"
David Perry, Gaikai
"When you talk about Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo the conversation now has to include Samsung. This is their gaming solution," Perry told GamesIndustry International.
"We were supposed to launch at E3 2013 but we've bought it forward and managed to get it working much faster than expected," revealed Perry. "The timing could not be better. As the consoles are reset to a zero audience, it's a wonderful strategic move."
Owners of Samsung's high-range Smart TVs will receive on-screen beta invites this month. Although the service is current for TVs only, Samsung also manufactures a range of smartphones and tablets that could receive the service.
Any PC controller with a USB connection will work with the service, but Samsung will also be mailing out peripherals that it's chosen with the help of Gaikai.
"This is mass market," said Perry. "This isn't about trying to sell to someone who's already bought two consoles, this is trying to open up the market. And they can add any other devices at anytime of they want to."
According to Perry, electronics manufacturers are missing out on the success of the games business.
"You're making tablets, TVs, phones, but nothing participated in the biggest entertainment launch in history - Call of Duty. The movie Avatar works on everything you make, so you're supporting the movie business but it's the games business that's creating these monster hits. You want to get the real state-of-the-art games running on your devices in the best possible quality and the only way you're going to do that is through cloud gaming, there is no other way."
Samsung's smart TV range isn't cheap, but the company wants to target the early adopters who are ready to move on from current generation consoles and are not being catered to by Sony and Microsoft.
"Someone said recently that in 2013 the graphics on tablets are going to be as good as the Xbox 360. My point there is the Xbox 360 is six years old. You're telling me if I wait another 12 months I can be like it was six years ago? That's not what I want to play. I want to play today's hardware running the best new MMO or FPS on maximum settings, as good as the developer's can make it look."
Samsung Galaxy S3: Verizon Bound Next Galaxy Images Surface - ibtimes.co.uk
If this information is correct, Verizon's S3 will have a hardware home button. The Verizon logo, along with the lettering "4G LTE" will be written on the battery cover.
Regardless of external appearances, all five variants of the S3 will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 1.5GHz dual-core CPU and, like the Canadian and Japanese variants, the US-bound S3 will pack 2GB of RAM, to provide high-speed performance and multitasking. The phone will be available in the same two colours it is anywhere else - pebble blue and marble white - and come in two storage models - 16/32GB. It will be powered by a Li-ion 2100mAh battery and run the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) operating system with a 4.8in HD Super AMOLED touchscreen display. The Galaxy S3 will go on sale with starting price $199 (£129.57). The Galaxy S3 with all the carriers in the US will connect the 4G LTE and HSPA+42 network speeds. The retail price for the Galaxy S3 will be announced by the carriers in the coming weeks.
Telecom tariff might increase by 26 paisa, analyst - Top News India
According to an analyst at the research firm Ernst&Young, the telecom tariff is like to increase by as much as six times the 4.4 paisa estimated by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), or by 26 paisa per minute if the impact of two factors is considered.
Analyst said that the TRAI did not take into consideration the cost of license extension and the cost of spectrum to be auctioned while estimating the increase in tariff during financial year 2013.
Partner in member firm of EY Prashant Singhal said, "TRAI's assessment does not include the cost of license extension in addition to the cost of spectrum to be auctioned. Taking into account, these two factors only, EY-COAI estimates that the impact on cost per minute will be more than six times the 4.4 paisa." The remarks come just two days before the meeting of Empowered Group of Minister of telecom.
The analysis from the research firm sheds more light into the ongoing deliberations into the matter after TRAI recommended a base price of Rs 3,622 per unit of airwaves that are to be auctioned to the telecom service providers in the country.
Telecom policy cultivates feeling of alienation: Mufti - in.com
Srinagar, Jun 5 (PTI) PDP today described the decision to keep Jammu and Kashmir out of the new telecom policy as one which encourages a "feeling of 'otherness'" and sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention in scrapping the "diktat". "Such treatment of the J&K state only fuels alienation, contributes to trust deficit and cultivates the feeling of 'otherness' among the people here," PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said while addressing a party meet. He was referring to the 'one-nation-one-number' provision, which exempts users from paying roaming charges under the National Telecom Policy 2012, which is not applicable in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast. The former chief minister said it was ironic that the state should be kept out of a scheme which is christened such. "What message are you sending to the people of the state by such small-minded policies?" Sayeed, who played a crucial role in persuading the Centre to start mobile telephony in the state during his tenure, asked. He claimed that such actions brought to a naught all efforts at bridging the gulf between the state and rest of the country and need to be dumped. "By treating the people of the state as suspects in implementation of policies like the telecom policy, the government is actually creating a mistrust about them which reflects often in unwarranted police action against them in various states," alleged. (More)
Qatar Telecom to Double Asiacell Stake for $1.47 Billion - Bloomberg
Qatar Telecom QSC said it reached agreements to double its holding to 60 percent in Asiacell, a mobile operator in Iraq, for $1.47 billion as the company seeks to expand outside its home base.
Qatar Telecom will initially increase ownership to 53.9 percent and raise that further after approval from Iraq’s government and regulators, according to an e-mailed company statement today. The transaction will be financed from existing funds, it said, without saying who is selling the stake.
“The Iraqi market is about to enter a period of rapid broadband and data growth and Asiacell is well-positioned to meet the demands of the population for high quality, reliable and affordable voice and data services,” Sheikh Abdullah said in the statement. “We continue to work hard on preparing for Asiacell’s landmark IPO planned for later this year.”
Qatar Telecom, the Persian Gulf country’s largest company by revenue, has sought to expand outside its home market where it faces increased competition from Vodafone Qatar. (VFQS) The company teamed up with Princesse Holding of Tunisia in 2010 to buy Orascom Telecom Holding SAE’s 50 percent stake in Telecom Tunisie for $1.2 billion.
Qatar Telecom held talks with MerchantBridge & Co., a London-based investment company, to buy a 19 percent stake in Asiacell, Chairman Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Thani said in January. Eric le Blan, acting chief executive officer of MerchantBridge, declined to comment by phone today.
To contact the reporters on this story: Robert Tuttle in Doha at rtuttle@bloomberg.net; Nayla Razzouk in Dubai at nrazzouk2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net
Samsung Electronics unveils computers running on Windows 8 OS - Economic Times
On the opening day of Asia's leading IT fair in Taipei, Samsung showcased the products, including the Series 5 Hybrid which has features of both a laptop and a tablet, in a low-key display.
"Visitors should be able to see the tight partnership between Samsung and Microsoft and Intel," said Lorraine Tsao, a spokeswoman for Samsung in Taiwan.
It came a day after Taiwanese rivals Acer and Asus unveiled products running on Windows 8, which is the focus of the annual Computex fair, in its 32nd year.
A new survey meanwhile showed that Samsung overtook Amazon in the first three months of the year to take second spot in the global market for tablet sales, but still lagged far behind Apple with its ever-popular iPad.
Windows 8 is touted as Microsoft's long-awaited riposte to the rise of Apple and mobile devices powered by Google's Android operating system. There is no official release date but reports have predicted an October launch.
Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer says that Windows 8 will support a wider range of devices including touch- and stylus-based smartphones and tablet PCs, as well as desktops and laptops.
The ABI Research survey, out Monday, showed that the iPad extended its lead in the global market for tablets in the first three months of the year, holding 65 percent of the market with 11.8 million shipments of the device.
Samsung grabbed the number two spot with 1.1 million shipments, or six percent of the market, overtaking Amazon, which saw an 80 percent quarter-over-quarter drop in sales of the Kindle Fire, according to ABI.
Computex features more than 1,800 exhibitors registering 5,400 booths, up two percent from a year ago.
The organisers estimate that the IT fair will draw 36,000 foreign buyers who may place bulk orders worth up to $28 billion.
Get The Sun's new app on your smartphone - The Sun
It's available for both iPhone and Android devices and it's updated around the clock to keep you in touch with breaking news, top sport and hot celebrity gossip.
It also contains great videos linked to latest stories, plus a special 'Mini Apps' section with extras like daily Mystic Meg horocopes and a live football match centre to bring you latest scores, results and tables.
TO CONTACT CUSTOMER SERVICES PLEASE E-MAIL CUSTSERV@THE-SUN.CO.UK
The app costs 69p and includes 30 days access.
You'll then be prompted to sign up to a subscription. Normal price is £4.99 per month but we are currently offering a special on-going trial price of 69p per month (you will not be charged £4.99 unless you agree at a later date).
To download the app, if you have an iPhone go to Apple's App Store and search for The Sun, or if you have an Android phone go to The Market store.
The app also contains a special Sun Scan button that enables you to get content via QR codes, special symbols that you'll soon be finding from time-to-time alongside stories in the paper, adverts and posters.
Just hold the Sun Scan above the symbol and it will take you to a web link.
Plus you can share content with friends and save items for future reading.
Once you've downloaded the app - touch the Sun Scan button and view the special symbol on this page through your phone.
It will activate a link to give you video tour of the new app.
BRITAIN'S best-loved newspaper now on your iPhone and Android device
iPhone may come to second prepaid US carrier—Virgin Mobile—by July - Ars Technica
Cricket won't be the only US carrier in 2012 to offer the iPhone with a prepaid plan. According to sources speaking to MarketWatch, Sprint plans to begin offering prepaid versions of the iPhone through Virgin Mobile in the US—a carrier that contracts with Sprint to make use of its network. The announcement is expected to come sometime this week, and the phones will reportedly be available as soon as July 1.
As MarketWatch notes, Virgin Mobile USA's prepaid plans currently start at $35 per month with unlimited data (the carrier begins throttling data speeds once the account crosses the 2.5GB mark in a month). That, however, doesn't necessarily mean the plans offered with the iPhone will cost that little; it seems plausible that Virgin Mobile will charge more for the iPhone because of the heavy data usage that tends to come with it.
By comparison, Cricket's iPhone plans will cost $55 per month with unlimited calls, texts, and data, so we wouldn't be surprised to see Virgin Mobile's plans end up being somewhat similar to what Cricket offers. And since Sprint's network is much more widely available than Cricket's (contracted through Leap Wireless), more US customers will be able to take advantage of the Virgin Mobile offering once it goes public.
MarketWatch didn't have any further details on which devices would be offered through Virgin Mobile or how much the company planned to charge for them. If the announcement is indeed coming down the line this week, however, we'll soon be able to make a more direct comparison between Cricket's and Virgin Mobile's iPhone offerings. Meanwhile, T-Mobile USA remains out in the cold without an iPhone to call its own—people who own GSM iPhones through AT&T have begun having theirs unlocked and switching over to T-Mobile, but without an iPhone that works on all of T-Mobile's GSM bands, the national carrier is now falling behind even tiny regional carriers when it comes to device selection.
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