Interview:

8- Gerard DEGA, President, Alcatel Shanghai Bell

22- Mr. Chris Armitage, Area Vice President, UK & Ireland Teradata,
a division of NCR
34- General (R) Arshad Mehmood, Vice Chancellor, Punjab
University

Telecom:
Cover Story: 46
10- Mobilink Determined to Expand its Network
12- Mr. Parvez Iftikhar, Chief Executive Officer,
Universal Service Fund, Pakistan
14- CMPak: Kicking the Paddles
We Know
15- Operators at Their Toes
16- We Need to Do More! 10 How to Deliver

18- Broadband in Pakistan

20- ISPs Charge PTCL for "Spoiling the Game"
24- Imitated Mobiles' Sales Going Sky-High
26- Fiber for Computer & Broadcast Networks
28- Mobile Phone Banking Soon in Pakistan
30- Sim Activation Tax Tempering the Growth 8
32- MNP; A Tale of Passive Public Response
36- Segmentation Engineering
38- Mobile Phone - Potential Threat for Children
40- India Plans to Join Ranks of Chipmakers
15 22
73- Network Readiness - Must for Technology Utilization

Cover Story:
42- Telecom Update

IT:
41- Facts and Figures
42- Big Servers Making a Big Comeback Simplifying Data Collection
43- Bacteria: Future Medium of Data Storage
71- Software Requirments vs End Product
75- Talented Youth of the Digital World
78- Pakistan's IT Industry - Opportunities & Threats
34
Informative:
51- Coming Mobiles
53- Current Mobiles
58- Mobile Reviews
67- It's Not One Thing It's many!!!
69- Hot Laptops
Briefs:
Higher Education Key to Success
83- National
86- International
89- Internet

Special Report:
44- Boeing & Airbus: The 2 Giants in the Skies

Press Release:
90- Govt to roll out High-Speed Internet in 6 Months; Awais
4
S
Zubair Ahmed Kasuri Editor-in-Chief
tandardization brings benefits without hurting Mudassar Jehangir Chief Executive & Group Editor
competition. It can also be viewed as a mecha- Jahanzeb Aziz Executive Director
nism for optimizing economic use of scarce Aamir Attaa Editor
Zeeshan Ahmed Technical Editor
resources. Unlike rest of the world telecommuni-
cation in Pakistan has achieved number of land-
marks in its very small life; credit goes to the technology
Usman Yaqoob Marketing Executive (Lhr.)
boom and the operator's aggression. But point to ponder M. Farooq Malik Marketing Executive (Lhr.)
is why despite of these landmarks, the sector has yet to
see a level playing field for operators. This very small his- Abdul Wahid Senior Designer
tory tells various stories of bankruptcies, mergers and M. Naeem Mughal Designer
takeovers. Many, who took the licenses, never even opted
to start operations.
Muhammad Raza Malik Incharge Reasearch Wing
Crises on ISPs, LDIs, and GSMs are not a distant past.
There has never been a very clear policy and strategy as
Published by Good News PR Network
to what should be adopted as a standard practice to safe-
Printed by Akkaz Printers, Lahore
guard the interest of an operator. State owned enterprises
Lahore Office: 2nd Floor, Ali Mansion, 41-A, Lower Mall,
have always dominated the ISPs and LDIs industry, leav- Lahore - Pakistan.
ing no room for the private operators to survive. Similarly, Telephone:+92-42-7221006 - 7222275
Fax: +92-42-7321920
Instaphone, Paktel had no option other than to announce
Islamabad Office: Office # 7 B, 3rd Floor, Al - Baber Center, F-8
their failures. Recently launched MNP has not made an Markaz, Islamabad - Pakistan.
impressive impact on the service provider and the con- Phone: + 92-51-2855465-2855482,
Fax:+ 92-51-2851662
sumer as well. We can not afford to take pride as the first
Karachi Office: Office # 913 A, 9th Floor, Saima Trade Tower, I. I
ones in the region to adopt this advanced technique for
Chundrigarh Road, Karachi - Pakistan.
the justice among players. For sure it will never guarantee Phone: +92-21-2275215, Fax: +92-21-2275216
any justice nor would it allow the watch dog to see it as E-mail: info@flare.com.pk
last resort to justify its mature decision making. Price: 200/-
In the absence of any price policy, rate per minute war Registration No: PCPB/105 (Vol. 3 Issue: 9)
has forced the operators to secure lesser profit with each
passing day. Resultantly they resort themselves to prac-
tices, ethical and unethical, in order to stabilize their profit
margins, dummy SIMs activation is not new thing which is Flare - Pakistan's First Online Magazine
also a security risk and who likes to pay for a minute
which is not of 60 seconds. This journey does promise
any long lasting results and one can for-see other set
backs soon in the industry.
To save player's and the consumer's interest, authori-
ties need to make policies and standards keeping in mind
the ground realities otherwise one doesn't have to wait for
a long to see another merger and takeover on the basis
of unnatural market forces. „

Head Office: 2nd Floor, Ali Mansion, 41-A, Lower Mall,Lahore,

Pakistan Tel:+92-42-7221006, 7222275 Fax:+92-42-7321920
Islamabad: Office # 7 B, 3rd Floor Al - Baber Center, F-8 Markaz, Online Edition for Free Download
Islamabad. Phone:+92-51-2855465 - 92-51-2855482 www.flare.com.pk
Karachi Office:Office # 913 A, 9th Floor, Saima Trade Tower, I. I
Chundrigarh Road, Karachi. Phone:+92-21-2275215, 92-21-2275216

5

Mobile Phone Ads
Mobile phone operators at one end are portraying their selves as good
corporate citizens and on the other they are killing the norms and values
of our country by motivating youth to talk whole night. Our youngsters
spending whole night on phone will lead us towards being a non-produc-
tive nation. No one can deny the influence of media these days. Young
people follow the trends shown on TV channels. Telecom companies in
Pakistan presumably can understand the psychology of their customers
but still run ads which encourage subscribers to talk 'sara sara din sari
sari raat'. Surely, there can be another way to advertise the product.
Advertising is a tool to sell products or services, but advertisers should
avoid giving messages that have an adverse impact over society. The
regulatory authority is not even taking any notice of this continuous foul
practice on TV channels. This is a serious matter of concern for all of us
as our future depends upon what we do right now, and no doubt our
growth does not lie in talking on the phone. I request all these companies
to take an ethical stand and join hands to make this nation stronger
adopting a positive approach.
M Khayyam Siddiqi, Islamabad
Why Bother with ATMs?
SINCE 2002, I have been living in Karachi as a paying guest and am
dependent on my family to send me money. The only way I can access
that money is using ATMs, and I withdraw cash once a week. Whether it's
getting some photocopied notes, shopping, commuting around the city
and even eating, every aspect of my everyday life depends on readily
available cash.
During my five years here, I have been the victim of numerous ATM
malfunctions which always prove to be very disruptive and grueling. Each
time an ATM-related error occurs, it leaves me in flabbergasted, astray
and confused situation.
Due to this uninvited brokenness, I have gone through traumatizing
events like sleeping hungry, unable to buy books/notes when needed,
unable to repay my rent and having to face the music as a result. At cer-
tain instances, I have walked miles just to try using my ATM card at anoth-
er location.
Today I have again returned with disappointment, as I needed money
to buy a train ticket for the following day but the "Issues link" was down. It
is useless to call the 24-hour helpline as most of the personnel are rude
and unprofessional, furthermore they cannot do anything even if they
tried. I have moved my account to other banks but this problem continues.
Why is no one being held responsible for this lack of maintenance of
technology? Many articles continue to be written on the plight of ATM
users but no action/initiative has been taken. Why? Do customers pay an
annual ATM fee just to get deprived of their money when they need it the
most? What about people who are in dire emergencies like accidents or
urgent need of medication?
Will no one be held accountable if a serious loss occurs? What good is
a glistening 24-hour banking billboard if one out of every five times the
godforsaken-antiquated-ill-maintained machine is not working?
Ali Hassan Memon, Karachi
The MNP Extravaganza
WHEN mobile number portability (MNP) was announced, people
heaved a sigh of relief as it gave frustrated consumers a chance to dis-
continue their relationship with their pathetic mobile phone operators. I
happened to be one of them. However, as is the fate of every Pakistani,
the MNP proved to be a false promise. I am a U-fone 'forced customer'
and want to switch on to other cellphone company where I hope, I will be
treated better.
I started using U-fone some four years ago and, for some unknown
reasons, the SIM serial number on the back of my SIM card has faded
and is now illegible. On contacting the U-fone 'helpline' (a misnomer) a
customer representative gives me a new serial number which never
matches the data, resulting in a decline to my request for MNP. I was final-
ly told that the information I need is 'classified data' and cannot be sup-
plied.
Wasif Farooq, Islamabad
6 Send us your letters at flare.mag@gmail.com or at our postal addresses. Flare reserves the right to edit letters for clarity and space.
Emergency Number in Mobiles
Phonebook
We all carry our mobile phones with hundreds of names/numbers
stored in its memory but yet nobody, other than ourselves know which
of these numbers belong to our near and dear ones. It may happen
that we are involved in an accident or have a heart attack and the peo-
ple attending us, get hold of our mobile phone, but don't know which
number to call to inform our family members. Yes, there are many
numbers stored but which one is the contact person in case of an
emergency?
For this reason, we must have one or more telephone numbers
stored under the name ICE (In Case of Emergency) in our mobile
phones. Recently, the concept of "ICE" is catching up quickly. It is sim-
ple, an important method of contact during emergency situations. As
cell phones are carried by the majority of the population, just store the
number of a contact person or person who should be contacted, during
emergency as "ICE" (meaning In Case of Emergency).
In an emergency situation, Emergency Service personnel and hos-
pital staff would then be able to quickly contact your next of kin, by
simply dialing the number stored as "ICE". It really could save your life,
or put a loved one's mind at rest. For more than one contact name
simply enter ICE1, ICE2, ICE3 etc. Let's spread the concept of ICE by
storing an ICE number in our mobile phones today!
Mohammad Ali, Lahore
Karachi and Cell Phone Towers
The caretakers of Karachi are forever promoting the city as a hub of
Information Technology (IT) and a choice destination for major confer-
ences and exhibitions. How is the government going to achieve this
goal if minor issues are made into major ones for no good reason?
It was disturbing to read in a section of the press that the Sindh
government is trying to remove cell phone towers from the residential
areas of Karachi due to threat of radiation and other health problems.
While there is some relevance to this subject, this critical assumption
has not been proven in any other part of the developing world.
Communication is now clearly the road to achieving industrial and
economic success and as the advent of fourth generation wireless
technology is around the corner, we must be prepared to embrace
technology as a means to alleviating poverty. Let us talk of more rele-
vant people-related issues such as clean drinking water, road safety
and better health care facilities.
Waseem Abbas, Karachi
Misuse of Mobile Phone
WITH the expansion of communication network, use of mobile
phones has greatly increased. At present this most modern facility has
become so pervasive that even the remotest corners of the country are
not deprived of the benefits of this hi-tech marvel. In big cities, owing
to the mushroom growth of telecom companies almost, every second
person tends to have a cellphone. Obviously this development reduced
the distances and made life extremely convenient.
However, apart from the fact that it has become a life hazard as the
cell snatchers do not mind killing the unfortunate owner, it has also
become a source of entertainment bordering on vulgarities. I have
seen in many gatherings that even people, mature enough to be quali-
fied for the category of grandparents, exchanging offensive jokes, even
stripped pictures with friends and acquaintances without realising the
degenerating moral impact on the sender, receiver and those with
whom such jokes are shared.
In the hands of younger generation, however, a cellphone has
become more a tool of entertainment than service; increasing number
of messages and as a result boosting the revenue of telecom compa-
nies. This is merely an abuse of a facility intended for the advantage of
society; not acceptable from any moral and ethical perspective.
Mansoor Ul Haque Solangi, Islamabad
Billboard Revolution
Suddenly there seems to be quite a number of billboards of big
Bollywood celebrities all over the city. After looking at these one cannot
help but wonder have all the Pakistani models suddenly become
unavailable? If not then why are we using big names from India and
other countries to endorse our products? We should use our own stars
for this. We have our share of big celebrities too. Be it our cricketers,
rock stars or TV actors. There is nothing wrong in using foreign famous
people, only if this is also reciprocated in those countries. This situation
portrays a very disloyal and unpatriotic perception prevailing in our
nation.
Saleha Abbasi, Karachi
 We Know How to Deliver
Gerard DEGA is President of
Alcatel Shanghai Bell and member
of the company's Board of
Directors. Before this appointment,
he was Executive Vice President of
Alcatel Europe & South,
responsible for its telecom
operations in France, Africa,
Middle East, the Indian
Subcontinent, Turkey and Central
Asia.

He is a graduate of the Ecole Poly

Technique in Paris and a PhD in
Telecommunication Engineering
Gerard DEGA
President,
Alcatel Shanghai Bell
He has 30 years of experience in
telecommunications. He joined
Alcatel in 1985 and took part in
setting up the international sales
network after the merger with ITT.
Later on, he was appointed as
leader of the international
Flare: How do you take Alcatel-Lucent Pakistan as very impressive
projects in Pakistan and the current deal in terms of new subscriptions operations of CIT (the French
with CMPak? as operators are bringing
DEGA: We are very proud to have projects in many customers under their branch of the Group), Chief
Pakistan. Our company has been investing nets.
here for last 15-16 years. During this period, we In the recent years, the new
Executive of the Public Switching
have shown our dedication by achieving the
highest level of wired and wireless
operators have received
tremendous results, which
Division, Chairman of Alcatel CIT,
infrastructure. We have played our role by
training engineers, and building IT team. It
depicts that there is lot of
space here for new comers.
President of the Mobile
shows our commitment to Pakistan and the This is what made China- Communications Division,
people of this country. Alcatel-Lucent looks mobile to take keen interest
forward to further developments in telecom, to in the market. They had been Chairman and CEO of Alcatel
take place in this region. It is matter of fact that looking for going beyond
Pakistan still has very high potential when it China and the selection of France and President of Area 4 of
comes to infrastructure and tele-density. Pakistan by China Mobile is
About recent agreement with CMPak, our first another illustration of juicy Alcatel Telecom.
major goal is to develop a very reliable and atmosphere of Pakistan.
flawless mobile network for this company. FLARE: Is Alcatel Shanghai
China Mobile, which is our strategic customer in
China, is first time entering any market out of
Bell a Chinese or a
European company?
Before joining Alcatel, he held
china, so we take this project as extremely
important to us.
DEGA: Well it is both, fifty- several international positions at
fifty. To show you the
FLARE: How do you see Pakistan's market complete picture, I need to go France Telecom.
and opportunities here? into little details of Chinese
DEGA: I am quite familiar to this country since telecom history and Alcatel
long. The market in Pakistan has matured well. Shanghai Bell; Chinese
The telecom sector has seen many market was opened to the
developments and technological advancement foreign companies around 25
as compared to that of 15 years ago. I see years ago. Before that, it was
8
 other vendors are. We have the same cost with the people and then building the towers,
structure as they have. So, we are quite putting the antennas, the equipment, and
similar to other vendors. We and ZTE are generators and so on. We have to cover the
having more than 95 percent share in fixed northern parts of the country including
networks. We have grasped around 20 Islamabad, Peshawar, high mountains (which is
percent share in the mobile networks, not not an easy task) and many others. In the east,
only this we are going to play major role in we are going to cover Kashmir as well.
deployment of 3G network in China. So, we FLARE: How do you see the competition
have gained a
respectable
market share,
and we will see
Mr. Gerard DEGA, President, tremendous
Alcatel Shanghai Bell, during an increase in this
interview with Flare
share with 3G
network rollout.
a At present, we
closed market with only Chinese manufacturers are quite equivalent
and state owned enterprises manufacturing all to other vendors.
their telecom equipments. FLARE: How will
The market was opened to the foreign you differentiate
manufacturers in the early 80s to bring in the Chinese and
European technology into China. It paved the European product
way for two companies, Alcatel and ITT, to standards?
enter the market. ITT was, later on, able to DEGA: It is an old
succeed in partnering with the Chinese feeling and it is true
Government to develop a joint venture to to some extent
manufacture digital switching equipment. This when it comes to the
quality of some Mr. Gerard DEGA, President,
resulted into the creation of Shinghai Bell, with Alcatel Shanghai Bell, during an
60 percent shares of Chinese Government, 30 textile products and interview with Flare

percent shares by ITT and 10 percent shares other goods. But our
by the Belgium government. telecom products
Soon Shanghai Bell became the champion in are as good as any among various vendors in Pakistan?
switching technology in China and they had others'. In terms of technology, Chinese DEGA: Competition in Pakistani market is
monopoly on switching which was most vendors are quite competitive. As you see, difficult, some of our competitors are struggling
advanced technology then. Chinese people are very active; they can bring and we have the opportunities to replace them
Alcatel, which purchased ITT in 1987, became in new technology with in months, by working in the future. Still some of them are very strong
and we will have to compete by showcasing
advance technologies and bringing reliability in
: Alcatel-Lucent looks forward to further developments in network, which is beneficial for end customers.
telecom, to take place in Pakistan's well matured market, The competition always helps you to improve
and optimize your own products and
which still has very high potential for infrastructure and technologies, product and also your
performance.
tele-density FLARE: What, in your opinion, is the future
of China- Mobile in Pakistan?
DEGA: Well, China-mobile is not only state
the minority share holder of the Shanghai Bell. day and night.
owned but they are very dynamic and very
Apart from this, Alcatel invested in as many as FLARE: How do you see the cellular market active. They are holding a very good share in
217 joint ventures with local partners for here? China and also they are following their share
transmissions, cables, microwaves, mobile DEGA: I think, when I look at my own cell value. They are following the government
onset, mobile infrastructure policies and at the same time they are winning
and many more like that. to make a very good business in China by
In 1999-2000 during a earning huge profits.
meeting between Chinese Keeping in view the Pak-China friendship and
Minister for Pakistan's telecom sector, they will have to
telecommunication and show results. They have invested 700 million
chairman Alcatel it was dollars and determined to invest more, so there
decided to put all these is no point for them not to get their share. They
assets together, which are putting their best people and equipment to
resulted the emergence of acquire the success.
Alcatel Shanghai Bell in
FLARE: Data services are not popular here,
2002.
so how do you perceive the future of next
So this makes Alcatel generation technologies in Pakistan?
Shanghai Bell a very
DEGA: Data service will certainly increase.
unique and special
There is no reason why young people of
company which, on one
Pakistan are different from the rest of the world.
hand has strong support Mr. Gerard DEGA, President, China-mobile has done extremely well in China
from the Chinese Alcatel Shanghai Bell, during an
interview with Flare team and I think more than 20 percent of their
Government, while on the
revenue is coming from text messaging. While
other hand it has all sort of
3G is totally a different idea, as it requires more
access to Alcatel Lucent
which gets disconnected again and again, a lot sophisticated technology. So, in my opinion, still
products and technology.
has been done and still lot needs to be done in it is the time to expand the existing 2G network.
FLARE: How many Chinese people are
terms of quality of service, diversification and FLARE: Do you expect spamming coming
employed by the company?
number of subscribers. from China to Pakistan after China Mobile is
DEGA: The 99.99 of work force is from China. here?
We have 10,000 workers and only about 50 of FLARE: Would you tell us about your
contract with China-mobile and in which DEGA: Spamming is everywhere in the world.
those are non-Chinese.
areas you are going to operate in? It is difficult to say right now that China-mobile
FLARE: How does Alcatel Shinghai Bell will bring spamming in Pakistan. I hope that
differ from other Chinese vendors, working DEGA: It is a complete, turnkey network
contract. We, as in-charge of planning a CMPak we will be able to change the
locally and globally? perception about the involvement of Chinese
DEGA: Well, locally we are as Chinese as the network, are working to know where to put the
base stations, acquiring the sites, negotiating people in the spamming. n 9
 Telecom Flare Report
Mobilink has so far invested around 2.25 billion dollars and intends to invest further
500 million dollar, this year, out of which 160 million dollar already spent on network
expansion. We are presenting here a conversation carried out with
Mr. Zouhair A. Khaliq, President and CEO, Mobilink
5
800 km optic fiber cable of Mobilink is
near completion and would start offering
quality broadband and high-speed con-
nectivity to countrywide customers from
August this year. So far around 60 mil-
lion dollars have been invested by the company
and more investment would be made in the sec-
ond phase to establish additional 2500 km fiber
optic cable in the country. "The key objective of
this project is to provide quality bandwidth to the
customers at affordable rates," said Zouhair A
Khaliq, Chief Executive Officer of Mobilink.
In a recent interview, he said with rapidly
growing telecom traffic there was an urgent
need for reliable connectivity and the company
will meet this need through massive investment.
Mobilink, having more than 24 million sub-
scribers, has so far invested around 2.25 billion
dollar and intends to invest further 500 million
dollar this year, out of which 160 million dollar
already spent on network expansion.
"We will continue making investments in net-
work infrastructure and distribution network to
ensure that the Company maintains its lead in
the industry. Our 4000 employees are fueled
with a passion to be the best and we manage to
stay ahead by being the pioneer in launching
state of the art services and products, he said.
He said with six operators the competition in
the market is stiff, however, the company has
maintained a clear leadership through aggres-
sive investment and innovative strategies.
Pakistan's telecom sector has taken a lead
last year in term of Foreign Direct Investment
(FDI). Apart from investment, this sector also
created huge employment opportunities and
contributed to national exchequer in term of
taxes. The growth in the industry has been very
10
strong and it will continue to grow at a steadier
pace in future as well.
"The government has provided a level play-
ing field to all the operators in Pakistan and the
overall environment of liberalization has been
positive for the development of the industry in
Pakistan," he said.
He said quality of service is Mobilink's priori-
ty and it is working on a project to add 1800
more cell sites to its network by the end of this
year. The company, having more than 5600
operational cell sites and coverage in over 5000
cities, towns and villages, has established addi-
tional 500 cell sites during the first four months
of this year under a massive expansion plan to
ensure quality service to the subscribers, CEO
stated.
According to Zouhair Khaliq deployment of
cellular antennas pose no risk to the health of
human beings living in proximity of the towers
even in densely populated urban centers. "We
follow and keep in mind all international stan-
dards while installing tower and other telecom
equipment," Zouhair Khaliq maintained.
Replying to another question that Mobilink
sees any threat from China Mobile, he said
competition is good for the customers and has
proven to be good for us too, adding that
although Mobilink is leader in the industry it is
aware of the developing scenario and is cog-
nizant of the fact that market is becoming more
aggressive. Zouhair was at the view that new
players can enter into the market by buying
stake in existing operators and China Mobile's
entry into the market recently is an example.
On Mobile Number Portability (MNP),
Zouhair Khaliq said it was a difficult task but all
the operators and PTA managed it very effi-
Mr. Zouhair A. Khaliq,
President and CEO, Mobilink
ciently. He said as per data, MNP Directorate
was receiving around 500 subscribers' applica-
tion for change of operator every day.
"It is too early to say that MNP is failure or
success, but a freedom of choice is provided to
subscribers," he added.
Zouhair said Mobilink has introduced PCO
The company, having more
than 5600 operational cell sites
and coverage in over 5000
cities, towns, and villages, has
established additional 500 cell
sites during the first four
months of this year
services to facilitate people especially living in
remote areas. The CEO also highlighted role of
the company in supporting the community and
social development and added that each year,
Mobilink and its staff contribute significantly to
community projects, including local arts, educa-
tion, health and sports.
Mobilink has been actively giving regular
support to hospitals and other organisations for
medical equipment. It has also provided com-
puters to the Federal Board of Intermediate and
Secondary Education and Rs. 100,000 to
Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences to set up
a computer lab.
As part of the post-earthquake reconstruc-
tion effort, Mobilink is assisting in rebuilding
same villages in AJK. Mobilink also became the
first cellular company to start its operations in
AJK and Northern Areas. „
 Telecom
Mr. Parvez Iftikhar
Chief Executive Officer,
Universal Service Fund, Pakistan
P
arvez Iftikhar, a graduate engineer from
University of Engineering and Technology,
Lahore, is the Chief Executive Officer,
Universal Service Fund Company (USFC),
Pakistan. USFC, recently established as a
Private Company, under Companies Act of Pakistan, is
responsible for spreading telecommunication services
to those un-served/under-served parts of the country
which the Telecom Operators do find lucrative enough
to invest in. Besides USFC, he is also responsible for
spreading Broadband Communications and Special
Projects of e-Services in the country.
Parvez Iftikhar - till recently head of Telecom
Division of Siemens in Pakistan - has undergone
extensive training in the disciplines of Telecom
Engineering and Business Management, both in
Pakistan and abroad, including management courses
at the prestigious Siemens Leadership School,
Feldafing, Germany. He has also been on a sabbatical
to Carnegie Melon University, Pittsburg, USA.
Parvez Iftikhar has read several Technical Papers
in various seminars. He has traveled extensively all
across the globe attending seminars, workshops,
Country Manager, Microsoft Pakistan, Said Kamal Ahmed briefs the media persons about the
Microsoft’s 5th Pakistan Developer Conference 2007 during a press conference.
12
Flare Report
Parvez Iftikhar - till recently head of
Telecom Division of Siemens in
Pakistan - has undergone extensive
training in the disciplines of Telecom
Engineering and Business Management,
both in Pakistan and
abroad. As a telecom
professional with near-
ly 30 years of experi-
ence, Parvez Iftikhar
has a knack of not
only keeping himself
physically fit but also
keeping up to date on
technology
expos and training courses. He has several large proj- Policy and committee for R&D Fund distribution etc.
ects delivered on time and within budgets worth hun- As a telecom professional with nearly 30 years of
dreds of Million Dollars to his credit. He has been experience, Parvez Iftikhar has a knack of not only
instrumental in transferring numerous technology pro- keeping himself physically fit but also keeping up to
date on technology. Being an avid reader he keeps
The Universal Service Fund himself fully conversant with cutting edge disciplines.
(USF) was created by the The Universal Service Fund was established by
the Federal Government to meet the Information and
Federal Communications Communication Technology (ICT) needs of the un-
served and under served areas of the country. A struc-
Commission in 1997 to meet tured policy formulation approach is being followed so
that the existing digital divide between urban and rural
the goals of Universal communities is gradually bridged.
The main strategic objectives for this fund are to
Service as mandated by the ensure the availability of telecom infrastructure, provi-
Telecommunications Act of sion of basic telecom services, shared access and
broadband penetration acceleration and addressing
1996 the digital divide through uplift of rural tele-density in
the country.
grams from Europe to Pakistan. Services of international consultants were hired to
Parvez Iftikhar has worked with the Government of help the Ministry of IT formulate a robust and forward
Pakistan, on voluntary basis, in several bodies, like IT looking framework for the Universal Service Fund. „
Advisory Board, committee to formulate Telecom
Two youngsters taking snaps through their cell phones of their friends while sitting in the replica of a
traditional boat during the last week of Waahdi Mela organized by Punjab Institute of Language, Art and
Culture held at Al-Hamra Cultural Complex.
 CMPak: Kicking the Paddles
Ericsson and Alcatel-
Lucent will be the
major technology
partner of CMPak
(China Mobile Pak)
along with ZTE and
Huawei
F
eeling the tremendous competition of net-
work expansion from its rivals CMPak
choose four vendors including Ericsson,
Alcatel-Lucent, ZTE and Huawei. While
for most network expansion Ericsson and
Alcatel-Lucent will be responsible and others
will provide the core networks.
The contract of network expansion in south
region is given to Ericsson. Under the contract
Ericsson will provide a complete GSM radio net-
work including MINI-LINK to extend coverage to
312 cities in the densely-populated Sindh and
Balochistan regions.
Once implemented, the network expansion
4B Group Pakistan;
The 4B group initiated formation of its activities with the vast
exposure of its management team with a humble beginning by
setting up 4B Industries in 2001 to complement its existing
distribution business which was started in the late 70's
T
he 4B group initiated formation of its
activities with the vast exposure of its
management team with a humble
beginning by setting up 4B Industries in
2001 to complement its existing
distribution business which started in the late
70's.
The group believes in synergy and its limitless
power of unifying. Its philosophy is not limited
to the group alone but extends to the realms of
customer/collaborator relations, investor
interactions and into market trends, analyses
and technological advances. It is the only way
to ensure that when an endeavor is made by
several different elements, the result is of a far
higher quality than what could have been
achieved by each element acting alone.
The group activities found its impetus with the
acquisition of FALETTI's Hotel property from
the Privatization Commission Government of
Pakistan in July 2005.
One of the group's major strengths is its
strong relationships with Chinese & European
manufactures while ensuring sources for the
open ended requirements of its customers.
14
Major accomplishments of the group include
CEO CMPak, Geuo Yonghong shakes hand with President
Ericsson Pakistan, Zibber Mohiuddin during the signing
ceremony regarding CMPak $500 million contract.
will enable CMPak to bring mobile service to a
greater number of people in the region, helping
to improve their economic prospects. These
new contracts with Alcatel-Lucent and Ericsson
show the complete confidence of operator on
them and further strengthen their position, as a
vendor in Pakistan.
Alcatel-Lucent's turnkey contract covers the
expansion of the CMPak GSM network in north-
ern Pakistan. The equipment for this expansion
will be provided by Alcatel-Lucent's Chinese
flagship company Alcatel Shanghai Bell, a long-
term partner to China Mobile. Under the terms
of this contract, Alcatel-Lucent will deliver its
Producing Quality
the prestigious affiliation with Warid
Telecommunication Private Limited along side
ARY Group and AL- FALAH as affinity
partners.
The group has managed to provide technical
and erection facilities of international standard
to Paktel, Warid and PTCL in technical
collaboration with international telecom giants.
As a facilitator, the group has ventured into
providing the government with the latest
Japanese technologies including level
surveying equipment among others.
In addition, the trading activities are being
expanded to providing value for money in
providing services and equipments to the
telecom companies in the country.
There is also a prestigious joint venture with
Defense Housing Authority Islamabad in
collaboration with internationally acclaimed
telecom player Teleste, Finland to organize,
construct and operate a state-of-the-art
broadband cable (HFC) facility which is
currently in the offing.
4B group believes that many opportunities for
growth exist in the mobile market, and it intends
to continue to focus on this area. In doing so,
CEO CMPak, Geuo Yonghong shakes hand with
Mr.Gerard DEGA, President, Alcatel Shanghai Bell Co.,
Ltd. during the signing ceremony.
GSM/GPRS/EDGE solutions, including Base
Station Sub-systems hardware and software.
This includes the high-power radio module,
TWIN TRX, a recent addition to the Alcatel-
Lucent portfolio that doubles base-station
capacity in urban environments with high sub-
scriber density and offers wider coverage in
rural environments while at the same time
reducing power consumption by up to 30%. In
addition Alcatel-Lucent will supply CMPak with
a comprehensive suite of network integration
services such as network optimization, system
support and general project management. n
the group aims to capitalize on its
demonstrated efficiency and skill in execution
and demand-supply chain management, and
our history of innovation. The market on which
the group intends to focus include markets with
low mobile subscription rates relative to the
size of the population, geographic areas where
it is more cost-effective to build wireless
infrastructure than fixed-line network, and
heavily populated areas, where factors such as
poor infrastructure or theft of materials tilt the
scales in favor of wireless solution.
The company also intends to focus on
markets where the need for network capacity is
growing as a result of mobile network operators
promoting the replacement of fixed networks
with wireless.
People are living in populated areas
have difference by considering their
requirements as for money or moving with
advance lifestyle, TREND will be providing a
wide range of advance models with added
advantages and features with in competitive
price. That will help in growing existing market
of mobile industry. n

The operators with best quality services and call rates can only survive in the country
while the others continuously losing their market share. The competitive market will
not provide enough time to the newly arrived China Mobile to settle down. Market
leader Mobilink, lost another 2.1pp of market share and its monthly average growth
rate declined to 3.1%. The principal beneficiaries are the two newest operators, Telenor
and Warid Telecom
M
obile industry in Pakistan, the hot
cake for foreign investors, is wit-
nessing an exciting battle of
snatching number one position
among the cellular phone compa-
nies now with China Mobile, the world's biggest
cellular company, also in the contest.
The new entrants, Telenor and Warid are
capturing the market share swiftly, moving the
telecom boost towards saturation but the entry
of China Mobile, which has bought Paktel
recently, is likely to add fuel to the current
mobile telecommunication battle. According to
PTA, the five mobile phone companies operat-
ing in the country have more than 58 million
customers with Mobilink enjoying 43.2 % of total
GSM market. Ufone has 21.39 % , Warid 16.6
% , Telenor 16.5 % and Paktel 1.8 %.
Currently Mobilink is covering over 5000
cities and towns with 5500 sites, Ufone is work-
ing in over 750 cities and towns with 1108 sites,
Telenor is operating in over 1100 cites and
towns with 2900 sites, Warid is active in over
210 cities with 1200 sites and Paktel working in
218 cities with 893 sites. These all operators
cover 70 % of the population with 35 % geo-
graphically.
Telenor and Warid are competing hard for
the market share with Telenor 16.5% and Warid
16.6% market. Ufone is not doing well as for as
the network expansion and quality of service is
concerned. Many customers are availing the
facility of MNP to change their network, increas-
ing the market share of Warid and Telenor con-
sistently. While Mobilink and Ufone have lost
their market share.
China Mobile acquisition Paktel remained in
a distant fifth place with just 1.8% of the market
share. China Mobile promised another
US$400m of investment for its fledgling over-
seas mobile business, to add to the US$460m it
claims it has already spent. US$400m is almost
exactly the amount of money which Telenor
spent on its Pakistani mobile network last year,
adding to the US$600m the Norwegian giant
had already injected in the previous two years,
Zeeshan Ahmed Telecom
bringing its total investment in the market to keting in order to succeed.
over US$1bn. The level of investment shows Whilst these are undoubtedly issues which
that China Mobile is serious about turning round China Mobile's management must at least give
Paktel's fortunes, and injecting the necessary thought to, there are perhaps not concerns
capital - of which there is clearly no shortage - which have the same gravity as they might if we
in order to make the operator
competitive.
However, concerns remain for
Currently Mobilink is covering over 5000
China Mobile. First, is the cities and towns with 5600 sites, Ufone is
amount of time it will take to
achieve the coverage and net-
working in over 750 cities and towns with
work quality necessary to com- 1108 sites, Telenor is operating in over 1100
pete effectively? The Pakistani
mobile market stood at 35% pen- cites and towns with 2900 sites, Warid func-
etration - More then one connec- tioning in over 210 cities with 1200 sites
tion for every three heads of pop-
ulation - and it is forecast that the and Paktel working in 218 cities with 893
rate to climb to 50% by the end
of the year. In such door die situ-
sites. These all operators cover 70 % of the
ation, if a piece of the action is to population with 35 % geographically
be had, it is best had sooner
rather than later. were talking about almost any other internation-
The second concern is that even with a al investor. The China Mobile chairman was
world class network, China Mobile still has to reported this week as saying that the company
compete against at least three very well funded hopes to gain valuable experience from
Pakistani market which it could use to its benefit
in other overseas ventures. Not many develop-
ing markets in the world where it could gain bet-
ter experience, but whether the experience will
ultimately be a positive one is far from certain.
Then again, one could argue that in China
Mobile's position, and with the ambition it must
undoubtedly have, all experience is good expe-
rience. With the kind of resources at its disposal
which many international players can only
dream of, China Mobile as a multi-national
operator is likely to prove a law unto itself.
Whilst it is certainly not a sustainable strategy,
in the case of Pakistan the potential for valuable
experience may well prove much more impor-
tant than the potential for profitability, or indeed
Source Pakistan Telecommunications Authority
any other conventional benchmark for success.
and well run competitors, in the form of The battle of widest coverage low tariffs and
Orascom (Mobilink), Telenor and Warid. As well quality services among mobile phone operators
as throwing the necessary funds at the problem is heading towards its fierceness which is likely
15
it must also throw good management and mar- to give more benefit to the customers. „
 Telecom Junaid I. Khan

W
ith over 52 million mobile and 6
million fixed line subscribers, the
growth in Pakistan's telecom sec-
tor has been very impressive.
Even though the seeds of this
growth had been sown much earlier but the real
"take off" started in 2004-05 and today, it is hard
to imagine life without "personal" telecommuni-
cations. However, the internet and broadband
growth still lags behind then many developing
countries and needs special attention.
According to reports almost 1.0 million new
mobile subscribers are added every month and
the total subscriber number has crossed well
over 52 million. This means almost one out of
every three Pakistani has a phone. This is
impressive! However, we must ask this question
if the growth has permeated in all segments of
the society and has it helped the country on a
sustainable growth path?
Today many people around the globe cannot
imagine their daily lives without the use of
mobile phones, television, radio or Internet and
yet for millions of people in Pakistan's urban
and rural areas there remains a "digital divide"
excluding them from the benefits of ICT. This
obviously means that there are still people who
need to be "connected" through phone, TV,
internet or broadband and thus are unable to
communicate with their loved ones whenever
they want or do business with people outside
their immediate area. In order to promote
broadband access to every citizen of this coun-
try, aggressive efforts would be required in the
area of education, content development, PC
proliferation, bandwidth pricing and quality of
service. Currently, we do not see concerted
efforts to address the above areas by the gov-
ernment or the private sector.
It is true that there has been continous a
growth in the metros where the growing working
and middle class is using the cell phone as an
affordable enabler to help improve their quality
of life. However, this growth is still skewed
towards urban areas and excludes the impor-
tant area of internet and broadband connectivi-
ty. Ideally the telecom reach should extend to
the grass root levels in an segments of commu-
Junaid I. Khan
nity in all areas of ICT.
CEO, Telecom Services & Consultants (Pvt) Ltd
This is where government can play a vital
role and ensure that the fruits of technology are ple will be truly emancipated and be able to
distributed evenly to every square kilometer of take steps towards their economic prosperity.
this country. Government can achieve this by That's when we will be able to claim "ab baat
giving specific measurable targets to ISPs and ban gayee" do some "talk shawk" and ask "ab
telecom companies to provide basic services to aur sunao". That is when Pakistan will be truly
every village of this country. Only then our peo- connected!. „

Bangladesh's mobile phone sector has been growing at a rapid

pace, with the number of subscribers reaching nearly
22 million at the end of March 2007 from only 200,000 in 2001.
According to the experts the number is expected to cross
50 million mark by 2009

A
lthough nearly half of Bangladesh's
more than 140 million people still live
on less than a dollar a day, the country
has been one of Asia's growing cellular
markets, with a mobile penetration rate
of around 16 percent. Bangladesh's sixth cell-
phone carrier, Warid Telecom, said it hopes to
win 10 million subscribers in two years in one of
the world's fastest growing markets.
Warid Telecom, a subsidiary of UAE based
Abu Dhabi Group, launched its operation in
Bangladesh on May 10, 2007.
"We hope that we can grab 5 million cus-
tomers in the first year of operation by offering
better value-added services, competitive tariffs
and world-class network quality," Naved Saeed,
general manager of the company said.
"There is a huge potential in Bangladesh
and at the moment it is not a very big problem
to capture 50 percent of the market. The poten-
tial number is 40 million of which 20 million are
enjoying the cellphone facility," Naveed main-
tained.
Warid Telecom, which bought a GSM mobile
phone licence for $50 million in 2005, has
already spent $400 million on building its net-
16
work and plans to invest more in Bangladesh.
"To have a strong market in Bangladesh we
will further invest $300 million in the next two
years," Naveed said.
Bangladesh's mobile phone sector has been
growing at a rapid pace, with the number of
subscribers reaching nearly 22 million at the
end of March 2007 from only 200,000 in 2001.
According to the experts the number is expect-
ed to cross 50 million by 2009 as competition in
the sector heats up.
Warid Telecom has already
invested $400 million on build-
ing its network and plans to do
more in Bangladesh
Other phone operators in Bangladesh are
Grameenphone, Aktel, Banglalink, Citycell and
state-run Teletalk. While Grameenphone domi-
nates the mobile phone market with more than
50 percent market share followed by Aktel.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) expects
the total number of mobile phone users in
Bangladesh to double in the next two years as
Naveed Saeed
GM Sales & Marketing, Warid Telecom Bangladesh
competition heats up in the fast growing sector.
"The number of subscribers doubled in one year
- up from 11 million in 2006 to about 22 million
in March 2007, and is forecast to increase to 44
million by 2009," the ADB said in a recently
released report.
According to the report mobile telecommuni-
cations had become one of the most vibrant
service sectors in Bangladesh with its growing
network coverage, which reaches about 97 per-
cent of the country's population and 82 percent
of the land area.
Healthy competition among six operators
has significantly reduced tariff rates in the last
couple of years.
The availability of phones in rural areas has
created new opportunities for income genera-
tion through self-employment by providing vil-
lagers with access to modern information and
communication technologies. „
 Telecom Anayat Ullah M. Hasni

The Bandwidth advantage of land

line over mobile phone is exploited
all over the world to overcome the
mobile phone extravaganza but the
land line operator in Pakistan is
once again late in using the trick.
PTCL with international connectivi-
ty via SMW3 , SMW4 , TransWorld as well as by satellite has advan-
tage but kept all these options so sacred yet and not using them to
give real tough time to its so called rivals

T
he primary reason for the success of mobile
phones in Pakistan was the gap between the
demand and supply in voice telephony in
Pakistan. Landline has a clear advantage over
mobile connections i.e. Bandwidth. Every
where else in the world Telco Operators used this
advantage to their benefit and started to provide higher
data rates for internet and other bandwidth hungry
applications to the customers like Cable TV and VOD
(Video On Demand). But unfortunately in Pakistan
that's not the case. Mobile phones are being consid-
ered as the direct competitors to landline operator.
This is because of the lack of broadband penetration in
Pakistan.
This only advantage of landline over mobile was
never brought into the competition by the Land line
operator (LLO). The use of broadband was never pro-
moted by the LLO due to which use of broadband con-
nections is only limited to large organizations in
Pakistan including banks and govt. sector organiza-
tions. Even many of our universities lack quality broad-
band connections. Should this advantage have been
promoted in the right way, it would have been a lot
easier for landline operator in Pakistan to give a tough
time to their mobile competitors. High speed internet
connections, VOD, Cable TV and Online gaming are
some of the potential uses of broadband which, if pro-
moted rightfully among the masses, could have been
money makers for the landline operator, whose profit is
shrinking day by day. Landline operators of course
can't increase their voice call charges due to tough
competition from mobile operators. It would have been
wise to increase the volume of traffic through their net-
works via broadband.
The LLO operator after wasting lot of time letting
mobile technology to catch up the broadband band-
wagon in the form of EDGE and WiMAX, are finally
now concentrating towards broadband to the masses
and PTCL is still planning for Triple Play services i.e.
Voice, Internet and Cable TV on the same connection.
This course of action should have been taken at least
5 years ago. Some of the operators like World Call did
start providing Triple Play services over their HFC
Network in limited areas of Lahore and Karachi. But
wide scale adoption of broadband in Pakistan could
only happen if the biggest player in the market PTCL
18
would jump into the broadband highway. PTCL had a This step can also be taken by the government
clear advantage of their existing network infrastructure. and operators in Pakistan. High Speed NetCafe's can
They already have a network having its maintenance be setup in different cities promoting broadband servic-
cost and limited use i.e. voice. They charge a fixed es. It will be hard to the users to go back home to their
amount of line rent from the subscribers, which is basi- narrow band connections after having a taste of
cally due to the maintenance cost on these lines. It speedy services, thus creating a market for broadband
High speed internet connections, VOD, Cable TV and Online
gaming are some of the potential uses of broadband which, if
promoted rightfully among the masses, could have been
money makers for the landline operator, whose profit is
shrinking day by day. The LLO after wasting a lot of time
letting mobile technology to catch up the broadband
bandwagon in the form of EDGE and WiMAX, are finally now
concentrating towards broadband to the masses and PTCL is
still planning for Triple Play services. This course of action
should have been taken 5 years ago
would have made a lot more sense if they would have
provided more broadband services other than voice on
the same infrastructure since the extra maintenance
cost would have been zero.
PTCL and all other landline operators are pri-
marily interested in small to medium and large
organizations as potential customers for
their broadband services. But these com-
panies are forgetting the real potential of
residential customers. The broadband
industry of South Korea is a good
example in this case. Although the
South Korean market is very different
from that of Pakistan in terms of liter-
acy rate and population density, but
some of the steps taken by the gov-
ernment and operators in South
Korea can apply globally. One such
example are high speed Net Cafés
called PC Bahngs (Rooms) in the local
language.

at home.
Some other factors that proved successful in South
Korea that apply globally are:
„ Price of broadband compared with narrowband -
Broadband must be priced close to narrowband. This
appears to be the key factor in encouraging con-
sumers to adopt broadband.
„ Consumer choice - Customers have different
needs. Service providers need to provide service pack-
ages that fit different market segments.
Due to different lifestyle education and industrial
culture in Pakistan, broadband has huge potential
since there are limited entertainment facilities and peo-
ple don't go out for recreation much. Online gaming
can prove to be a catalyst for the broadband market.
Online gaming can have its servers inside Pakistan
thus can lower bandwidth cost by eliminating traffic
through international fiber optic links. IPTV can play a
vital role in this regard. IPTV differs from traditional
Cable TV in the sense that channels are not broad-
casted on the cable thus much of the bandwidth in the
cable is free for other use. Another advantage is the
large number of channels that can be provided using
this technology since only a bandwidth equivalent of
Telecom
one channel i.e.
6MHz for regular
TV channels and
16 to 20 MHz for
High Definition
content is
required. When
the user switches
the channel, a
request is sent to
the operator's office from where the next channel is Recently PTCL has announced its plans to provide
sent along the same bandwidth. Thus a delay is intro- triple play services but the problem is that wateen is
duced which is equivalent to the time delay between very close to the completion of its WiMAX project
the moment you pickup the receiver of your phone and which promises wireless broadband services. This will
the moment you hear a dial tone. But the advantage give PTCL a tough time in marketing its project.
being that the number of channels that can be provid- Although PTCL has the advantage of owning interna-
ed using this technology is virtually unlimited. Some tional fiber optic connectivity, while wateen is lagging
operators are providing more than 2000 channels this connectivity right now and it will have to depend
using IPTV. With the increase in the number of chan- on PTCL for its connectivity. Off course PTCL can pro-
nels day by day this could prove to be one of the sell- vide more competitive rates owing to the fact of its
ing prices to telecom operators. international bandwidth ownership. But WiMAX will
Smaller players have not been successful in pro- give Wateen the advantage of low maintenance cost
viding better packages due to the high bandwidth rates due to the wireless access network. Plus the advan-
of leased lines provided by PTCL. Most of the content tage of being totally IP based technology right from the
that we request using our internet browsers is hosted users house will give it advantages of bandwidth on
on servers abroad. Thus using national as well as demand.
international bandwidth. ISPs have to lease circuits One can really hope that with the introduction of
from PTCL at high prices, so they cant afford lower two nationwide long haul fibre cables from Wateen
packages for the subscribers. International connectivity Telecom and Multinet, prices will get lower but true
is provided by PTCL via SMW3 and SMW4 as well as broadband penetration can only be achieved by intro-
satellite and TransWorld a subsidiary of Orascom ducing competition in the international connectivity. For
Telecom Ltd. TransWorld has a clear disadvantage this PTA has to play its role. „
over PTCL, i.e. they don't have a backup submarine
cable to provide protection. Their connectivity right
now includes a submarine fiber optic cable that lands
at Karachi and Fujera (UAE). From there they have
purchased bandwidth from Verizon for further connec-
tivity.

Passengers besiege the check-in counters to apply employees for flight information of Japan's second Exhibitors of the Google company work in front of a illuminated sign at the industrial fair Hannover Messe
largest airliner All Nippon Airways Co.(ANA) at Haneda Airport in Tokyo. in Hanover, Germany. The Federal Trade Commission has opened an antitrust investigation into Google
Inc.'s proposed $3.1 billion purchase of ad-management technology company DoubleClick Inc.

A man makes a picture with a mobile phone in the headquarters of Russian oil giant Yukos during an auc- Chris Fitzhugh holds a concept drawing that shows how the temperature differences in the ocean can be
tion in Moscow. A little-known Russian company, Paran, bought the last remaining assets of the bankrupt used to generate large amounts of electricity at his home in Peacham, Vt. Fitzhugh plans to spend his
Yukos oil company including its headquarters building on Friday for 110.092 billion rubles. spring break pounding out a business plan and building a copper and PVC-pipe model to show how it will
work.

19
 Simplifying Data Collection
Mr. Chris Armitage
Area Vice President,
UK & Ireland Teradata, a division of NCR
Teradata owns core technology database solutions, where it provides its
customers with software and hardware solutions to meet their data
warehousing needs. Teradata's database software is focused on particular
market area so it is designed and optimised for data warehousing and
business intelligence
hris Armitage is Area Vice President for
C Teradata, a division of NCR. He is
responsible for the telecommunication
and media business in United
Kingdom, Ireland, Europe, Middle East
and Africa.
Armitage, a graduate of Oxford University
with a degree in politics, philosophy and
economics, has 18 years of experience in IT
and more than 10 years’ experience in business
intelligence, data warehousing and data
management. Armitage began his IT career
with IBM, as a technical consultant to the retail
industry, and later joined Acuma Solutions as a
sales manager, where he built a business
intelligence consultancy team serving multiple
industries.
Armitage joined the Teradata retail team in
1999. He became manager of Teradata's UK
telecommunications industry in 2002. Latter on,
he was appointed to his current position. He
was recently in Pakistan, when Flare got a
chance to interview him and collect certain
information about the data warehousing
industry. Below is the detailed discussion we
had with Armitage.
Q: Please brief us about the operations and
products of your company?
Mr. Armitage: Teradata basically owns core
22
technology database products so core markets
are our target areas, where we provide them
with software and hardware solutions to meet
their data warehousing needs. Our database
software is focused on particular market area
so it is designed and optimised for data
warehousing and business intelligence. Where
as our competitors like Oracle and IBM build
databases for online transactions, processing
single record, airlines reservation systems and
other areas.
Teradata builds for complicated scam
clearance through data on larger scale. On top
of this core technology, which now includes
software and hardware, we have a framework
of solutions for pulling the data out of
production systems and also applications. Over
the years we have established a valuable
relationship with our customers, every customer
we have worked with, it made us build our
portfolio of countless applications by developing
solutions for innovative and unique scenarios;
and this portfolio is further strengthening with
time.
So Teradata is one of the biggest
professional services organisations focused on
data warehousing.
Q: As a market, how will you compare
Pakistan with other global markets?
Mr. Armitage: I think, while comparing, the
major contrast between Pakistan and other
countries like UK and Ireland is that the
industries there are more diverse while here
the real focus for us is on telecom and finance
industries; as they are the only mature clients
of data warehousing. In Europe we have
strong presence in travel, transportation,
educational systems and others; in short there
are more segments to be covered there.
Here in Pakistan market is maturing rapidly, I
can see the developments taking place in
different sectors but still there is lot more to be
done.
Q: Would you like to address a particular
area in Pakistan, which needs
improvement regarding data
warehousing?
Mr. Armitage: Interesting question! When I
came here, I thought that we would have lot of
insight to bring in many fields, we were doing
in UK. Interesting thing is that there is equal
scope if we take it other way, for example the
telecom industry here has shown a
tremendous growth which gives a chance for
other nations to learn from Pakistan.
On the other side, the financial institutes in UK
are with higher penetration and larger number
of accounts, but this development is required

Mr. Chris Armitage, A
Chris Armitage rea Vice President,
Area President,
eland Terad
UK & IIrreland
UK during an in
ata, durin
Teradata, terview with
nter
with Fl re
in banking sector rather than the data
warehousing. So data warehousing, alone, can
not see growth, rather it is directly connected
with the development of related fields.
Q: Solutions implemented here are being
replicated by Europe and USA, how do you
see that?
In Pakistan, Taradata is recruiting the local talent and
providing National and International platform to its
employees. Teradata has established a regional “Centre of
excellence” in Pakistan, keeping in view the huge potential
available in the Telecom and finance sector
Mr. Armitage: It shows that how skilled the
people of Pakistan are. I must mention that in
banking sector, there are many examples of
solutions those are being developed here in
Pakistan and are replicated in USA and UK.
These instances have changed the
phenomena; usually solutions which were
implemented in Europe or America were
brought in emerging markets like Pakistan.
Q: Normally the solutions you provide are
too expensive what is your opinion about
that?
Mr. Armitage: As our solutions are basically
aimed at bigger customers but this bigger does
not necessarily mean larger in numbers or
volumes. Actually we have a differentiation for
more sophisticated and complex solutions. You
do not have to be huge in data volumes but you
need to be demanding in what you are doing
and how you want to combine to look at that
data later.
You are right, we are constantly fighting the
perception that we are being taken as
expensive but one needs to have bigger
technology to match the solutions we are
providing. If you remember that when we
started, the cost of the technology was too high
but now the scenario is quite different. So it is a
wrong perception that data warehouses are
expensive, as the demand for data storage is
too big. If you take a tour of a data house, you
will see that it is all about the data and
(detailed) data storage. At times there are
billions of entries at one level of application,
and then centralizing all the levels takes
enough of storage capacity and data
manipulation.
Q: Do you rely on other companies for data
storage?
Mr. Armitage: We welcome this philosophy. We
have relationship with various companies, for
providing storage solutions. We take their
comments and suggestions and we believe in
this open philosophy but
we provide our own
solutions.
At times a great deal of
integration is required
when it comes to
combined solution
involving hardware and
software.
Q: what are your future
plans? How do you see
the future of Teradata in
Pakistan and across
the globe?
Mr. Armitage: Well, we
are going to announce
the strategic separation
of Teradata and NCR
soon; we are going
Fla
are through the process of
separation right now. The
process will be
completed by the end of the September and
both the organisations will completely get
separated.
This is the realisation that both the
organisations focus on their own specific areas.
As both the organisations are focusing on
totally different markets. NCR, over the years, is
targeting markets like ATMs and retail point of
services while Taradata is focusing on database
housing and business intelligence.
this separation is a very positive step. We, as
Teradata, think to unleash the growing market
Mr. Chris Armitage, Area Vice President,
UK & Ireland Teradata, during an interview with Flare
just because of falling prices and improving
performance. Now data is available in
abundance for people to analyse, so we see a
lot of growth as new types of data and
applications are coming.
Previously, data-warehouses used to
deliver strategic touch on monthly bases but
now we deliver reports every week and even on
daily basis. Real time processing of data will be
the key in future; there are examples where
reports are generated each hour or in even less
than an hour time. We see more tasks as
transactions are made more quickly and their
numbers have also increased tremendously.
We consider Pakistan as an important growth
area from our sales perspective. We have
established a regional “Centre of excellence” in
Pakistan, keeping in view the huge potential
available here in the Telecom and finance
sector. We will continue investing further too in
growing skills of our organisation and also
increasing the number of our customers.
Q: Are you having any sort of coalition with
government of Pakistan to provide solutions
for various organisations?
Mr. Armitage: We have strong relationship with
Pakistani Government through NADRA. We are
having a lot of support and sponsorship from
the Ministry of Information Technology to grow
and establish various projects. So we are
working heavily with central government and at
the same time, we are getting tremendous
response from the provincial governments as
well. We have met various government officials
who seem to be fully committed to read the
whole scenario and we hope to see some
positive steps to be taken very soon.
Q: How do you see Pakistani people from
the technical perspectives?
Mr. Armitage: I find the technical skills of the
people very high. The people we took are very
skilful. Although Taradata takes on its own
programmes for technical training and
educational skills but generally the people are
highly skilled. Another thing is that the people
we have taken are younger, more motivated,
more eager to learn and more committed than
what we had expected.
Q: How many people you have recruited
from Pakistan?
Mr. Armitage: So far almost 300 people are
paying their services to our organisation and I
am sure that this number will increase in the
future.
Q: What part NCR and Taradata are playing
in terms of social responsibility?
Mr. Armitage: We tend to contribute to the
societies where we work. We are committed to
bring diversity in terms of employment.
Generally, we play the role of a responsible
employer.
In Pakistan, Taradata is
recruiting the local talent and
also providing National and
International platform to its
employees. We also give
awards every year and
Flare's Editor-in-Chief
Mr.Zubair kasuri has also
won one of our awards for IT
media publications in 2006.
We are providing
scholarships to MIT students.
Furthermore we have
initiated unique university
programmes with some of
the leading campuses. As a
part of curriculum
development of the students,
we are providing training to
the teachers. The whole idea
of the programme is to check
how quickly our students can cope with the new
technological trends. The results, are very
satisfactory and mind blowing. not only going to
help Taradata hiring but also provide the
students with training opportunity at the same
time keeping them aware of the curriculum and
the industrial requirements.
Q: Do you want to convey any message to
the “Flare” readers?
Mr. Armitage: Definitely, this is my 2nd tour to
Pakistan and before this I had different
perceptions. And certainly, being here I have
changed my perceptions. I am really enjoying
here. If I can help other change their
perceptions then, I think, this is the best way we
can work together. n
23
 Telecom Flare Report
The copies of popular sets like Nokia "N series" and Sony Ericsson "Walkman
series" are high in demand. The customers who cannot afford expensive sets
are tending towards the imitated
S
ales of low quality imitations of branded mobile phones, especially those
from China, are on the rise and badly affecting the sales of the original
manufacturers. Imports of top mobile phone brands like Nokia, Sony
Ericsson and others, equipped with advanced technology such as digital
cameras and MP3 players are on the top. These expensive mobile phones
are very popular among the youth and for the last couple of years, their demand is
increasing tremendously.
Copies of these mobile phones, equipped with same functions and software are
openly being sold in the market as they are comparatively much cheaper then the
original brands. In addition, shopkeepers are also offering warranties for these imi-
tation mobiles, similar to that of branded set.
Pakistan imported mobile phones worth $728,283 during July-April 2006-07 of
the current fiscal year as compared with $568,930 during the same period in July-
April 2005-06. Here is a separate marketplace for Chinese mobiles retailers in the
electronic market and the rush of customers at these shops is the same as com-
pared with that at shops selling branded mobiles.
The copies of popular sets like Nokia "N series" and Sony Ericsson "Walkman
series" are high in demand. The customers who cannot afford expensive sets are
buying the imitated sets. In the mobile market, the original price of Nokia N93i is Rs
45,100 while its copy equipped with same style, features and software is being sold
at a price between Rs 10,000 to 12,000.
Sony Ericsson Walkman series model K810i's market price is Rs 28,000 and its
copy is being sold at a price ranging between Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000. These sets
Indian shopkeepers wait for customers in their shops at New Delhi's Nehru Place, the Indian capital's
Information Technology hub. Environmentalists, alarmed by surging demand for consumer gadgets in
India, are pushing manufacturers to tackle mounting piles of hazardous electronic waste.
Wearing special glasses, Nobuaki Ohno, research scientist of Earth Simulator Center at Japan Agency
for Maritime-Earth Science and Technology displays a 3-D images of liquid metal movement inside the
earth at 3 x 3 x 3 meters virtual reality room at their laboratory in Yokohama.
24
are affecting brand image of Nokia and Sony Ericsson by damaging their reputation
among customers.
Another dilemma faced by these original brands is that unauthorized dealers
import tampered mobile sets in the form of refurbished handsets - also called soft-
ware-pirated handsets. This practice is possible because of the fact that there is no
implementation of IPR laws in our country. Chinese copies of different expensive
international brands are available in the market at a very low price, even though
these sets cannot compete with the original sets. But still the consumers are being
fleeced by shopkeepers by assurances that the copied cell phone will offer the
same quality and features like the original cell phone.
After the arrival of Warid and Telenor, an intense competition has been wit-
nessed in the Pakistani cellular phone industry and its business has risen from 1.2
million in 2002 to over 55 million in 2007.
At present, there are six mobile phone service companies working in Pakistan in
which Mobilink is on the top position followed by Ufone; Warid; Telenor; Paktel and
Instaphone. According to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, there were
around 58,399,157 subscribers all over Pakistan.
According to an estimate, there are more than 1, 75,000 mobile phone shops
across Pakistan generating employment for over 6,45,000 people. Mobile phone
shops include high-end franchise showrooms to small booths in markets and shop-
ping malls. „
Brothers Franco and Lucas Scalabrino, right, show to their mother, Maria Fojo, their new "hundred-dollar"
laptop computers given them days earlier by the One Laptop Per Child project in Villa Cardal, Uruguay.
SK Telecom shows a fisherman and his new device using a float-shaped ultrasonic transmitter (red
objects). With most South Koreans already hooked on mobile phones, the mobile phone operator has
introduced the service to help fishermen locate their catches.
 IT Shahid Zahid
Building your first fiber network, whether for computer applications or
broadcast networks, can be a bit daunting; however, there is no reason for
the task to make you apprehensive. A few simple guidelines, discussed in
this article, will make the task enjoyable and a true learning experience
T
here are several options open to you as
you build your new fiber network. While
decisions about connector type and
fiber mode may already have been
made for you by the equipment manu-
facturer, you can still select the type of cable
you will use, number of strands, brand of con-
nector and whether you will use ducting or other
protective cable raceways. All of these deci-
sions will contribute to the quality and maintain-
ability of your fiber installation.
Choosing a Fiber-optic Cable
If you are a product engineer, there are sev-
eral choices you need to make regarding fiber
diameter, mode, and laser frequency and so on.
If you are an end user, the equipment designer
will have made these choices for you. Matching
the cable to its intended use is the next step.
Generally, cable is divided into two groups:
Multi-fiber cable, which is optimized for outdoor
use between buildings or other exterior applica-
tions, and cable designed for indoor distribution.
There are other cables available for intercity
and long-haul applications, but the computer
network operators and broadcasters typically
does not install and maintain this type of fiber-
optic network. Comparing cross sections of
indoor and outdoor cables can tell you a lot
about their construction and intended use.
26 Figure 1 shows a single-fiber cable suitable
for indoor use. Note that it contains a single-
fiber strand with a tight buffer surrounding it.
The result is a robust cable that can be termi-
nated directly without any special considera-
tions. A computer network operator and broad-
caster may choose to employ a cable like this
as a jumper cable between a desktop graphics
device and a wall plate.
Figure 2 illustrates a multi-fiber indoor use
cable. This design contains two or more tight
buffer cables surrounded by a common outer
jacket. An important difference between this
cable and a cable intended for outdoor use is
that the outer jacket can be stripped away to
reveal two fiber cables that are ready to be ter-
minated. A cable such as this one may be larger
in a multi-fiber configuration than its outdoor
counterpart, but it will not require a breakout kit
for termination.
Figure 3 is a cross section of a cable
designed for outdoor use. Note that there are
several significant differences between this
cable and one in figure 2. The first difference is
that the cable contains several fibers separated
by a loose buffer tube. The tube slides over the
fibers, lubricated by a gel. Several fibers are
contained in each buffer tube. Second, note that
the individual fiber strands are not surrounded
by a protective jacket. This saves space in the
cable but means that you must use a breakout
kit to terminate the cable. Third, the cable incor-
porates a water-blocking agent. Finally, note
that the jacket on the cable is much thicker than
the jacket used on indoor cable. It is treated to
resist water and ultraviolet radiation.
Usually when going from outdoors to
indoors, a transition of some sort is required.
This involves breaking out the loose-tube indi-
vidual fiber strands and connecting them to a
panel. The other side of the panel is connected
using indoor cable.
Figure 4 shows a typical breakout kit. The kit
converts the loose-tube multi-fiber cable to sev-
eral tight buffer individual fiber cables that can
be terminated with the appropriate connector.
The tight buffer cables are much more rugged
and will withstand the environment of a comput-
er network and broadcast facilities much better
than the individual strands of a loose tube
cable.
Connector Selection
If you are concerned about terminating fiber
cables yourself, there is good news: Terminating
cables is much easier than it used to be. If you
ever tried terminating fiber cables in the past,
you probably still have nightmares about epoxy
ovens and sanding little figure-eights while

repeating some magic incarnation. Well, all that
has changed. Manufacturers now make crimp
connectors and splices for fiber that allow you
to terminate fiber easily and at a low cost as
shown in figure 5.
If you were not all that great at making
splices in the past, you can probably do better
with these. Your losses will be 1/2dB to 1dB per
connector. Gone are the days of the old bi-conic
fiber connectors where alignment was a real
problem. The FC connector always made cor-
rectly with little problem (see figure 5).With a lit-
tle practice you should be able to terminate a
fiber in under a minute.
Ducting
If you ever have the opportunity, take a tour
of a large fiber installation. When you look at
the equipment racks, one of the first things you
notice is a large number of ducts running all
over the building. Fiber-optic ducts are specially
designed to carry fiber-optic cables and protect
them form damage. They have carefully
designed curves and openings that protect the
cable from stress and excessive bending that
could degrade the performance of the cable or
possibly break it. Your decision to use ducting
will be based on the amount of fiber you are
installing and whether the fiber is concentrated
in a central area.
Guidelines for building fiber
Here are some guidelines to consider as you
build your fiber network:
„ Use the right cable. Computer and broad-
cast installations are not typical telco or cable
system installations; needs are specific. For
IT
example, using a loose tube cable when a tight
buffer cable is required can cause maintenance
headaches down the road.
„ Use breakout kits and termination panel to
avoid cable damage and down time.
„ Keep clean. Dirt is a serious problem in
fiber installations. If you are building a network,
but the termination equipment is not yet
installed, be sure to use dust caps to cover the
ends of the cables.
„ Avoid unnecessary transitions. Each transi-
tion introduces from 1/2dB to 1dB of loss per
connector. If you are in an indoor/outdoor appli-
cation, investigate some of the hybrid products
available that will keep you from adding a tran-
sition at each building entry point.
„ Run more fiber than you need. The labor
cost of installing fiber is much more expensive
than the fiber itself. Figure out how many fibers
you need and then multiply the number by
three. I used to say multiply by two, but experi-
ence has proven that this is inadequate.
„ Run multiple fiber types. If your equipment
uses multi-mode fiber, pull in some single-mode
fiber along with it. Use of multi-mode fiber is on
the decline. You may avoid a costly cable pull
later if you install cable now.
„ Talk to your equipment manufacturer. You
can learn a lot about fiber optic technology from
these experts. „
Shahid Zahid (TV Broadcast & Satellite Communication Engineer
with a National Broadcaster of Pakistan, ATV)
27
 Telecom Flare Report
The elimination of activation tax on SIM cards
would lead to an increase of 3.6 % to 4.3 % gross
domestic product (GDP) generated by Pakistan
over the next 10 years. According to GSMA report
the total elimination of Rs 500 SIM card activation
tax would result 60% growth in revenues. it is
important to mention, for Flare readers, this
report was presented before the recently present-
ed budget
T
he GSM Association, a global associa-
tion of mobile phone operators, while
terming the tax on mobile phone con-
nections or SIM card activation tax as
an impediment in the growth of the
mobile phone industry, has demanded its total
elimination. Based on the findings of the study
conducted by leading tax consultancy Deloitte,
the GSMA has projected that the total elimina-
tion of Rs. 500 SIM card activation tax would
result in revenue growth of up to 60 percent,
because of expansion of services in remote,
and rural areas thus attracting fresh foreign
direct investment in the country.
However, the findings of the study further
indicates that reduction in activation tax from
Rs. 500 to Rs. 250 would result in 25 percent
growth in revenues and would enable the
authorities to generate 32 percent additional
revenue from the industry.
Ricardo Tavares, Senior Vice-President
Public Policy of the GSMA, along with represen-
tatives from country's mobile phone operators
Mobilink, Telenor, Ufone, Paktel and Warid,
speaking at a media briefing said that elimina-
tion of activation tax is necessary for the growth
of the industry and penetration of mobile phone
service in rural areas.
He said that the elimination of activation tax
on SIM cards would lead to an increase of 3.6
percent to 4.3 percent in gross domestic prod-
uct (GDP) generated by Pakistan over the next
10 years. This economic growth, combined with
a reduction in the activation tax on mobile SIM
cards in Pakistan would boost mobile usage
and spur economic growth. The study found
that greater usage of mobile phones in Pakistan
would improve communication between busi-
nesses and their customers, fuelling economic
development and increasing tax receipts from
across the wider economy, he added.
We are presenting some of the findings of
the research conducted by Deloitte for our read-
er's interest:
Economic Impact of Mobile Industry:
The mobile sector in Pakistan contributed a total
of PKR 312.5 billion to the economy in 2006,
representing more than 5% of total GDP, an
increase of over 500% of the total contribution
of PKR 45 billion in 2003. The mobile sector
has created over 210,000 direct jobs to date.
The analysis suggests that a 10% increase in
mobile penetration can increase the annual
growth rate of Pakistan's GDP by 1.2 percent.
The mobile sector has encouraged low-income
entrepreneurs, connected families at home and
abroad.
Mobile Penetration - Pakistan Leads in
30
coverage forecast
Scenario 1: Reduction of Tax by Rs 250:
Total tax collected from the mobile industry and
its spill-over effect on the wider economy in
2007 compared to 2006 would increase by 32%
(to PKR 58.3 bn) in the conservative scenario
and by 39% (to PKR 61.5 bn) in the upside sce-
nario.
South Asia:
Pakistan is leading the South Asia with more
than 37% Mobile Penetration, while Sri Lanka is
at second position with India far behind with
only 10% mobile penetration.
Mobile Taxes in Pakistan:
Scenario 2: Reduction of SIM activation tax
to PKR 200
Total tax collected from the mobile industry and
its spill-over effect on the wider economy 2007
compared to 2006 may increase by 28% (to
PKR 57.9 bn) in the conservative scenario and
by 35% (to PKR 59.8 bn) in the upside sce-
Pakistan consumers pay the highest taxes com- nario.
pared to international benchmarks. A
GSMA/Deloitte study found that the average
amount mobile consumers pay in tax world wide
is 1% whereas in Pakistan it is 31%.
The Effect of Lowering the SIM Activation
Scenario 3: Reduction of SIM activation tax
to PKR 0
Total tax collected from the mobile industry and
its spill-over effect on the wider economy in
2007 compared to 2006 may increase by 16%
Tax: (to PKR 51.2 bn) in the conservative scenario
Three scenarios have been examined with dif- and by 19% (to PKR 52.9 bn) in the upside sce-
ferent reductions on the SIM card tax. nario. „
1. A reduction to PKR 250
2. A reduction to PKR 200
3. A reduction to PKR 0
There were also two assumptions sets:
i. A Conservative scenario:
Churn period of 3 years, a handset replacement
period of 2 years and average operator incre-
mental coverage forecasts
ii. An upside scenario:
Churn period is 5 years, handsets are replaced
every year and the most aggressive operator
 Telecom Jameel Ahmed Memon
Only 17,000 cell-phone subscribers, out of
over 52 million phone users, have, so far,
availed the facility of mobile number
portability (MNP) since its launching on
March 23, 2007
M
NP enables subscriber to retain their exist-
ing mobile numbers when changing from
one mobile operator to another. Pakistan
introduced Mobile Number Portability in
March 2007 and become the first country
in the region to implement this facility it was introduced
on 23 March and was implemented from March 26
2007.
A recent survey indicated that up to 90 percent of
business customers would not change their service
providers if they had to change telephone numbers,
because they don't want to lose their contacts.
The procedure to port a number is that you have to
choose a new Service Provider and fill in a form with
your chosen new Service Provider to port your num-
ber; Remember, don't cancel your current contract yet.
Your new Service Provider will verify your details with
your current Service Provider. If they got no any objec-
tion, the new Service Provider will arrange for your
number to be ported. You'll receive a new SIM card, if
appropriate, after certain time period. You can not
leave your new subscriber for 60 days. Disconnected
numbers can not be ported and ownership of ported
number can not be changed and it can not be sold out
to. In many countries MNP has failed because of
unawareness of subscribers about MNP.
In MNP donor (previous) operator has to be agreed
for porting the number by other operator after all this
porting process starts.
New service provider will provide new SIM card to
subscriber because of some technical features, which
are unique to particular operator, these features are
called triples (A3, A8 and Ki) these are used for
authentication of subscriber. New operator updates
HLR database and keeps entry of mobile number
(MSISDN) and IMSI (unique to every SIM card), when
all this process is done the subscriber is now having
access to new network experience. As subscriber
switches on the cell phone IMSI is transmitted to cur-
rent cell then it is verified by Authentication Centre and
access is granted.
Today in Pakistan there are 5 GSM and one AMPS
service provider, Mobilink is first GSM service provider
in Pakistan that's why it is having great number of sub-
scribers but now a days Mobilink is losing its grip on
market because of network leakages and high
charges, though it is having most network coverage
then all others.
The poll report shows that 4% users think that
Mobilink, 28% Ufone, no one from Insta and Paktel
(now known as CMPak), 34% telenor and 32% warid
will have more users because of MNP.
32
In other poll report 86% people think that mobilink
will lose customers, 4% think about Telenor and 3%
think about Ufone and 2% think about Warid.
Another interesting voting for MNP was held which
shows the interest of users to operators, according to
this poll 30% users like to port their number on warid,
17% on Mobilink, 17% on Ufone and 18% on Telenor.
Insta and Paktel are not supported by users. Only 15%
users are satisfied with their existing service provider.
In all above polling results Warid and Telenor are
seem to be big hurdle for other operators, and Mobilink
is looking to lose what ever it is having currently. MNP
is now going to force all operators to revise their tariff
and to provide better quality of service.
Apart from this pole, lets look at the actual figures
of MNP, which reveals that only 17,000 cell-phone
subscribers, out of over 52 million phone users, have,
so far, availed the facility of mobile number portability
(MNP) since its launching.
In the first two months of MNP operations, only
10,000 people have changed the service from one
subscriber to another, while 20,000 made the request
for shifting their service along with their code from one
operator to another.
So far, neither the Pakistan Telecommunication
Authority (PTA), the watchdog of the telecom sector,
nor the Pakistan MNP Data Base Guarantee Limited
(PMD), a body set up by the PTA to look after MNP
affairs, have come out with real figures about the gain-
ers or losers under the MNP facility.
The PTA had issued the figures of MNP facility
(port in and port out) only once since March 23 as its
When customers can get a prepaid
SIM connection for Rs150 only in a
few seconds, why they would go for
availing the MNP service which will
take four days for a prepaid con-
nection and six to eight days for a
postpaid connection
official had been saying that the PTA was dependent
on the arrival of data from the PMD, while, PTA was
supposed to issue data every month after the launch.
According to market sources a leading player has
so far been losing its customers while two new players
are gaining customers. Keeping in view the figure of
17,000, it seems that the public response to MNP facil-
ity has been very languid.
Even cellphone operators came up with half-heart-
ed public awareness campaigns in initial days of the
launching, but they soon suspended the publicity after
receiving cold response from customers.
The PTA had also created public awareness, but it
failed. Many consumers are reluctant to use the new
facility of mobile number portability (MNP) because of
lack of awareness and easy availability of new cell-
phone connections at Rs150 only.
Some companies are charging Rs500 for MNP
activation while new players in the market are offering
it free of cost.
When customers can get a prepaid SIM connection
for Rs150 only in a few seconds, why they would go
for availing the MNP service which will take four days
for a prepaid connection and six to eight days for a
postpaid connection.
Cell-phone operators invested Rs5 to 6bn to
launch the MNP after a thorough testing. PTA thinks
that consumers benefiting from the facility would be
between 1.5 to two per cent of the total cellular phone
users as worldwide ratio of consumers changing oper-
ator is three per cent. „
 Interview Mehmood-ul-Hassan Khan

General(R) Arshad Mehmood

Vice Chancellor, Punjab University

"Education provides ideal platform to achieve desired socio-eco-

nomic goals. It is the apex of humanity, civility, modernity, and
above all dignity." Arshad Mahmood, Vice Chancellor Punjab
University, stresses the importance of technical, scientific and
market oriented education
34
 Interview

C
onfucius says that education gives you He spoke about the
confidence and same is shared by the golden traditions (gentle-
Vice Chancellor of the University of ness, softness, striving for
Punjab, a charismatic man and beacon truth, upholding of right,
of light. It provides ideal platform to industriousness, openness)
achieve desired socio-economic goals. It is the and prophecies (respect of
apex of humanity, civility, modernity, and above the teacher, book and
all dignity. The Vice Chancellor of the Punjab believe in right path)
University General (R) Arshad Mehmood shared attached with education and
his views on different subjects/issues. He knowledge. He told that all
stressed the need of purposeful, market-orient- these basic yet golden qual-
ed and technical education in the country so ities have been in Morality
that the pace of ongoing socio-economic devel- and Merit policies of the uni-
opment may be enhanced and strengthened. versity. "For the last 7 years
"We have launched a college of Engineering & recruitments of all cate-
Emerging Sciences and School of Biological gories are on merit, which
Sciences to produce engineers and scientists. has facilitated development
tions to discourage commercialization, improv-
"We have launched a college of Engineering & of moral charac-
ing the pay structure of teachers of public insti-
ter, personal
Emerging Sciences and School of Biological Sciences examples of tutions compatible with the Private Sector, free
structure of public and private institutions
to produce Engineers and Scientists. New Department morality from top
to bottom have should be affordable for the poor masses, and
of Microbiology and Mycology will produce Agriculture helped in the least private universities should also teach
Engineering Science and technology other than
strengthening of
Scientists. School of Physical Science is being our value systems Commerce, Business, Computer and Law etc.
Their fee structure should be controlled. PU has
launched. Collaboration with private sector helps of Justice, Fair-
the lowest fee structure in Pakistan.
play and
develop technical manpower." Impartiality." He He showed his concerns about the low
added. enrolments in higher education in the country.
New He suggested workable measures like more
Department universities in less developed cities and towns,
of universities should open campus like PU in
Microbiology Gujranwala, On-line distant learning be
and Mycology launched like PU between Lahore and
will produce Gujranwala and evening programs for working
Agriculture classes. He has already introduced many poli-
Scientists. cies to enhance the levels of Research in the
School of University. Now, monetary incentives for writing
Physical Research Papers are being granted. Promotion
Science is criteria has been connected to the genuine
being research work.
launched. He clarified the wrong notion associated
Collaboration with day & night time courses and degrees in
with private the PU and said difference is due to need of the
sector helps working class studying in the evening to refresh
develop and brush-up their knowledge in management
Technical and productivity.
manpower." He stressed the need to have more educat-
He said, ed young people to achieve our macro-econom-
The Vice ic goals and social betterments in the 21st cen-
Chancellor stated that to produce more profes- In order to enhance the overall rating of the tury.
sional students, and technical experts to fill the university, he has institutionalized the different He was worried about the absence of one
widening gap in the emerging markets/jobs, we short & long term policies. Quality Research educational system and syllabus in the country
have initiated diversified steps and introduced papers in international journal & by teachers which are supposed to be one of the main rea-
many new disciplines and departments in the and students, up-gradation of Research sons of promoting spirits of prejudice, alien-
Punjab University like the College of Banking Journals to international criteria, research group ation, deprivation and depression. According to
and Finance, College of Engineering Emerging has been formed under Director Research with him, there should be one system/syllabus in the
& Science, Mycology &Plant Pathology, Incentive of Rs.25000/- for teachers and country. He endorsed the need of distance edu-
Microbiology, School of Biological Science, Rs.10000/- for students of Research cation mechanism in the country.
College of Environment Science, Physical Publication. He shared the different short and long
terms measures and policies to increase the
levels and working conditions of the employees
Mr. Arshad Mehmood studied at Govt. College Lahore from 1958 to of the PU. "Living accommodation has improved
1961, did MSc in Strategic Studies from Quaid-i-Azam University and for the teachers, Air-conditioners in
offices/classrooms, sufficient transportation sys-
MSc in Defence and Strategic Studies also from Quaid-i-Azam tem, ATM system, cafeteria and sports complex
University. He was commissioned in Pakistan Army in 1964. He has for every department in the University is the
mantra of my administration." He stated.
command, staff and leadership experience at all levels for 37 years. He was of the opinion that every possible
effort is being made to encourage students to
He has been Leader of the Army Advisory Team in Qatar and do some productive work not confined to class-
Managing Director of Overseas Employment Corporation in the rooms. Freedom of expression is the apex of a
civilized society.
Ministry of Manpower in Islamabad, he retired from the Army in At the end, he delivered his passionate
1997. Since 1999 He is serving as VC Punjab University message to common people and communities
of teachers and students by saying, that they
Education and Sports Science, Coal The V.C is worried about the commercial- should and must get education, knowledge for
Technology, Quality Management, Seed Centre, ization of education which has ruined the holi- the sake of their own survival. Tolerance, broth-
Institute of Business IT, Centre for Human ness associated with the education and the erhood, cooperation, harmony, hardworking and
Resource Development , Centre for communi- teacher. According to him, improvement in the striving for truth, virtue and merit should be their
cation skills etc. quality of research and teaching public institu- mantra. „ 35
 Telecom Ahmed Saeed

Segmentation engineering is a recent model that outlines processes and procedures to

create a substantial database that incorporates all aspects of a customer ’s life cycle.
Age, sex and marital status are all just beginning parameters, information like children,
payments to Visa Card versus MasterCard, anticipated purchases like scrolling for
Porsche prices all the way to the total number of spoons bought in one given year need
to be analyzed to provide more customized solution

I
n the world where the markets change with
a blink of an eye and the customer reten-
tion sojourn ends abruptly, customized solu-
tions are not answering the ongoing model
for complete customer loyalty and retention.
According to a recent survey conducted by the
University of New Hampshire, the service seg-
ment is facing another wave pattern
and even purchases on debit cards need to be
pulled and stored. This type of information is
private and require to be at the hands of agen-
cies to recruit the central database that
becomes the hallmark of decision making and
policy enhancements. Secrecy of information is
required to improve the spies and activities that
tomers. A recent survey by the automotive
industry indicated that approx 65 percent of
cars are re-engineered or upgraded by cus-
tomers within 90 days of new purchase. If only
the makers and service markets could clearly
comprehend the requirements of the customers,
these cars can most certainly become cus-

Not only is the work allocated to this job strenuous and frus-
regarding customer retention policies.
The report concludes that a sophisticated
customer relationship pattern is required
to clearly identify patterns and user trating, the price associated with delivering information to the
behavior to further improve processes,
applications and even products.
market is exponentially increasing. Though garnering the type
Segmentation engineering is a recent of information required is a tedious task and agencies are
model that outlines processes and proce-
dures to create a substantial database now becoming specialized in this field but in countries like
Pakistan with massive labour force, applying segmentation
that incorporates all aspects of a cus-
tomer life cycle. Age, sex, marital status
are all just beginning parameters.
Information like children, payments to engineering will provide a decent learning curve for major
Visa Card versus MasterCard, anticipated
purchases like scrolling for Porsche
students and research scholars
prices all the way to the total number of
spoons bought in one given year need to be at revolve around passive flow restricted to the tomized and the amount of money put forth in
the product and services departments click for departments solely responsible for the data this industry can circulate within the automotive
evaluation and review. With an extensive influx entry and maintenance. Hackers and informa- industry increasing confidence of customers.
of new corporations in the market and China tion marketers are working their way up and uti- By and large, segmentation engineering has
becoming a leader in almost all designs and lizing telemarketing and personal surveys that evolved to ensure a mechanism in place to sub-
manufacturing units, it is critical to keep a strin- privy them to such information. stantiate growth and expansion. Segmentation
gent eye on the likes and dislikes of a customer. Not only is the work allocated to this job engineering will allow corporations to have a
Due to the new trend in the market, data- strenuous and frustrating, the price associated close look at the behavioral patterns of the cus-
base management and polling specialists are with delivering information to the market is tomer and justify decisions and policies based
now being quite busy in all parts of the world exponentially increasing. The price tag now upon the patterns. Though garnering the type of
garnering information from all different sources becomes an agencies worth while agenda to information required is a tedious task and agen-
and expounding on requirements given to them conclude database storage for different types of cies are now becoming specialized in this field.
by their customers. Internet has done an customers and segments. Pakistan with its labor force can try to accel-
immense job in streamlining activity and report- Garnering the information is indeed one of erate the pace to get onboard with requirements
ing different statistics. Yet, there are many other the most critical components of the segmenta- and specifications. Basic survey and privacy
avenues that need to be ventured. Issue is the tion engineering model but to have a conceptual acts are not in place. Plush this will provide a
open door policy for information leaking. In understanding and even a rewiring of the cur- decent learning curve for major students and
order to maintain a substantial amount of data, rent legacy databases is the fundamental cata- research scholars. „
36
bank accounts, call detail records, transactions lyst to ensure a long term relationship with cus-
 Telecom Flare Report

Growth in mobile phones and comput-

ers has enhanced the demand for chips
in India. Mobile phone subscribers in
India rose to 68 percent in the last
month from a year earlier to 166
million. Still, only about 15 percent of

H
aving carved a niche in global soft-
ware development and services out-
sourcing, India's search for the next
big thing in high-tech could see it take
on the rest of Asia in the crowded chip
manufacturing market. The growth in mobile
phones and computers has enhanced the
demand for chips in India. Mobile phone sub-
scribers in India rose to 68 percent in the last
month from a year earlier to 166 million. Still,
only about 15 percent of India's 1.1 billion peo-
ple own a mobile phone, compared with around
35 percent in China.
Semiconductor firms such as Intel Corp,
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Freescale
Semiconductor Inc. have already tapped India
for chip design, but not manufacturing.
New government incentives to boost chip
making, coupled with India's low labour costs
and surging demand for electronic goods from a
fast-growing middle class, could change that.
Hindustan Semiconductor Manufacturing
Corp, which is backed by a group of Indian
investors based in Silicon Valley, has already
announced plans to build two chip-making
plants in India for up to $4.5 billion using tech-
nology from Germany's Infineon Technologies
AG.
Consumption surge: India spent about
$2.8 billion on semiconductors in 2005, and
demand is estimated to exceed $36 billion by
2015, according to a study by the
India Semiconductor Association
India's 1.1 billion people own a mobile
and research and consultancy firm phone, compared with around
Frost & Sullivan.
Furthermore, the study says
35 percent in China
electronic equipment consumption
should surge to $363 billion by 2015, more than
10 times spending of $28.2 billion in 2005.
AMD, a technology partner to the local
SemIndia consortium, said it has planned to set
up a chip-making facility in India with an invest-
ment of $3 billion over the next five years.
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, said last
November it was waiting for India to form its
semiconductor policy before deciding on plans
to begin manufacturing.
South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor Inc. is
considering emerging markets like India to set
up a manufacturing facility in the future as part
of its global expansion strategy, according to the
senior vice-president of the company, O.C.
Kwon.
Tough competition: One difficulty the
industry faces is that India does not spring to
mind as a manufacturing destination in a very
competitive sector with established Asian rivals,
because of inadequate infrastructure and archa-
ic labour laws.
India, as a manufacturing hub of the future,
however, needs some wisdom. This wisdom
has to do with the understanding of the explod-
ing Indian market and exponentially growing
middle class with sizeable disposable income.
Analysts say interest in India would be
fuelled by a growing appetite for electronic
goods such as computers, mobile phones, and
digital televisions that currently use imported
chips.
At the moment such chips may very well
have been designed in India, because, while it
lags in chip manufacturing, it has made big
strides further up the value chain.
According to the India Semiconductor
Association, India's semiconductor design
industry had revenues of $3.3 billion in 2005
and employed about 75,000 people. That is
expected to increase to $43 billion in revenue
and over 780,000 employees in 2015.
In February, Taiwan Semiconductor
Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC), the world's top
contract chip maker, opened an office in
Bangalore to support its customers with design
activities in India.
If India can do the chip design work, it can
take care of the manufacturing part as well;
especially when labour costs in India are still
10-12 percent lower than China. „

By 2009 more than four billion people in the world - out of a population of 6.3 billion - are
expected to have a mobile phone connection in their lives. The challenge for cellular companies is
to sell products to all these markets - all of which have different needs

M
obile phones have re-shaped global
communications. But who shapes
mobiles? From city bankers to
shantytown dwellers, and from hip
teens to octogenarian SMS fiends,
no use of a phone is too trivial; no detail of a
person's life too insignificant. Jan Chipchase,
principal researcher at Nokia Design, is on his
way to world tour to see how people use mobile
phones in their everyday lives and, more broad-
ly, how people live.
In the last 12 months he has visited 15
countries, carrying out eight full-scale research
projects. Mr Chipchase's focus is on the uses to
which people put their phones; where they keep
them, how they answer them, and a million
other details about our relationships with these
devices that have helped shape our world On
the street, in homes, in the office, in pockets,
handbags, at the marketplace, and in the com-
munity - Mr Chipchase tries to put mobile phone
use into the context of the culture and land-
scape he is in.
His research includes looking at home bat-
tery charging services in rural Uganda, street
charging in Kampala, how illiterate people use a
mobile and more recently where people keep
40
their phones.
Mr. Chipchase takes a team - designers,
psychologists - into different countries around
the world, to look at people's lives in different
contexts. "I want to understand what people do
and why, and pretty much in every context".
"We do this research work to inform and
inspire the design stage. To bring designers into
the field so they know whom they are designing
for," says Mr Chipchase.
He works three to 15 years ahead of the
market. His team carries out research using a
method called convergent validity - it is not
quantative scientific work but qualitative. In his
opinion the important consideration is how peo-
ple behave, not what the latest technology can
do.
"It's about what to design and when to
design, because human behaviour changes
very slowly; technology changes very quickly."
To date, Mr Chipchase has had two patents
granted based on his work and a further 25 are
currently being considered.
By 2009 more than four billion people in the
world - out of a population of 6.3 billion - are
expected to have a mobile phone connection in
their lives. The challenge for cellular companies
is to sell products to all these markets - all of
which have different needs.
Mr. Chipchase and his team
employ a number of techniques -
from shadowing people's lives, talk-
ing to as many local people as possi-
ble and documenting their lives in dif-
ferent contexts.
"We spend as much time as pos-
sible being in the places that people
do what they do. The mobile phone is
used from when you get up in the
morning and is often the last thing
you interact with at night," Mr Chipchase states.
He has studied the mobile use of low-
income manual workers in China, and spoken
to blind people who are experts in using a
phone and not having to rely on a screen.
Typically, Mr Chipchase is to be found discover-
ing people and cities on a bicycle or on the
back of a motorbike. „
41
 Telecom Flare Report

Servers started out as huge, pricey computers from giants such

as IBM. Then, groups of smaller, cheaper servers from PC-mak-
ers such as Dell became popular. These little servers, called x86
servers, work together to solve big problems and they account-
ed for about half the market in 2006

S
trange things are happening in the nor-
mally settled world of computer
servers. A shift in the market for the
back-office business computers is
helping prompt manufacturers to exer-
cise unusual amounts of creativity.
Servers started out as huge, pricey comput-
ers from giants such as IBM. Then, groups of
smaller, cheaper servers from PC-makers such
as Dell became popular. These little servers,
called x86 servers, work together to solve big
problems and they accounted for about half the
market in 2006.
Now, companies are realizing that it's not
always efficient to split up computing tasks.
They're shifting back to bigger servers. X86
sales, once expected to jump 61% by 2010, are
now expected to rise only 39%.
Server-makers are responding with new
products. Forced to get creative, they're design-
ing funky computers to distinguish themselves.
They're making servers that are: Stuffed into
cargo containers.
Sun Microsystems just began selling a serv-
er-filled cargo container as an instant data cen- Packed full of parts, most computers have
tre. It is delivered via semi-tractor trailer and one processor chip, or computer "brain."
can be plopped in a garage or on a rooftop, or Canada's Liquid Computing sells one server
any other convenient spot. Once power, a net- that can have up to 80. That provides a unique
work connection, and water for cooling are power boost for researchers and others who run
plugged in, the container generates a super- very complicated computer programs.
computer's worth of processing power. In Silicon Valley, Open Source Systems
make a server that has essentially two
Sun Microsystems just began selling computers in one. (It has two mother-
boards, a key component.) It's ideal for
a server-filled cargo container as an companies that want to do two things at
instant data centre. It is delivered via the same time, such as running a Web
site and behind-the-scenes number-
semi-tractor trailer and can be placed crunching software.
in a garage or on a rooftop, or any Doused with liquid, most computers
have little fans inside to keep things cool.
other convenient spot British computer-maker Very PC is ditch-
ing fans and developing a server cooled
Rackable Systems released its own server- by oil. That saves power and space. Very PC
filled cargo container in the last month. The hopes to have a prototype soon and a finished
Silicon Valley company has already sold sever- product in 12 to 18 months.
al, despite a $2 million to $3 million price tag. IBM sells a product that similarly cools
Both products can power field offices or provide groups of servers, with water. There's all sort of
a boost during a busy period. creative ideas out there. „

Google workers work on laptop computers at Google headquarters. In its latest attempt to extend its Frederic Jourdain , a weather forecast technician at the Roland Garros stadium for the French Open ten-
power beyond its Internet-leading search, Google Inc. is introducing a new tool that will make its software nis tournament, works at a computer showing weather forecasts for France, in Paris.
applications accessible offline.

Japanese electronics giant Toshiba unveils their new multimedia player "gigabeat V801", equipped with a Passengers speak to clerks about the cancellation of flights at the All Nippon Airways ticket counter at the
42 80GB harddisk drive and a 4.0-inch wide LCD display, enabling a user to store 339 hours video images or departure lobby of Tokyo's Haneda Airport.
20,000 music contents and digital broadcasting for mobile gadgets, at a press conference in Tokyo.
 Bacteria: Future Medium of Data Storage
The four characters that represent the genetic coding in
DNA work much like digital data. Character combinations
can stand for specific letters and symbols. So codes in
genomes can be translated, or read, to produce music, text,
video and other content
The world has heard breaking news during this bacteria so the data stay intact, though Katsumi data stored in bacteria could last for thousands
month from the booming world of hi-tech and Doi, bacteria expert and Kyushu University pro- of years.
telecom which may be a sign of another era of fessor, is skeptical. If it is possible to store data on human body
hi-tech in the human history. This time "We may need more time for practical applica- then it will certainly change the communication
Japanese researchers have announced to store tions," Doi said. "But I love the idea." It may culture with hi-tech even imposing its will and
the data in a more durable device other than take time to translate this idea and make it pop- control on one's body and mind.
disks, computer chips, hard drives or good old ular world wide but the initial success has given Although it looks possible but due to compatibil-
fashioned paper, it is bacteria. the hope of ultimate success to the scientists ity of hi-tech with human body this may not be a
The four characters that represent the genetic which will evolve a revolution in the world of hi- practical idea. While keeping in view the idea
coding in DNA work much like digital data. tech oriented societies. several questions, about this revolution, arise in
Character combinations can stand for specific Translating the Einstein message would require one's mind like: ? Whether these bacteria will be
letters and symbols. So codes in genomes can solving the code. But Tomita is the kind of free- out of the human body? ? If these are out of
be translated, or read, to produce music, text, thinking scientist intrigued by the notion that an human body, then how bacteria will survive?
video and other content. extraterrestrial might come across it in the dis- How we will transfer data through this device? ?
? If
this bacteria work from human body then will it
not harm the human being?
The significance of this development is that the encoded Human brain and heart is already reportedly
harmed by the radiation from mobile like
DNA of bacteria would be passed down from generation devices, so these invention may be more

to generation, making it a possible long-term medium

According to Professor Masaru Tomita, who
heads the team of researchers at Keio
University, While ink may fade and computers
may crash, bacterial information lasts as long
as species stays alive, possibly a mind-
boggling million years. Tomita's team success-
fully inserted into a common bacterium Albert
Einstein's famous "E equals MC squared".
Genetic coding is so massive that information _
say, a Shakespeare play _ can be stashed
away somewhere in the gene without affecting
an organism's overall appearance and other
traits. But mutation could distort stored data.
Tomita says data is stored in four places in the
tant future _ and naturally possess the superior
intelligence to quickly solve the code.
Tomita shrugs off the obvious question: "Who in
the world is going to read bacteria?"
"Many people never even thought about storing
data for thousands of years," Tomita said. "This
may sound like a dream. But we're thinking hun-
dreds of millions of years."
The significance of this development is that the
encoded DNA of bacteria would be passed
down from generation to generation, making it a
possible long-term medium. Today's storage
mediums are estimated to retain their integrity
for up to a century, but scientists estimate that
Today's storage mediums are
estimated to retain their
integrity for up to a century, but
scientists estimate that data
stored in bacteria could last for
thousands of years
threatening to human body and for behind the
practical. It is really a dream but not the reality.
Let's see the trends of storing data move on
which direction? 43
 Special Report Flare Report

Boeing and Airbus are the world’s leaders in plane manufacturing and among the biggest
rivals of the world as far as competing for market share is concerned. 777 is the most pop-
ular family of planes belongs to Boeing. Airbus also have A380 family of planes which is
equally competent in the market
Boeing:
Boeing is the world's leading aerospace
company and the largest manufacturer of com-
mercial jetliners and military aircraft combined.
Additionally, Boeing designs and manufactures
rotorcraft, electronic and defense systems, mis-
siles, satellites, launch vehicles and advanced
information and communication systems.
Boeing has customers in more than 90 coun-
tries around the world and is one of the largest
U.S. exporters in terms of sales. Headquartered
in Chicago, Boeing employs more than 150,000
people across the United States and in 70 coun-
tries. 777 family is the most popular family of
planes belongs to Boeing.
About the 777 Family:
The Boeing 777 is the first jetliner to be 100
percent digitally designed using three-dimen-
sional computer graphics. Throughout the
design process, the airplane was "pre-assem-
bled" on the computer, eliminating the need for
a costly, full-scale mock-up. More on innova-
tions...
The 777 program was launched in October
1990 with an order from United Airlines. In June
1995, United flew its first 777 in revenue serv-
ice. The Boeing board of directors authorized
production of the 777-300 on June 26, 1995.
The first 777-300 was delivered to Cathay
Pacific Airways in June 1998.
44
Market demand sized, shaped and launched
the newest member of the Boeing twin-aisle
family -- the 777. The airplane design offers fea-
tures, innovations and approaches to airplane
development that set the standard for delivering
value to airlines. The 777 currently is available
in six models: 777-200, 777-200ER (extended
range), 777-200LR (longer-range), 777-300 and
the 777-300ER, and the 777 Freighter.
777 Seating Plan:
777 Specifications:
777 CONSTRUCTION:
Boeing manufactures the flight deck and for-
ward section of the cabin, the wing, tail and the
engine nacelles. Boeing subcontracts the manu-
facture of components and systems, which are
transported to Boeing for final assembly and
tests. Subcontractors include Alenia in Italy,
ASTA in Australia, BAE Systems in UK,
Bombardier Shorts in UK, Embraer in Brazil,
Japanese aerospace companies, Kaman in
USA, Korean Air, Northrop Grumman in USA
and Singapore Aerospace.
ENGINES: The aircraft has two pod-mount-
ed turbofan engines below the leading edges of
the wings. The General Electric, Pratt &
Whitney and Rolls Royce Trent engines are
rated at 327kN to 436kN thrust.
The main fuel tanks are installed in the wing
torsion
box with
the
reserve
and
surge
tanks
on the
inboard
side of
the
wing.

The fuel capacity of the 777-200 is 117,350l. A
centre section tank installed in the 777-200ER
and the 777-300 increases the fuel capacity to
171,175l. The ultra-long range aircraft, Boeing
777-200LR has additional fuel tanks in the rear
cargo hold to bring the total fuel capacity to
195,285l
777 Program Key Dates:
About Airbus: Airbus is a leading aircraft
manufacturer, with a turnover of more than 22
billion euros; Airbus today consistently captures
about half of all commercial airliner orders. The
company also continues to broaden its scope
and product range by applying its expertise to
the military market.
Special Report
Headquartered in Toulouse, France,
Airbus is jointly owned by EADS (80%)
and BAE Systems (20%). It is a truly glob-
al enterprise of some 55,000 employees,
with fully-owned subsidiaries in the United
States, China and Japan, spare parts cen-
ters in Hamburg, Frankfurt, Washington,
Beijing, and Singapore, training centers in
Toulouse, Miami, Hamburg and Beijing
and more than 130 field service offices
around the world. Airbus also relies on
industrial co-
operation
and partner-
ships with
major compa-
nies all over the
word, and a net-
work of some
1,500 suppliers in
30 countries.
Airbus' modern
and comprehensive product line comprises four
highly successful families of aircraft ranging
from 107 to 555 seats: the single-aisle A320
Family (A318/A319/A320/A321), the wide-body

monality in airframes, on-board systems, cock-

pits and handling characteristics, which reduces
significantly operating costs for airlines.
Airbus will increase its monthly production

Airbus A380 Family Specifications:
A300/A310 Family, the long-range wide-body
A330/A340, the all-new medium-capacity long
range A350 Family, and the ultra long-range,
double-decker A380 Family. Airbus' unique fami-
ly concept ensures that Airbus fly-by-wire air-
craft share the highest possible degree of com-
rate to 40 for its single-aisle A320 Family by the
end of 2009. Currently, Airbus produces 32
A320 Family aircraft per month. At the end of
April, Airbus' order book for A320 Family aircraft
stood at 5,076 firm orders from 180 customers,
far outperforming the 600 orders that were esti-
mated when the programme was launched. In
the past two years, the A320 Family has
received orders of around 1,600 aircraft making
it not only the best-selling but also the fastest-
selling modern jet airliner. The strong demand
for the A320 Family is set to continue as Airbus
constantly introduces updates that customers
want, such as the new A320 Family cabin that
is lighter, quieter, more spacious and easier to
maintain. „
45
 Cover Story Flare Report

Pakistan has witnessed un-matching growth in previous few

years. The overall consensus of industry analysts is that Pakistan
is one of the countries with still a huge untapped potential for
telecom growth and an attractive investment environment

With over 40 percent teledensity, Pakistan is still an unsaturated market and with the falling cost of hand-
sets and lowest tariff plans in world, there are plenty of new subscribers to compete for, especially in the
rural areas. To review the detailed statistical data about the growth exhibited by telecom sector in
Pakistan, let's go through a report, recently published by PTA.
Sector Performance:
With increasing number of mobile phone subscribers, telecom sector has significantly contributed in the average yearly GDP of Pakistan. Pakistan
tops the rank in teledensity which has achieved 41.92 percent mark.

With the help of 9 billion dollar of investment, the mobile boom has simplified a common man's life. It has created socio-economic awareness
among the people in changing their lifestyle, in improvement of their business and related activities.
46
 Cover Story

Cellular Mobile
Cellular industry, the true ravolutionizer of the sector, is still gaining the momentum. The cellular companies are
experiencing consistent increase in adding new customers each month. Following graphical data will reveal the
individual and collective performance of cellular companies.

47
 Cover Story

Long Distance and International

At present LDI operators are aggressively participating in the market and very affordable tariff are present for most of the countries.

Wireless Local Loop

48
 Pictorial

An exhibition visitor gets her photograph taken with mobile phone models in Singapore which is cur-
rently hosting CommunicAsia, and BoradcastAsia, a 3-day trade show where telecommunications and
broadcasting giants gather in the city-state to showcase both the convergence of various technologies
and experts representing different sectors in the high-tech industry.

"K-2" flips "Big B" into the air during a robot combat contest at the
RoboGames in San Francisco, California. The floor shudders as a hulking
robot called The Judge pounds a pneumatic hammer into the heavily-armored
top of Little Blue Engine at the RoboGames in San Francisco.

Indian actress Neha Dhupia poses with a cellular telephone handset at the launch of India's first inter-
net radio feature through cellular telephones in Mumbai. The "Cell Radio Links" from Tata Indicom,
offers 41 global and local radio stations on a limited range of mobile phones for a subscription charge
of INR 25 (USD 0.40cents) for fifteen days across Tata Indicom circles.

In this photo released by LG Mobile Phones, Shannen Doherty (90210)

poses at Paramount Studios in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles, to cele-
brate LG's Mobile TV Party with some of televisions greatest stars and to
launch LG Mobile Phones LG VX9400 unit.

A dinosaur skull, a part of a Heping

Yongchuan dinosaur fossil, is exhibited
in Shanghai June 18, 2007. The fossil
skull, which measures one metre (3.28
feet) in length and weighs 300 kg (661
pounds), is the world's most complete,
according to local media.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty sits in a GM hydrogen fuel cell vehicle after announcing the cre-
ation of a $650 million automotive green fund to encourage investment in environmentally friendly
technology, at a news conference at the GM Oshawa Assembly Plant.

49
 Informative

Nokia 8600 Luna Nokia 6500 Classic

Size Size
Dimensions 107 x 45 x 15.9 mm, 70 cc, Weight 143 g Dimensions 109.8 x 45 x 9.5 mm, 47 cc, Weight 94 g
Display Display
Type TFT, 16M colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2 inches Type TFT, 16M colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2 inches
Ringtones Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3 Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3
Memory Memory
128 MB internal user memory 1 GB internal user memory,
Data Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, HSCSD Yes, EDGE GPRS Class 32, 53.6 kbps, HSCSD Yes, EDGE Class 32, 296 / 177.6
Class 10, 236.8 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP, USB Yes, kbits, 3G Yes, 384 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v1.2, USB Yes, microUSB
microUSB Features
Features Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video(QCIF), flash, Seamless case of
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video(QCIF), Stainless steel body anodized aluminum, Java MIDP 2.0, MP3/AAC/AAC+ player, T9
Smoked glass sliding cover, FM radio, Java MIDP 2.0, MP3/AAC/AAC+ Calendar, Calculator, Built-in handsfree, Voice memo
player, T9, Calendar, Calculator, Currency converter, Built-in handsfree Battery
Battery Stand-by Up to 300h, Talk time Up to 5h 30 min
Stand-by Up to 240h, Talk time Up to 3h 40 min
Crafted with an anodized aluminum case, the Nokia 6500 Classic
Crafted from chrome, stainless steel and titanium, the Nokia 8600 measures just a 9.5 mm thin. Each 6500 Classic is individually pol-
Luna melds nearly opaque smoked glass with unique, gentle keypad ished, ensuring no two phones are exactly alike. Diamond polishing
that illuminates and pulsates from beneath the glass case while the used on the beveled display aperture and cold stamped logo demon-
phone awaits a call. Nokia's first use of a single micro-USB port not strate the highest levels of craftsmanship. A full 1 GB of internal mem-
only allows for a streamlined design free of extraneous indentations, it ory means that the 6500 Classic has capacity for more pictures,
allows owners to streamline common activities - like charging, audio videos, contacts, songs, messages and other content than the vast
and data connectivity - into a single connection. majority of other mid-tier mobile phones.

Democratic presidential hopeful New York Sen.

Nokia 2630 Hillary Rodham Clinton holds a cellular phone
during a rally at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y.
Size Clinton invited supporters to keep track of the
Dimensions 105 x 45 x 9.9 mm, 45 cc, Weight 66 g campaign by using text messaging. Clinton was
Display endorsed by top state Democrats in her presi-
Type TFT, 65K colors, Size 128 x 160 pixels
dential bid.
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (24 channels), MP3
Memory
11 MB user memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, EDGE Class 6, 177.6
kbps, Bluetooth, Yes, v2.0, USB Yes
Features
Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels, video(128 x 96), FM radio, Java MIDP
2.0, T9, Calendar, Calculator, Currency converter, Built-in handsfree
Battery
Stand-by Up to 310h, Talk time Up to 6h

At 9.9mm, the 2630 (top) is the thinnest handset to come out of

Nokia's stables. Bluetooth allows users to share, store and print
images taken on the phone's camera. For productivity, tools such as
an email client, calendar and calculator are bundled on the phone. The
2630 also features direct access shortcut key, as well as entertainment
in the form of an FM radio. No MP3 player on this, though

Nokia 6500 Slide

Size
Dimensions 96.5 x 46.5 x 16.4 mm, Weight 125 g
Display
Type TFT, 16M colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.2 inches
Ringtones
Nokia 1200
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3
Memory Size
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), 20 MB user free internal memory Dimensions 102 x 44.1 x 17.5 mm, 67 cc, Weight 77 g
Data Display
GPRS Class 11, 53.6 kbps, HSCSD Yes, EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps Type Monochrome graphics, Size 96 x 68 pixels, 29 x 23 mm
3G Yes, 384 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, USB Yes, microUSB Ringtones
Features Type Polyphonic (32 channels)
Camera 3.2 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, Memory
video(VGA), flash; secondary QCIF videocall camera, Stainless steel 4 MB user memory, T9, Calendar, Calculator, Currency converter
case, FM radio with RDS, Java MIDP 2.0, Push to talk, Built-in handsfree
MP3/AAC/AAC+ player, TV out, Built-in handsfree, Voice memo Battery
Battery Stand-by Up to 390h, Talk time Up to 7h
Stand-by Up to 310h, Talk time Up to 6h
Nokia 1200 is a dual-band GSM candybar phone. It features
Featuring 3.2-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and the Black/White display with green backlight, SMS messaging, Phonebook
ability to easily share pictures, videos and even video calls on a televi- and dust resistant keyboard.
sion, the Nokia 6500 Slide brings imaging and sharing to the mid-
range market. Using 3G technology, images and videos can be quickly
shared with friends around the world, while the TV-out jack allows
them to be instantly viewed on any television with standard RCA
inputs.

50

Samsung i620
Size
Dimensions 113 x 59 x 11.8 mm, Weight 95 g
Display
Type TFT, 65K colors, Size 320 x 240 pixels, QWERTY
Keyboard
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3
Memory
Card slot, microSD (TransFlash)
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, EDGE Yes, 3G
HSDPA, 1.8 Mbps, WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0
with A2DP, USB Yes, v1.1 miniUSB
Features
OS Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0 Standard Edition, Camera
2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, flash; secondary VGA videocall
camera, Java MIDP 2.0, WMV/3GP/H.263/MPEG4 player,
WMA/MP3/AAC/AAC+/OGG/ASF player, Organiser, Document
viewer (MS Word, Excel, PPT, PDF),Built-in handsfree
Sleek and stylish, the SGH-i620 is Samsung's slider
phone, and it's definitely no slouch. Boasting a 2.0-megapixel
camera, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, microSD card slot, full QWERTY key-
pad, and Windows Mobile.
An employee of Japan's mobile phone carrier Willcom shows off its new cell phones "WX320T Carrots"
where users can browse websites during a preview at its headquarters in Tokyo. The company will put the
new product on domestic market from the end of July.
Samsung i620
Size
Dimensions 94.7 x 49.6 x 16.8 mm, Weight 96 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 176 x 220 pixels, 2.1 inches
Second external mono display (32 x 128 pixels)
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3, Dual speaker
Memory
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), 58 MB embedded memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
3G Yes, 384 kbps, Bluetooth, Yes, v1.2, USB Yes, v1.1
Features
Camera 1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels, video; secondary VGA video-
call camera, Java MIDP 2.0, MP3/AAC/AAC+/e-AAC+ player, T9,
Changeable front and back cover, Organizer
Built-in handsfree, Voice memo
Battery
Stand-by Up to 300h, Talk time Up to 4h
The Z240 makes more than just a fashion statement.
Empowered by dual-camera video call capability with 3G technolo-
gy, it makes keeping up with your friends and the latest walk in
town one smooth and groovy experience. Whip out your Z240 and
use the 1.3 Megapixel camera and video camera to your every
advantage! Shoot videos for instant playback and sharing on the
2.1" colour TFT-LCD screen. An external memory slot for storing
your photos and videos ensures that your fun doesn't have to end.
Informative
Samsung J600
Size
Dimensions 97 x 44 x 15 mm, Weight 92 g
Display
Type TFT, 65K colors, Size 128 x 160 pixels
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (40 channels), MP3
Memory
Card slot microSD (TransFlash)
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, EDGE Class 10,
236.8 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, USB Yes
Features
Camera 1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels, video, flash, Java MIDP
2.0, MP3/AAC/WAV/MIDI player, T9, Voice memo/command
Organizer, Built-in handsfree
This is Samsung J600, the latest 'cool blue' handset by
Samsung. This phone falls under the category of economical
trendy handsets. This TriBand GSM handset has a little resem-
blance to the famous LG Chocolate and here I mean only the
structure similarity nothing else. Samsung J600 is a multi fea-
tures phone which can suit any pocket. This 92 grams gadget
is a sliding handset with a 1.3 mega pixel camera. It has a 65K
colour TFT screen which is quite good for cell phones.
Motorola RAZR2 V9
Size
Dimensions 103 x 53 x 13.3 mm, Weight 125 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.2 inches
Second external 256K colors, 2 inches display (240 x 320 pixels) with
contextual touch interaction, Screensavers and wallpapers
Downloadable logos
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic, MP3
Memory
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), 45 MB internal memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, EDGE Class 12
3G HSDPA 3.6 Mbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP, USB Yes, v2.0
microUSB
Features
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, Video calling and download,
Java MIDP 2.0, MP3/AAC/AAC+ player, T9, Organizer
Calculator, Built-in handsfree, Voice memo,
Battery
Stand-by Up to 260h, Talk time Up to 3h 30min
The Motorola RAZR2 V9 defines the next trend in 3G. Composed of
materials include vacuum metal finishes and two-tone soft touch housing,
the RAZR2 V9's stainless steel frame make it durable and resilient -
helping to ensure an ultra-thin shape with a strong structure. Offering
CrystalTalk technology, the RAZR2 V9 automatically accounts for back-
ground noise and adjusts the audio to match the ambient volume so con-
sumers will be heard in a crowd.
Sony Ericsson T250
Size
Dimensions 100 x 45 x 13 mm, Weight 82 g
Display
Type TFT, 65K colors, Size 128 x 160 pixels, 1.7 inches,
Wallpapers, screensavers
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (32 channels)
Memory
Phonebook Yes, 2 MB internal memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, HSCSD Yes,
Infrared port
Yes, USB Yes
Features
Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels, video(QCIF), FM radio with RDS,
Slide show, Full screen viewer, T9, Stopwatch, Timer, Built-in
handsfree
Battery
Stand-by Up to 300h, Talk time Up to 7h
Simple sophistication sums up the Sony Ericsson T250, the
stylish metal finish of this compact phone gives it a premium feel
that up until now has been the preserve of high end models. Add
to this a feature set that makes it easy to stay connected, either
with friends or the latest news, and you have the perfect partner
for keeping in-touch with style.
51
 Informative
Sony Ericsson S500
Size
Dimensions 99 x 47 x 14 mm, Weight 94 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.0 inch
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic, MP3, AAC
Memory
Card slot Memory Stick Micro (M2), 12 MB shared memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, HSCSD Yes, EDGE
Class 10, 236.8 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP, USB Yes
Features
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, TrackID music recognition
Walkman 2.0 music player, Java MIDP 2.0, T9, Organiser, Voice memo
Built-in handsfree
Battery
Stand-by Up to 370h, Talk time Up to 9h
Clocking in at a respectable 14mm thick, the slider is all about
style. It's got "ever-changing themes and illuminations that change as
day turns to night" and "hidden illumination" to make you stand out
while taking calls outside a club. As for the guts, it's got a 2-inch
screen, media player expandable via a memory card slot, 2-megapixel
camera, and a GSM/GPRS/EDGE connection for Web surfing.
Sony Ericsson P1
Size
Dimensions 106 x 55 x 17 mm, Weight 124 g
Display
Type TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.6 inches
QWERTY keyboard, Handwriting recognition
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic, MP3, AAC
Memory
Card slot Memory Stick Micro (M2), 512 MB card included, 160 MB
shared memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, 3G Yes, 384 kbps
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP, Infrared port
Yes, USB Yes, v2.0
Features
OS Symbian OS v9.1, UIQ 3.0, Camera 3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, aut-
ofocus, video, flash; secondary videocall camera, Java MIDP 2.0
Video playback, FM radio with RDS, Media Player (MP3, AAC)
Sync ML, Office applications, Business card scanning, Organiser
Photo album, Voice memo, Built-in handsfree,
Battery
Stand-by Up to 440h, Talk time Up to 10h
Sony Ericsson unveiled its fifth-generation P-series smart phone,
the Sony Ericsson P1. The P1 is 25 percent smaller than its predecessor,
the Sony Ericsson P990i, but that doesn't mean it skimps on features.
The smart phone is based on the Symbian and UIQ operating systems
and has a 2.6-inch touch screen, a 3.2-megapixel camera, and push e-
mail support for Exchange ActiveSync and BlackBerry Connect.
Motorola RAZR2 V8
Size
Dimensions 103 x 53 x 11.9 mm, Weight 117 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.2 inches
Second external 256K colors, 2 inches display (240 x 320 pixels)
with contextual touch interaction, Screensavers and wallpapers
Downloadable logos
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic, MP3, Customization, Download, Vibration Yes
Memory
420 MB or 2 GB internal user memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, EDGE Class 12
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP, USB Yes, v2.0 microUSB
Features
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, Java MIDP 2.0,
MP3/AAC/AAC+ player, T9, Organizer, Calculator, Built-in hands-
free, Voice memo
Battery
Stand-by Up to 260h, Talk time Up to 3h 30 min
The RAZR2 V8 'talks' to consumers by speaking the interac-
tive menu, contact lists, emails and messages aloud - a feature
developed for people with visual impairments, but convenient for
in-car use. Without opening the phone, RAZR2 users can rely on
the large external screen to read messages and reply with pre-pro-
grammed text messages.
52
Sony Ericsson T650
Size
Dimensions 104 x 46 x 12.5 mm, Weight 95 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 1.9 inch, Wallpapers,
screensavers
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic, MP3, AAC
Memory
16 MB shared memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, HSCSD Yes, 3G Yes,
384 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP, USB Yes
Features
Camera 3 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus, video, flash; secondary
videocall camera, Java MIDP 2.0, MP3/AAC music player, TrackID
music recognition, FM radio, T9, Organiser, Voice memo
Built-in handsfree
Sony Ericsson is tossing out the T650. A candybar, it packs a beefier
3.2-megapixel camera while remaining only 12.5-mm thick. It's also a
3G phone, making checking your email or RSS feeds a snappier affair
than if you're using the S500. The 1.9-inch screen is covered with a
layer of mineral glass, which will apparently make the colors pop,
increase the viewing angle, and protect it from scratches when you put
your phone in the same pocket as your keys.
A Chinese promoter shows off a latest mobile handset at a hitech expo in Beijing. Sales of mobile
phones in China increased 40 percent year on year to 120 million units in 2006, as China become one of
the world's largest handset markets, with sales likely to surge 25 percent to 150 million units in 2007.
Sony Ericsson W580i
Size
Dimensions 99 x 47 x 14 mm, Weight 94 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Wallpapers, screensavers
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic, MP3, AAC
Memory
Card slot, Memory Stick Micro (M2), 512 MB card included
12 MB shared memory
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, HSCSD Yes
EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
USB Yes
Features
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, TrackID music recognition
Walkman 2.0 music player, Java MIDP 2.0, T9, FM radio with RDS
Organiser, Voice memo, Built-in handsfree,
Battery
Standard battery, Li-Ion, Stand-by Up to 370h, Talk time Up to 9h
The Sony Ericsson W580 offers a complete world roaming cellular
solution with its quad-band support. The W580 automatically comes with a
512MB memory stick. When you're out and about, you can have your
favorite music with you wherever you go and your picture library and
favorite Web sites. W580i is for active people with 2 MP camera as well.
 Informative

Nokia 2310
Rs. 3,500
Size
Dimensions 105.4 x 43.9 x 19.05 mm Motorola W208
Weight 85 g
Display
Rs. 3,900
Type CSTN, 65K colors Size
Ringtones Dimensions, 108 x 44 x 14.9 mm, 65 cc, Weight78 g
Type Polyphonic, MP3 Display
Memory Type TFT, 65K colors
4 MB shared memory Size
Features 128 x 128 pixels, 28 x 28 mm
FM radio, Stopwatch, Built-in handsfree, Ringtones
Picture messaging Type Polyphonic (64 channels)
Battery Memory
Stand-by Up to 400 h Talk time Up to 6 h 750 SMS messages,
Features
Design is made personal with the Nokia FM radio, iTap (T9), Organizer, Calculator, Built-in
2310 phone. Turn on, tune in and groove to handsfree
FM Radio on the go. Sophistication and Battery
entertainment in one package, the Nokia Stand-by Up to 300h, Talk time Up to 7h 50 min
2310 is the best fit for your mobile lifestyle.
Motorola W208 gives you the tools you need to keep
Design: 7.4 you connected in style. Affordable and feature rich,
Features: 7.1 the Motorola W208 delivers a super-slim form and
Performance: 7.1 the best of the basics for work and play. Complete
with calendar, alarm clock, vCard capabilities, FM
radio, and speakerphone, the Motorola W208 delivers
on-the-go tools for entertainment, organization and
communication

Design: 7.7
Features: 7.1
Performance: 7.4

This combo picture shows Indians talking with their mobile phones in Siliguri.

LG C2500 Rs. 4,500

Sony Ericsson J230i Size
Dimensions 101 x 46 x 18 mm Weight 80 g
Rs. 3,100 Display
Type CSTN, 65K colors
Size Ringtones
Dimensions 102 x 44 x 18 mm, Weight 84 g Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3
Display Memory
Type STN, 65K colors 60 MB shared memory
Ringtones Data
Type Polyphonic (32 channels) GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps USB
Memory Yes
500 KB user memory, 50 short messages Features
Data Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels, MP3/AAC player
GPRS, Class 8 (4+1 slots), 32 - 40 kbps FM Radio, Organiser, Voice memo, Built-in hands-
Features free
FM radio, Exchangeable cover, Image viewer, Calendar Battery
Stopwatch, Built-in handsfree Stand-by Up to 250h Talk time Up to 3h
Battery
Stand-by Up to 280h, Talk time Up to 6h A sharp phone with MP3 Player and FM Radio;
a speaker phone is there to enhance your experi-
Providing music capabilities and value that reaches ence of digital music. Your VGA Camera supports
a broad range of consumers, the Sony Ericsson J230 upto 4x zoom. 64 MB memory is enough for your
features a built in stereo FM radio. The J230 also comes clear pictures.
equipped with a stereo hands-free access and a speak-
erphone in the back. Design: 7.6
Features: 7.8
Design: 7.6 Performance: 7.7
Features: 7.4
Performance: 7.6

53

Above prices are subject to change as per market

 Informative

Nokia 5200 Rs. 8,800

Samsung E200
Size Size
Dimensions 92.4 x 48.2 x 20.7 mm, 85 cc Weight 104 g Dimensions 108 x 45 x 9.9 mm, Weight 90 g
Display Display
Type CSTN, 256K colors Type TFT, 65K colors, Size 176 x 220 pixels
Ringtones Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3 Type Polyphonic (40 channels)
Memory Memory
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), hotswap - 5 MB internal Card slot, microSD (TransFlash), 30 MB internal
memory memory
Data Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps HSCSD Yes GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps Bluetooth Yes Infrared port Yes EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0
USB Yes with A2DP, USB Yes, v2.0
Features Features
Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels, video, Stereo FM radio, Camera 1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels, video, Java
MP3/SpMidi/AAC/AAC+ player, Stopwatch MIDP 2.0, Stereo FM radio, T9, Organiser, To Do
Battery list, Built-in handsfree, Voice memo
Stand-by Up to 263 h Talk time Up to 3 h 10 min
Samsung is slimming not only it's high end Ultra
A Phone for kids with a beautiful design, though there are Edition phones. Other, more affordable handsets
questions about its lacking feature, but it can be a good get on a diet too. Samsung E200 is 9.9 mm thin
choice for your kids. With a VGA Camera and Bluetooth, you GSM phone with GPRS/Edge and Bluetooth con-
can play around with pictures. nectivity, 1,3 megapixel camera, FM radio and
microSD memory card slot.
Design: 7.9
Features: 7.8 Design: 7.8
Performance: 7.8 Features: 7.6
Performance: 7.8

Tero Ojanpera, chief technology officer for Nokia, poses for the media with Nokia's N95 mobile
phone equipped with 5 megapixel camera during the Seoul Digital Forum 2007, a three-day
gathering of technology and media industry figures, in Seoul, South Korea.

Sony Ericsson W700

Size
Motorola RAZR V3 Dimensions 100 x 46 x 20.5 mm, Weight 99 g
Display
Rs. 8,100 Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 176 x 220 pixels, 28
Size x 35 mm
Dimensions 98 x 53 x 13.9 mm, 65 cc Weight 95 g Ringtones
Display Type Polyphonic (40 channels), MP3
Type TFT, 256K colors - Second CSTN display Memory
(96 x 80 pixels), 4096 colors Card slot Memory Stick Duo Pro, 256 MB card
Ringtones included, buy memory, 34 MB shared memory
Type Polyphonic (24 channels), MP3 Data
Memory GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
5.5 MB internal memory HSCSD Yes, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, Infrared port
Data Yes, USB Yes, v2.0
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps Features
Bluetooth Yes, v1.2 USB Yes, miniUSB Camera 2 MP, 1632x1224 pixels, video, flash
Features MP3/AAC player, up to 30h playback if the phone
Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels - Java MIDP 2.0, is switched off, Video player, Java MIDP 2.0, T9
MPEG4 video, T9, PIM functions FM radio with RDS, Image viewer, Picture editor
Built-in handsfree, Organiser, Voice memo, SyncML, Built-in hands-
Battery free
Stand-by Up to 280 h Talk time Up to 7 h Battery
Stand-by, Up to 400h, Talk time Up to 9h
One of the thinnest clamshell phones in the world.
This feature-packed, quad-band GSM phone Sony Ericsson W700 is amongst the Walkman
sports a sleek metal design, dual color displays, a phone family, discreetly designed, the W700 offers
VGA camera, long-range Bluetooth, MPEG4 video classic styling cues for those in the upper eche-
clip playback, and Java 2.0 with 3D graphics. lons of society. Splashed in a subtle Titanium Gold
colour, the W700 offers fantastic sound quality and
Design: 8.4 unprecedented ease-of-use, while the 2-megapixel
Features: 7.7 camera provides an outlet to explore your artistic
Performance: 7.6 slant, amongst other fun features.
Design: 7.6
Features: 7.7
Performance: 7.7

54

Above prices are subject to change as per market

 Informative

Motorola W375 Rs. 5,600

Size Samsung D820
Dimensions 99 x 45 x 18.6 mm, 73 cc, Weight 88 g
Display Rs. 12,100
Type TFT, 65K colors, Second external mono display
Ringtones Size
Type Polyphonic, MP3, Customization, Composer, down- Dimensions 95 x 51 x 15.2 mm Weight 99 g
load, Vibration Yes Display
Memory Type TFT, 256K colors
1.5 MB shared memory Ringtones
Data Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3 - Dual
GPRS Class 8 (4+1 slots), 32 - 40 kbps, USB Yes, speakers (3D sound)
miniUSB Memory
Features Card slot microSD (TransFlash) - 73 MB total
Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels, FM radio, iTap (T9), shared memory
Organizer, Calculator 4 MB for Java apps
Built-in handsfree Data
Battery GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
Stand-by Up to 250h, Talk time Up to 7h 30 min EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps Bluetooth Yes, v1.2
USB Yes, v1.1
The W375 combines strikingly svelte design and a Features
splash of colourful self-expression with an integrated Camera 1.3 MP, 1280 x 1024 pixels, 180 deg rotat-
VGA camera. The W375 provides a sense of individuality ing lens, video(CIF) - TV output
with its palette of three iconic colours: Cannon Gray, MP3/AAC/AAC+ music player, Picsel viewer,
Lustrous Silver & Mandarin Orange. MPEG4 video recording & playback
SyncML, Built-in handsfree
Design: 7.8 Battery
Features: 7.4 Stand-by Up to 180 h Talk time Up to 3 h
Performance: 7.5
Samsung's D820 is a sophisticated phone
with a super slim profile. A mere 15.2 mm thin, the
slim SGH-D820 nestles nicely into the palm of your
hand. With just one gentle push of the thumb, all
the rich features in this sleek, slide-up design will
be at your fingertips.

Design: 8.3
Features: 7.9
Performance: 8.0

An Intel Corp. sales representative explains the new 45nm (nanometer) processing chip
speeds at the world's second largest information technology show, the 27th annual 2007
Computex Taipei Taiwan. With over 2,700 booths and an expected 100,000 visitors.

Nokia 6101
Rs. 8,100

LG KG300 Size
Dimensions 85 x 45 x 24 mm, Weight 97 g
Rs. 8,800 Display
Type TFT, 65k colors, Size 128 x 160 pixels, 29 x
Size 35 mm, Second external display 4096 colors (96
Dimensions 100 x 46 x 17 mm, Weight 89 g x 65 pixels), 5-way navy key
Display Ringtones
Type TFT, 256K colors Type Polyphonic (24 channels), MP3
Ringtones Memory
Type Polyphonic (64 channels) 4.4 MB shared memory
Memory Data
Card slot microSD (TransFlash), 60 MB GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps,
shared memory HSCSD Yes, 43.2 kbps
Data EDGE Class 6, 177.6 kbps, Infrared port Yes,
GPRS Class 8 (4+1 slots), 32 - 40 kbps, USB Yes, Pop-Port
Bluetooth Yes, USB Yes Features
Features Camera VGA, 640x480 pixels, video, Push to
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, Talk, FM radio, Java MIDP 2.0
Java MIDP 2.0, MP3 player SyncML, T9, Presence enhanced contacts,
FM radio, T9, Organiser, Voice memo Calendar, Built-in handsfree
Battery Voice dial/memo
Stand-by Up to 250h, Talk time Up to 3 h
Consumers will appreciate the features of
The LG KG300 mobile phone has a 2- the Nokia 6101 such as its easy-to-use menu
inch 260k color QVGA TFT LCD, a 2 structure. The built-in VGA camera with a dedi-
Megapixel camera, built-in media player cated button takes colorful videos and pictures
supporting MP3, AAC, AMR, WAV music that can be shared via MMS or uploaded to an
and MPEG4 videos. KG300 has also built-in online photo album or printing service. The exter-
FM Tuner, 56MB internal memory, and a nal color display shows incoming calls, time and
microSD slot for expansion. It supports date while the internal screen displays favorite
Bluetooth1.2 and USB1.1 images or a busy social calendar.
Design: 8.2 Design: 8.1
Features: 8.1 Features: 7.9
Performance: 8.2 Performance: 7.8

55

Above prices are subject to change as per market

 Informative

Nokia 3250 (1 GB) Sony Ericsson W830

Rs. 16,100
Size Size
Dimensions 103.8 x 50 x 19.8 mm Weight 130 g Dimensions 98 x 47 x 21 mm, Weight 116 g
Display Display
Type TFT, 256K colors Type TFT, 256K colors
Ringtones Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3 Type Polyphonic (40 channels), MP3, AAC
Memory Memory
Card slot microSD (TransFlash) (up to 1GB) - 10 MB Card slot Memory Stick Duo Pro, 1 GB card included
internal memory 16 MB shared memory
Data Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps EDGE GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
Class 10, 236.8 kbps Bluetooth Yes USB Yes, Pop-Port EDGE Yes, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 Infrared port Yes, USB
Features Yes
OS Symbian OS v9.1, Series 60 rel. 3.0 Camera 2 MP, Features
1600x1200 pixels, video(QCIF) Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, flash, TrackID
Stereo MP3/AAC player, Stereo FM radio, Visual radio, music recognition
Standard 3.5 mm stereo headphones jack, PIM func- Walkman 2.0 music player, FM radio with RDS,
tions, Built-in handsfree Organiser, Voice memo
Battery Built-in handsfree, Exchangeable covers
Stand-by Up to 245h Talk time Up to 3 h
Feel the vibe come alive, whatever your taste in
This compact smartphone sports a unique keypad music. Storage for a thousand songs. Fast Web con-
that twists 90 degrees for camera mode, and another nection to download more; Make calls, take pictures
90 degrees to reveal music keys. Key features include and videos, play and download music, and even identi-
a 2 megapixel camera, FM radio, microSD memory fy unknown tracks. The advanced Walkman® music
card slot, and USB with mass storage mode. Other fea- player lets you browse album artwork to find the song
tures include EDGE data, speakerphone, and you want. It looks great on the large colour screen.
Bluetooth. Make the most of high speed Internet to enjoy mobile
video, Internet and messaging.
Design: 8.3
Features: 8.1 Design: 8.0
Performance: 8.2 Features: 7.9
Performance: 7.9

Motorola A1200
Rs. 18,700
Size
Dimensions 95.7 x 51.7 x 21.5 mm, Weight 122 g
Display
Type TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, Size 240 x
320 pixels, 36 x 48 mm
Handwriting and speech recognition
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (40 channels), MP3
Memory
Card slot, microSD (TransFlash), buy memory
8 MB built-in memory, Intel XScale 312MHz
processor
Data
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
Bluetooth Yes, USB Yes, miniUSB
Features
OS Linux Camera, 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels,
video Java MIDP 2.0, Stereo FM radio,
MP3/MP4/AAC+ player, PIM functions, Document
viewer, Voice dial/memo, Built-in handsfree
Battery
Stand-by Up to 200h, Talk time Up to 4h
The new Motorola "MING" PDA Smart
Phone is a fully integrated gadget that serves as
a mobile phone, a PDA, a music player, a cam-
era, a video recorder, a name card reader and a
data storage device(up to 1GB). A business solu-
tion with more fun.
Design: 8.4
Features: 8.0
Performance: 8.1
Nokia 5700
Rs. 23,200
Size
Dimensions 108 x 50 x 17 mm, 84 cc, Weight
115 g
Display
Type TFT, 16M colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels,
2.2 inches
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3, AAC
Dual stereo speaker
Memory
Card slot, microSD (TransFlash), buy memory
35 MB of user memory, 64 MB SDRAM, 128
MB ROM, ARM 11, 369 MHz CPU
Data
GPRS Class 32, 107 / 64.2 kbps, HSCSD
Yes, 43.2 kbps, EDGE Class 32, 296 / 177.6
kbits, 3G Yes, 384 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0
with A2DP, Infrared port Yes, USB
Yes, miniUSB
Features
OS Symbian OS v9.2, S60 rel. 3.1, Camera
2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video(QVGA), flash
Video calling, Java MIDP 2.0, FM stereo radio
Push to talk, MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA
player, Voice memo/command, T9, Calendar
Calculator, Built-in handsfree
Battery
Stand-by Up to 290h, Talk time Up to 3h 30 min
The 5700 features a twist design that
switches between four modes at the flick of the
wrist - music player, 2.0-megapixel camera,
video call and smartphone. Using an optional 2
GB microSD card, the Nokia 5700 supports up
to 1500 tracks that can be enjoyed using
Bluetooth stereo headphones. Loading songs
onto the 5700 is fast and easy as consumers
can choose from a broad range of supported
digital formats, including WMA, MP3, AAC, as
well as eAAC+ and MP4. A video call feature
and the built-in 2.0-megapixel camera make it
easy to share moments with friends and family.
Design: 8.2
Features: 8.1
Performance: 8.0

56

Above prices are subject to change as per market

Informative

Samsung U600 Rs. 19,600

Size
Dimensions 103.5 x 49.3 x 10.9 mm, Weight 81 g
Display
Type TFT, 256K colors, Size 240 x 320 pixels, 34
x 44 mm
Ringtones Motorola RIZR Rs. 11,300
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3
Memory pSize
60 MB embedded memory Dimensions 106 x 46 x 16 mm, Weight 115 g
Data Display
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps Type TFT, 256K colors
EDGE Class 10, 236.8 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0 Ringtones
with A2DP, USB Yes, v2.0 Type Polyphonic, MP3
Features Memory
Camera 3.2 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus, Card slot microSD (TransFlash), 20 MB internal
video, flash, Java MIDP 2.0, memory
MP3/AAC/eACC/WMA player Data
FM radio, T9, Yahoo search, Organizer GPRS Yes, EDGE Yes, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, USB
Business card recognition, Document viewer Yes, v2.0
(Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF), Voice memo Features
Built-in handsfree Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, video, flash
Battery MP3/AAC/AAC+ player, Built-in handsfree
Stand-by Up to 250h, Talk time Up to 3h 30 min Battery
Stand-by Up to 230h, Talk time Up to 3 h 20 min
Inspired by the shine and shimmer of the
crown jewels, Samsung's Ultra Edition 10.9 The Motorola RIZR Z3 features an ultra smooth
(U600) offers elegance and modern style, coming slider that easily glides open with a subtle push to
in a choice of colors which includes sapphire blue, the elevated lens treatment. Equipped with 2.0-
garnet red, platinum metal and copper gold cas- megapixel digital camera and high-intensity cam-
ing. The design of U600 includes an interface for era light and a built-in music player. With multiple
sophistication and usability. It also comes messaging capabilities including MMS and IM,
equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera encased share a picture, file or expression with friends,
in an ultra slim profile and boasting a 2.22-inch family or loved ones.
wide TFT LCD widescreen. For the feature watch-
ers, Samsung's Ultra Edition 12.1 (U700) offers a Design: 8.2
HSDPA 3.6 Mbps data transfer speed, video Features: 7.8
telephony functionality and auto focus in a slim Performance: 7.8
12.1 mm case.

Design: 8.4
Features: 8.1
Performance: 8.2

Nokia N76 Rs. 32,500

Size
Dimensions 106.5 x 52 x 13.7 mm, 70 cc, Weight 115 g
Display
Type TFT, 16M colors
Size
240 x 320 pixels, 2.4 inches, Second external 256K col-
ors display (160 x 128 pixels)
Ringtones
Type Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3, 3.5 mm headset
Sony Ericsson P990 jack
Rs. 21,700 Memory
Card slot, microSD (TransFlash), hotswap, 26 MB
shared memory
Size Data
Dimensions 114 x 57 x 26 mm, Weight 150 g GPRS Class 32, 107 / 64.2 kbps, HSCSD Yes, EDGE
Display Class 32, 296 / 177.6 kbits
Type Size 240 x 320 pixels, 41 x 56 mm, TFT touch- 3G Yes, 384 kbps, Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, USB Yes,
screen, 256K colors, QWERTY keyboard, Handwriting v2.0, miniUSB
recognition Features
Memory OS Symbian OS 9.2, S60 rel. 3.1, Camera 2 MP,
Card slot Memory Stick Duo Pro, 64 MB card included, 1600x1200 pixels, video(QVGA), flash; secondary
buy memory, 128 MB Flash, 64 MB RAM CIF video call camera, Video calling, Push to Talk,
60 MB user memory Java MIDP 2.0, MP3/M4A/AAC/eAAC+/WMA play-
Data er, Stereo FM radio, Voice command/dial
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps, PIM including calendar, to-do list and printing,
HSCSD Yes, 3G Yes, 384 kbps, WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b Document viewer, Photo/video editor
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, Infrared port Yes, USB Yes, v2.0 Integrated handsfree
Features Battery
OS Symbian OS v9.1, UIQ 3.0, Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 Stand-by Up to 200h, Talk time Up to 2 h 45 min
pixels, autofocus, video, flash, second video call camera
FM radio with RDS, MP3/AAC player, SyncML 1.2 Holding up to 1500 tracks, the Nokia N76 works
Office applications, Built-in handsfree with industry standard 3.5 mm headphones and
Battery supports the popular Windows Media DRM for
Stand-by Up to 400h, Talk time Up to 9h optimal use. The N76 integrates a 2.0-
megapixel camera to capture, zoom and
Take pictures to be proud of. The P990i has a 2 review pictures. With up to 2 GB of expand-
megapixel digital camera with video. Catch the moment able memory, users have ample storage for
and save it or send it . P990 takes effective communica- high-quality multimedia.
tions to new heights, you have everywhere access to the
Internet, push e-mail to get your e-mail straight to your Design: 7.9
phone and video calling and messaging for effective com- Features: 8.0
munications. Performance: 8.0

Design: 7.9
Features: 8.2
Performance: 8.3

57

Above prices are subject to change as per market

 The Nokia 6500 Classic (actually, Nokia insist on calling it
classic with a lowercase "c") is a relatively lightweight and slim
3G phone aimed at the mass market.
At just 95 grams, the 6500 Classic is light for a 3G phone. It
is also only 9.5mm thick, and the attractive casings are individu-
ally polished to make them individual and are available in Black
and Bronze colors.
There's a 240x320 pixel display in 16 million colors, a 2
megapixel camera with flash, dual-band 3G (850/2100 MHz),
an MP3 player and stereo output to wired headphones (the
6500 Classic does not appear to support stereo Bluetooth).
The Nokia 6500 Classic's battery gives up to 5.5 hours talk
and 12.5 days standby time which is quite impressive (assum-
ing those are 3G figures). One drawback on the 6500 Classic is
the lack of video calling, and also the video capture on the pri-
mary camera is only 176x144 pixels.
One impressive feature with the Nokia 6500 Classic (apart
from the looks) is the whopping 1GB of internal memory. This
should be enough for most people, but it cannot be expanded
with memory cards. Connect the 6500 Classic to a PC with the
supplied microUSB connector, and you can use the phone as a
sort of memory stick.
Nokia say that the 6500 Classic should be available from Q3
2007.

First thing to notice is that this is a very unusual looking device -

the "squashed" look that you can see in the photo on the left isn't a
sizing error, the SGH-i620 is a wide and squat phone at around
59mm across by 94mm tall when closed, opening up to a 131mm
device with a QWERTY keyboard using a sliding mechanism.
Samsung have clearly tried to keep the i620's layout as simple and
as elegant as possible.
There are two cameras on the SGH-i620. It supports tri-band
GSM (900/1800/1900 MHz) and has a two megapixel camera with
flash. There's a wide 320x240 pixel display too, which is a more
practical arrangement for a smartphone than the typical "tall" dis-
play found on other phones.
Assuming that this is an updated slider version of the i600, one
can expect that Samsung i620 to support HSDPA (3.5G) data in
addition to UMTS (3G) and come with 802.11b and g WiFi capabili-
ties. This should be a Windows Mobile 6.0 device with a wide
range of supported multimedia formats, and this would mean that
the SGH-i620 also comes with the usual array of Windows Mobile
software. Stereo Bluetooth and microSD expandable memory are
also to be expected. There are a lot of assumptions there - as yet
there is no official word from Samsung as to the SGH-i620s exact
technical specifications, and some of these could be wrong.
The design of the Samsung i620 is certainly appealing.
 Informative

Samsung SPH-M300 phone provides tools to help

users stay connected, including web access, email and
text messaging. It offers downloadable games, a VGA
camera with digital zoom and PictBridge support. The
SPH-M300 is available in both dark silver and misty rose
red.
The M300 provides tools to help users stay connected,
including web access, email and text messaging.
The M510 measures 3.74" x 2.0" x 0.64" and weighs
just 2.9 ounces. It will be priced at $129.99 with a two-year
service agreement. The M300 by Samsung measures
3.58" x 1.85" x 0.68" and weighs less than 2.7 ounces. It
will be priced at $29.99 with a two-year agreement.
„ Easily connect to wireless headsets or other devices
featuring Bluetooth Wireless Technology (Supports HSP,
HFP, and DUN and OPP and OBEX only with vCard)
„ Integrated camera captures VGA-quality digital pic-
tures to send to an email account or compatible phone
and can be assigned to contact entries for picture caller ID
(Resolution up to 640 x 480 px)
„ Speakerphone allows for easy, handsfree communica-
tion
„ Download Pictures, Ringers & J2ME Games with
Sprint PCS Vision.

The first thing that most people will notice on the RAZR2 V8 is the very
large external display - this is a 2" 240x320 pixel panel which is possibly the
largest external display we've ever seen. Another clever feature is that the
screen is touch-sensitive, meaning that media playback can be controlled by
touching the softkeys on the screen. The external display has been chemically
hardened to protect it.
The camera is a little disappointing - the RAZR2 V8 only comes with a 2
megapixel unit, Video capture is just 176x144 pixels which again mean that
this isn't a particularly great camera phone.
Of course, the RAZR2 V8 is a multimedia device that can play back a wide
variety of audio and video clips. The V8 has a whopping 420MB of internal
memory available to the user, and this can be expanded by a further 2GB
using microSD cards. Stereo playback is either by a wired headset or stereo
Bluetooth.
There's a pretty comprehensive software suite on the RAZR2 V8, including
a web browser, email client and a new user interface. There are some
improvements elsewhere too - Motorola have worked on call quality and are
also using "haptics" to provide tactile feedback on the external display, audio
prompts for menus and a whole range of other usability improvements.
The battery life on the RAZR2 V8 is very impressive, with up to 8 hours
talktime. The V8 supports EDGE data as well as GPRS, but not 3G.
This is definitely not the original RAZR in any respect - but it shares the
same styling and that is probably the biggest drawback. It is very disappoint-
ing to see that Motorola didn't try a fresh approach when it come to cosmetics
and it's quite possible that many consumers will not understand just how dif-
ferent the RAZR2 V8 is underneath.
Motorola say that the RAZR2 V8 should be available in next month.

59
 Informative

Clearly closely modeled on the Nokia 8800 Sirocco, the 8600 is a stylish
slider phone aimed at fashion conscious consumers and executives.
Featuring an unusual smoked glass sliding cover, the Nokia 8600 certainly
scores well for "wow factor". Other features are a general improvement on
the 8800 series, with a 240x320 pixel display, quad-band GSM support for
worldwide roaming, and the Nokia 8600 also has a 2 megapixel camera,
128MB of internal memory and an FM radio.
As well as the stylish semitransparent cover, the Nokia 8600 features
quite a lot of stainless steel in its construction which brings the weight up to a
heft 140 grams while adding significantly to the 8600's structural strength.
Despite the weight, the Nokia 8600 isn't a 3G device although it does have
850/900/1800/1900 MHz GSM with GPRS and EDGE. Of course, the Nokia
8600 also has Bluetooth and an MP3 player.
One major limitation is the lack of any memory expansion - the Nokia
8600 just has the 128 MB of internal memory and no more can be added.
The battery life is 3.5 hours talktime and 10 days standby time.
Despite the shortcomings, one thing that the Nokia 8600 will have is com-
mon with the original 8800 and later 8800 Sirocco is looks, and the overall
design and usability of the 8800 has appealed to many people in the past.
This device certainly won't suit everyone - especially when you take price into
consideration - but it is appealing in many ways.

Delivers Stylish Mobile

Multimedia Powerhouse
Motorola has launched the MOTOROKR E6 in Pakistan, a power-
ful handset designed to provide rich mobile entertainment and produc-
tivity.
Raising the bar in style and design for PDA-style devices, the
MOTOROKR E6 continues Motorola's heritage of industry leading
form and function. The handset provides a combination of portable
entertainment and business efficiency. The handset's dedicated music
keys, expandable memory, video capabilities and productivity tools
provide the ultimate multimedia experience for professionals on the
go.
The MOTOROKR E6 provides powerful business tools that allow
users to easily manage calendar appointments send and receive
email and view documents on the go.
Handset measures in at 14.5mm thick and includes a large
240x320 TFT Touch Window® and features a 2.0 megapixel camera
with 8x zoom, dedicated music keys and removable SD card memory
slot. Additional multimedia features also include high-quality video
recording, MPEG-4 / Realplayer® video playback and task manager.
"The MOTOROKR E6's greatest advantage in Pakistan lies in its
lifestyle-focused features which are designed to create powerful and
meaningful experiences for mobile consumers in the rapidly growing
business market," said Sarim Alvi, Director Sales and Marketing,
Mobile Devices, Motorola.
"The MOTOROKR E6 has been specifically designed to provide
the best in mobile multimedia and business productivity, allowing
users to easily create and share their experiences"

60
 Informative

Sony Ericsson has announced S500i, a 14 mm slim slider offer-

ing color accents and changing desktop themes. Consumers can set
in-phone themes and external light effects to change when they want
- as day turns to night or when the weekend begins. Hidden illumina-
tion appears to highlight a certain event and the keypad glows when
the slim slider is opened.
With the 2.0-megapixel camera users can share moments as they
happen, taking photos and blogging it directly. Users can also send
pictures or video to any mobile phone or email address.

The S500i offers more than aesthetics with a media player and
expandable Memory Stick slot, Sony Ericsson Disc2Phone music
management software has everything users need to transfers
favorite music from a PC to the phone. When the S500i is connect-
ed, it appears as a drive on the computer. It also features Bluetooth
2.0, giving fast, robust connection to other Bluetooth devices.

The Sony Ericsson S500i is a 14 mm slim 2.5G slider phone

(GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900) and will be in early 2008.

Billed as the spiritual successor to the classic T610 handset, the

Sony Ericsson T650 combines a touch of Swedish minimalist design
with the latest 3G technologies.
This is a 3G phone - the Sony Ericsson T650i supports UMTS
2100 plus GSM 900/1800/1900. There's a 1.9" 240x320 pixel display
in 262,000 colours plus a 3.2 megapixel digital camera on the back
with autofocus and a photo light. Memory is expandable using
Memory Stick Micro cards, and the Sony Ericsson T650i also has
stereo Bluetooth.
Despite all the effort that seems to have gone into building the
T650i, the weight is just 95 grams which is very good for a 3G
device. The handset is just 12.5mm thick (104 x 46 x 12.5mm over-
all) which means that this is also quite a slim device.
As you might expect, the T650i comes with the usual range of
software including an email client, web browser, RSS reader, multi-
media player, an FM radio (subject to confirmation), speakerphone,
video calling and animated themes.
The overall design is unusual but striking, at it serves as a
reminder of the elegant designs of the early Sony Ericsson handsets
which seems to have been somewhat lost in the past year or so.
We'd definitely count this as a "fashion phone", but one with plenty of
substance to back it up.
Sony Ericsson say the T650i should be available from Q3 2007.

61
62
 Informative

The Sony Ericsson P1 is a 3G Symbian smart-

phone with a QWERTY keyboard which can be
regarded as a replacement for the Sony Ericsson
P990i.
The P1i breaks with the tradition of the
P800/P900/P910/P990 series and disposes of the
characteristic "flip" on the front of the device and it
also ditches the QWERTY keyboard for a keypad
similar to the M600i - a move that might not be pop-
ular with all P900 series users. It's also a fair bit
lighter than the 150g P990i weighing in at 124
grams.
The first thing to note on the Sony Ericsson P1i
is the large 2.6" 240x320 pixel TFT display - this is
now a transflective panel which means that it can be
read more easily outdoors. As with previous models,
this is a touchscreen although the Sony Ericsson
P1i also has a jog-dial control.
On the back is a 3.2 megapixel camera with aut-
ofocus and flash, and there's a secondary video
camera on the front of the Sony Ericsson P1i for
video calling. There's also a multimedia player and
FM radio. The 160MB of internal memory can be
expanded by using a Memory Stick Micro card, we
understand that the standard sales package will
include a 512MB card in the box. Of course the P1i
also supports Bluetooth.
Underneath this is a tri-band 900/1800/1900
MHz device with UMTS 2100 MHz and support for
802.11b and 802.11g WiFi. One major drawback is
that the Sony Ericsson P1i doesn't support HSDPA,
and also the tri-band GSM/single band UMTS net-
work support is a little limiting.
The operating system on the Sony Ericsson P1i
is version Symbian 9.1 with the UIQ 3.1 interface
running on top. Those familiar with the P990 will find
the usual set of applications including a web brows-
er (based on Opera), RSS reader, email client and a
range of personal information management tools.
The P1i supports VOIP too, but expect this to be
carrier dependent as some networks have recently
disabled VOIP in their phones.
Support for corporate email solutions such as
BlackBerry, ActiveSync and other systems will be
available through add-on applications.
The Sony Ericsson P1i is only a little larger and
heavier than the M600 at 106 x 55 x 17mm and 124
grams. Battery life is quoted as 10 hours talk/18
days standby on GSM, 3.5 hours talk/14 days
standby on 3G. Using Bluetooth and WiFi will eat
into the battery life significantly, although hopefully
not as quickly as it did on the P990.
Sony Ericsson say that the P1i will be available
in some markets in Q3 2007 but have not given any
pricing details, our estimate is that the P1i will cost
at least Rs. 50,000.

63
 Flare Report Telecom

Samsung attracts fashion conscious Pakistani users

with a new unique product

S
amsung and Jasper Morrison, a leading industrial designer, with a collective coopera-
tion have brought out SGH-E590. The Samsung E590 is a perfect solution for users
who want to have all of the advanced multimedia features with eye-catching design in
one hand. Through the partnership with Jasper Morrison, well known for his talents in
various areas of industrial design, the E590 is designed to touch customer's emotion.
The stylish E590 comes in simple contours and clean lines which comprise this compact bar
design. True to Jasper Morrison's witty sense, the mobile phone provides dual face; one side
features phone keypad and LCD screen while the other side is outfitted with dedicated camera
functions.
With the sleek design, E590 is equipped with a powerful camera functions even other digital
cameras would envy the capabilities as it allows the users to enjoy 3.2 Megapixel camera with
Auto Focus and Half-shutter. Panorama shot feature offers intuitive camera UI which displays
easy to use icons. Moreover, E590 comes with the Bean bag, a unique tripod which is a truly
useful and portable accessory made of a special rubberized material for maximum flexibility and
grip.
"The SGH-E590 is a very pragmatic work of art that reflects the synergy between Samsung
and Jasper Morrison. We have teamed up to satisfy our users with high-performance technolo-
gy and emotional design." says Shahid Khan, National Marketing Manager of Samsung
Electronics Pakistan. He added, "Through the partnership with renowned designers, Samsung
will strengthen its design power to bring design excellence to our customers."
The Samsung E590 is available in two colors, noble black and snow silver. „

SGH-E590 Specification

65

A
treasure hunt is a game, encom-
passing numerous players who
try to find hidden articles using a
series of clues. This activity can
be an indoor or outdoor activity;
outdoors they can be played in a garden
or the treasure could be located anywhere
around the world. More recently however,
a new term for treasure hunting called,
'Geocaching' is an outdoor treasure-hunt-
ing game in which the participants use a
Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver
or other navigational techniques to hide
and seek containers (called "geocaches"
or "caches") anywhere in the world.
Conversely, Nokia recently launched its
Nokia N95 in Pakistan. Media representa-
tives were invited to a challenging and
unique treasure hunt in Karachi. The invi-
tees were allowed to use Nokia N95's web
browsing capabilities to solve clues and to
seek for photo opportunities to shoot
using the 5 megapixel camera with Carl
Zeiss optics. The event allowed Nokia to
demonstrate just a few of the endless
ways this cutting edge handset can deliver
to consumers what they need when they
need it.
The launch of the new computer con-
sisted of the experience zone and presen-
tation zone providing the media with first
hand experience of the different features
available on the device and to share the
multimedia story with the same. A cluster
of journalists gathered at a local coffee
house at Park Towers, which were divided
into two
groups, and
waited with
impatience as
the hosts
explained the
rules of the
'game'. The
game, a novel
concept, com-
prised of clues
strategically
located in the
sprawling
Bagh-e-Ibn-e-
Qasim Park.
As the
teams pro-
ceeded
towards the experience zone, devices in
hand, a base unit was set up to send out
clues and receive the snapshots of the
images taken on the device. The teams
kicked off by choosing a name of their
group. The first clue 'There's something in
my pocket, it's not one thing, it's many:
Shoot where earth, water and sea com-
bine' was sent to the team as the clock
touched the mark of 05:10pm. Team A
Flare Report Telecom
took the lead by solving the first inkling,
which was the shot of the sea from the
canopy structure, and sent this to the
base. Soon after they received the second
clue, 'There's something in my pocket, it's
not one thing, it's many: Shoot the 520
paces leading to traces of Gizri Limestone'
through SMS. This clue again was solved
by Team A and they sent a shot of the
Jehangir Kothari Parade and made their
way to the third and the final clue, 'There
is something in my pocket, it's not one
thing, it's many: Connect the 8 corners of
your rest near the Jodhpur stones'. A final
group portrait was taken and the winning
team proceeded back to the coffee house.
The entire experience was quite heady
and both the teams were exhilarated. The
teams were encouraged to solve the clues
by using the web browser on the Nokia
N95 and were advised to search
Wikipedia. They were given a first hand
chance to test the features of the device.
Upon returning to the coffee shop, the
teams were briefed by Neil Gordon,
General Manager Multimedia Sales &
Marketing, Nokia MEA. The pictures were
illustrated in a slideshow and a cake was
presented to the winning team to show
appreciation. This was followed by Q&A
and snacks.
"The Nokia N95 is the ultimate multi-
media computer and a fantastic example
of what Nokia N series devices can deliv-
er," said Neil Gordon General Manager,
Multimedia, Nokia Middle East and Africa.
"It easily replaces a number of single pur- (HSDPA) networks and with support for WLAN, EDGE and
pose devices with a well designed pack- WCDMA networks, the Nokia N95 provides excellent cov-
age that is with you and connected. The erage and connection speeds.
Nokia N95 is what computers have The Nokia N95 is based on the world's leading S60
become - personal, powerful and connect- software on Symbian OS, enabling you to personalize your
ed devices." device from a wide choice of compatible applications that
The technology behind the Nokia N95 can be downloaded to the Nokia N95, including games,
is advanced and compatible with the most navigation, entertainment, productivity and creativity. „
modern network systems. Designed for
67
High Speed Downlink Packet Access
 Informative

HP Pavilion dv6000t
Processor Intel Core 2 Duo
RAM 512 MB / 2 GB(max)
Hard Drive 60 GB
Display Type 15.4 in TFT active matrix
Graphics Processor Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Pros: Slick, lightweight design; decent processor performance; built-in Webcam; two headphone jacks.
Cons: Mediocre battery life; optional glossy display can be reflective.
The bottom line: We like the HP Pavilion dv6000's attractive design and multimedia features, but don't
expect this Core 2 Duo laptop to break any speed records.

Dell Latitude D630

Processor Intel Core 2 Duo T7100 / 1.8 GHz
RAM 2 GB / 4 GB(max)
Hard Drive 120 GB - 5400 rpm
Portable Storage CD-RW / DVD-ROM combo - Plug-in module
Display Type 14.1 in TFT active matrix
Graphics Processor Intel GMA X3100
Pros: Strong performance; long-lived nine-cell battery; sturdy construction; bright display; comfort-
able keyboard; corporate-level security, including smart card reader; WWAN available as an
option; lengthy three-year warranty.
Cons: Somewhat heavy for a thin-and-light notebook; native screen resolution makes
icons and text look small; fingerprint reader decreases mouse button size.
The bottom line: Corporate users can't go wrong with the Dell Latitude D630, which integrates
Intel's latest mobile platform with a business-friendly feature set and lengthy extended battery.

Sony VAIO SZ
Processor Intel Core Duo T2400 / 1.83 GHz
RAM 1 GB / 2 GB(max)
Hard Drive 100 GB - 5400 rpm
Portable Storage DVD±RW (+R DL) - Integrated
Display Type 13.3 in TFT active matrix
Graphics Processor NVIDIA GeForce Go 7400 TurboCache supporting 128MB / Intel GMA 950
Pros: Sleek, carbon-fiber case; large, comfortable keyboard; bright, high-quality display; integrated
Webcam and microphone; solid performance and decent battery life.
Cons: Very expensive; lacks multiformat card reader found on competitive models; unremark-
able speakers.
The bottom line: The Sony VAIO SZ manages to be eminently portable without sac-
rificing a readable screen or a usable keyboard, and it incorporates all of the
features and components, and most of the connections, that business users need.

HP Business Notebook Nx9420

Processor Intel Core Duo T2500 / 2 GHz
RAM 1 GB / 4 GB(max)
Hard Drive 80 GB - 7200 rpm
Portable Storage DVD±RW (+R DL) / DVD-RAM -
Integrated
Display Type 17 in TFT active matrix
Graphics Processor ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 - PCI
Express
Pros: 17-inch wide-screen display; big keyboard and
separate number pad; solid performance and
battery life; full range of security features;
portable enough for room-to-room movement.
Cons: Display isn't particularly bright; system lacks external
touch pad on/off button; small touch pad.
The bottom line: If you're looking for a 17-inch wide-screen
laptop that offers corporate-caliber security, power, and bat-
tery life, the HP Compaq nx9420 is the only game in town.
69

The guidelines for Requirement Management have
been documented many times formally but the
actual problems faced by the software indus-
try are quite different. Through research it is
found that most of the software projects fail before they are
completed or if they do reach completion their quality is not
up to the mark. The aim of this article is to identify the loop-
holes in the requirements gathering practices and how they are
affecting the entire project and final product
F
ools rush in where angels fear to tread,
a stitch in time saves nine, Measure
twice, cut once, Look before you leap,
what do all these sayings have in com-
mon? They're all about thinking before
acting. Why? Because it saves time, money,
effort and embarrassment. It's plain common
sense, yet, when it comes to software develop-
ment, this common sense seems to disappear.
All too often, projects start before thought has
been put into the project's purpose, its desired
results, and how its success will ultimately be
measured.
We find that, during most of the history of
software engineering, requirements analysis
has been considered to be a relatively easy part
of the process. However, in the last decade or
so, it has become increasingly recognized as
being the most vital part of the process; given
that the failure to properly identify requirements
makes it virtually impossible for the finished
piece of software to meet the needs of the client
or be finished on time".
WHY REQUIREMENTS GATHERING?
Imagine if instead of developing software, you
are building an expensive house. Wouldn't you
expect that before you started pouring the foun-
dation, you'd have detailed drawings that
showed what the finished house should look
like, inside and out? Of course you would. And
why is that? Well, it's because architects and
general contractors have determined that hav-
ing architectural drawings and blueprints is the
most cost-effective way to build houses. Do you
think they would go to all the trouble to create
drawings and blueprints if they weren't neces-
sary?
REQUIREMENTS GATHERING ISSUES:
1. Users don't understand what they want
2. Users won't commit to a set of written
requirements
3. Users often do not participate in reviews or
are incapable of doing so.
Leakage of defects from requirements gath-
ering stage to the rest of the lifecycle:
Defects leaking from one phase of the soft-
ware development lifecycle to another are very
obvious if observed rightly. One organization
Humaira Naz & Muhammad Nadeem Khokhar
that has done so is Hughes Aircraft. A study by
Snyder and Shumate [1992] follows the leakage
of phenomenon for a large collection of projects
Hughes has conducted over the past 15 years.
The study indicates that 74 percent of the
requirements-oriented defects were discovered
during the requirements analysis phase of the
project - that is, the formal phase during which
customers and systems analysts discuss, brain-
storm, negotiate and document the project
requirements. That's the ideal time.
4. HOW TO SAVE YOURSELF!?
1. Find the right person to do the job:
Essential skills to look for in the person are :
Soft skills, listening skills, interviewing and
questioning skills, analytical skills, alleviation,
observation skills, Writing skills, organization
and modelling skills, interpersonal skills and
strong creative skills.
2. Context and groundwork: Before a project
can be started, some preparation is needed.
Finkelstein categorises such preparation as
context and groundwork. In the past, it was
often the case that RE methods assumed that
RE was performed for a specific customer, who
could sign off a requirements specification"
3. Requirements elicitation: The elicitation of
requirements is perhaps the activity most often
regarded as the first step in the RE process.
The term "elicitation" is preferred to "capture", to
avoid the suggestion that requirements are out
there to be collected simply by asking the right
questions
4. As per Bashar Nuseibeh and Steve
Easterbrook "Information gathered during
requirements elicitation often has to be inter-
preted, analysed, modelled and validated before
the requirements engineer can feel confident
that a complete enough set of requirements of a
system have been collected. Therefore, require-
ments elicitation is closely related to other RE
activities - to a great extent, the elicitation tech-
nique used is driven by the choice of modelling
scheme, and vice versa: many modelling
schemes imply the use of particular kinds of
elicitation techniques.
5. Modeling and analyzing requirements:
Modelling - the construction of abstract descrip-
IT
tions that are amenable to interpretation - is a
fundamental activity in RE. So that a number of
RE textbooks focus almost entirely on modelling
methods and their associated analysis tech-
niques. Models can be used to represent a
whole range of products of the RE process
QUALITY REQUIREMENTS:
Characteristics of quality requirement state-
ments: According to Karl Wiegers, we find that
"How can you distinguish good software
requirements from problematic ones? Individual
requirement statements should exhibit six char-
acteristics. A formal inspection of the SRS by
project stakeholders with different perspectives
is one way to determine whether or not each
requirement has these desired attributes.
Another powerful quality technique is writing
test cases against the requirements before you
cut a single line of code. Test cases crystallize
your vision of the product's behavior as speci-
fied in the requirements and can reveal omis-
sions and ambiguities
Keys to excellent software requirements:
We find in Karl Wiegers' article on avoiding
requirement traps, the following:
„ "Educating developers, managers, and cus-
tomers about requirements engineering prac-
tices and the application domain.
„ Establishing a collaborative customer-devel-
oper partnership for requirements development
and management
„ Understanding the different kinds of require-
ments and classifying customer input into the
appropriate categories
„ Taking an iterative and incremental approach
to requirements development
„ Using standard templates for your vision and
scope, use case, and SRS documents
„ Holding formal and informal reviews of
requirements documents
„ Writing test cases against requirements
„ Prioritizing requirements in some analytical
fashion
„ Instilling the team and customer discipline to
handle requirements changes consistently and
effectively". „
71
 Aatif Saeed Telecom

Technology has an important impact on innovation and the development of societies and
economies. ICT (Information & Communication Technologies) have created great
opportunities for people around the world to change the way they work, live, play and
learn. But all the advancements made in ICT are dependent on the ICT network
readiness. The regulator (PTA) should look for an alternative policy framework for fast
deployment of ICT network and regulation on the overall structure of the industry,
instead of simply looking at the new issues through the same old regulatory lens

T
he pace of technological innovation
throughout the global community is
relentlessly pushing forward. In the
nineteenth century, we saw more tech-
nological change than in the nine cen-
turies preceding it. Then in the first twenty years
of the twentieth century, we saw more advance-
ment than in all of the nineteenth century.
ICT (Information & Communication
Technologies) have created great opportunities
for people around the world to change the way
they work, live, play, and learn. Each era of
technological advancement since the Industrial
revolution-from steam engines and railways to
steel & electricity and oil & automobiles has
enabled businesses to expand their commerce
and production globally. Today's innovators,
however, are using ICT to completely rethink
how they use information, and they are design-
ing new business models and new capabilities
that integrate dispersed partners and coworkers
who network closely with each other.
Technology has an important impact on
innovation and the development of societies
and economies. This impact can be visualized
as occurring in three stages.
In the first stage of "substitution," new tech-
nology substitutes for the old. For example, with
the invention of the mobile telephone, con-
sumers start substituting their fixed telephone
lines with mobile handsets.
The second stage of impact is "diffusion,"
which occurs when the new technology is
adopted widely across society because it is
cheaper, better, and in general more effective
than the previous technology. Continuing with
the example of the mobile telephone, there are
many countries in the world today where the
number of mobile telephones exceeds the pop-
ulation of the country.
The final stage of impact is "transformation,"
which occurs when new ways of living and
working start emerging because the new tech-
nology is diffused so widely in society. For
example, the widespread adoption of the mobile
telephone has led to interesting innovations in
the communication patterns of individuals -such
as executives conducting business while waiting
in airport lounges or traveling in trains.
Keeping the above three-stage model in
mind, one can argue that we are at a critical
stage of transformation in society and business
with new (Internet-based) information and com-
munication technologies. For example, mobile
telephones are not only creating innovative pat-
terns of social and business communication but
are also becoming sources of entrepreneurial
business generation. .
Today's technologies, such as IPTV and
mobile TV, personalize that entertainment in
ways that let consumers pick and choose what
they want and when they want it. These new
capabilities also make good business sense,
providing fresh revenue opportunities for service
providers. In education, IP networks are turning
the traditional classroom into virtual schoolhous-
es that deliver education to remote students,
life-long learners, and others.
But all the advancements made in ICT are
dependent on the ICT network readiness. The
infrastructure plays the role of back bone in ICT
developments. An analysis is carried out to rank
the different countries as for as ICT network
readiness is concerned.
The ICT networked readiness analysis is
based on three main sub indexes, capturing:
„ The presence of an ICT-conducive environ-
ment in a given country by assessing a number
of features of the broad business environment,
some regulatory aspects, and the soft and hard
infrastructure for ICT.
„ The level of ICT readiness and propensity of
the three main national stakeholders-individuals,
the business sector, and the government; and
„ The actual use of ICT by the above three
stakeholders.
Based on a mixture of hard data, collected
from well-respected international organizations
such as the International Telecommunication
Union (ITU),
World Bank and survey data coming from
the Executive Opinion Survey conducted annu-
ally by the World Economic Forum, the coun-
tries are ranked based on the given criteria.
Top 10 Countries in ICT network readiness:
Pakistan, India and China are far behind in
International ranking:
Though we claim the Telecom revolution in
the country but still we are far behind in ICT
network readiness. Therefore, under this situa-
tion spreading the fruits of ICT to every corner
of the country is not possible.
Government will have to take more steps to
employ ICT to deliver more services to citizens
at less cost and to improve their networking
capabilities. The major challenges are finding
investment capital, setting regulations for securi-
ty and interoperability, and providing Internet
access to and educating citizens. Regulator
should play a key role in deploying ICT network.
The regulators should look for an alternative
policy framework that recognizes the impact of
ICT and regulation on the overall structure of
the industry, instead of simply looking at the
new issues through the same old regulatory
lens.
Operators, regulators, and other industry
stakeholders must work together to manage the
transition to new technologies and their fast
deployments successfully. This might be the
only way that investors will be encouraged to
invest, and that industry stakeholders and soci-
ety can capture the full benefits of communica-
tion age. „
Japan's computer giant Fujitsu employee displays the new
mobile information terminal "Flepia" with a 12-inch sized
electronic paper display with a touch screen function, which
enables to display 4,096-color XGA image continously.
73
 n annual affair since 2003, Intel has
A
provided a central point for talented
youth around the globe to come
together and share on their practicality
and skill. Intel's decade-long sponsorship of
Intel ISEF is part of its global commitment to
improving the quality of education. Since Intel
became the prime sponsor in 1996, the number
of Intel ISEF finalists has grown about 40
percent while the number of participating
Talented Youth of the
The importance of education, science and technology
for the shaping of society and for providing realistic
options for development policies is no longer
arguable. A competent education curriculum and
system provides more resources for science and
technology research and a better scientific output
opens new horizons to a better economy. Realizing the
importance of education and the potential of human
resources, Intel has once again attracted students to
the world's largest science fair; the annual
International Science and Engineering Fair
Fatima Shami - Islamabad, Pakistan
countries, regions and territories has grown by
70 percent.
High school students from 51 countries, regions
and territories around the world, including
Pakistan arrived in Albuquerque, New Mexico,
USA to compete for $4 million in scholarships
and awards in the annual Intel International
Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF). The
top three winners, alone, will each be awarded
a $50,000 scholarship by Intel Corporation.
Earlier, Intel Pakistan Corporation in collabora-
tion with the Ministry of Education had orga-
nized the National Science Olympiad where stu-
dents from across the provinces showcased
their research based projects. The National win-
ners from Pakistan were chosen to compete at
the now annual Intel ISEF held in the US.
Notably, 3 students from Pakistan participated
in this grand event. 13 year old Kulsum Bilal of
Govt. Kinnaird High School for Girls, Lahore
won an acknowledgement for her project based
on the feasibility and recycling of chicken feath-
ers into paper products. A device for the
Speech Impaired and Deaf (D-S.I.D), a life
changing communication (an alternative to sign
language) was undertaken by Fatima Shami
from Headstart School in Islamabad. While
Mufadil Mansoor, from Karachi's Aga Khan
School undertook a project about adding a fea-
ture to the mobile to allow it to control electrical
appliances via a cell phone.
The students' projects encompass a wide range
of disciplines that address breakthroughs which
have stumped scientists for years and which
could lead to major scientific advances.
More than 20 percent of the young scientists
competed in Intel ISEF 2007 either had a pat-
ent or they had applied for a patent for their
work. This year's projects tackled themes about
climate change, solar-powered water generator,
a device to increase the mileage of hybrid vehi-
cles amongst others. A treatment for cancer
including a way to prevent the development and
progression of lung cancer and a way to identify
cells that contribute to cancer growth were part
of some of the notable projects. An engineering
solution such as a "smart swim" drowning alert
system for children, a robot that uses artificial
intelligence to determine the most efficient
paths through mazes and an airplane engine
that can run on compressed air were also ambi-
tiously undertaken by the students. This plat-
form provided the associates with unlimited
access to showcase their green thumbs.
"Intel ISEF finalists are the next generation of
innovators," said Craig Barrett, Intel Chairman.
"At Intel we've been working to promote math
and science for nearly four decades, so coming
to Intel ISEF and meeting these amazing young
scientists is something I look forward to every
year."
Last year, 15 year old Hamza Sheikh of Head
Start School, Rawalpindi did Pakistan proud by
winning the second prize in the category for
chemistry. The award, accompanied with
$1,500 in prize money, was awarded to him at a
grand ceremony where he displayed his project
on the effectiveness of pea flower as an effec-
tive bio-insecticide. Judges (all PhDs in chemis-
try) were impressed by his work, which was
based on an experiment that covered an impor-
tant environmental issue which is the use of
chemical pesticides. “It's cost effective, easily
available and adds nutritional value to food, not
to speak of the safety factor,” said Sheikh, add-
ing “chemical pesticides have caused detrimen-
tal effects to our surroundings.”
The ISEF has been coordinated for 57 years by
Science Service, one of the most respected
non-profit organizations advancing the cause of
science. With the continuation of the annual
Intel International Science and Engineering
Fair, Pakistani's around the world now earnestly
await the participation of their fellow compatriot
to continue to vow the rest of the world with
their brilliance. n 75
 Pictorial

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz speaking at the World Telecommunication and Information Imam-e-Kaaba Shaikh Abdur Rehman Al-Sudais push the computer button to inaugurate
Society Day. the website of Jamia Ashrafia during a ceremony held at Awan-e-Iqbal, Lahore.

President (LCCI) Shahid Hassan Sheikh distributing shields among the participants during Federal Minister for Information Technology Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari briefs the stu-
a seminar on the occasion of World Telecom Day held at a local hotel. Hamid Farooq
CEO, Warid, also seen in pic. dents from Fatima Jinnah University Rawalpindi.

Film star Reema Khan, Farhan Abbas, Rubab Gardazai and Kazim Mujtaba pose for a Mr. tariq Malik CEO, Wateen Telecom, Zubair Ahmed Kasuri, Editpor in Chief Flare, Mr.
group photo during a press conference regarding 2 years agreement of Warid’s brand Tayyab Shafi, GM Business Development & Projects Wateen Telecom,
ambassador at Royal Palm Country Club.

Meteo-France technician works on a computer next to the "NEC SX-8R", a five times more powerfull new A model displays KDDI's new mobile handset, W52SA by Sanyo (L), W53T
calculating machine from Japan's NEC Corporation which will enable, to the French company in 2008, by Toshiba (C), and W52SH by Sharp (R), during a press preview to
76 new weather prediction and new research on climatic evolutions in Toulouse. announce KDDI's new summer collection at in a Tokyo.
 Pictorial

Visitors admire the display of prototype robots at a hitech expo in Beijing. China will
Canon India Pvt. Ltd. Vice President Alok Bharadwaj, second left, and President Kensaku Konoshi,
increase its spending on science and technology by nearly 20 percent in 2007.
third left, pose along with models at the launch of consumer products in New Delhi, India.

CEO Dubai Islamic Bank Pakistan Saad Zaman and Chairman Hashoo Group Sadriddun Hashwani at the signing cere-
mony where Dubai Islamic Bank Pakistan Ltd. was appointed as the lead arranger by Orient Petroleum International,
Inc. (OPII) for its USD 35 million Syndicated Musharaka Facility.

Motorola received the WiMAX World Europe 2007 Award in the

Devices Category at the WiMAX World Europe Conference, in
Vienna, Austria. Photo shows Motorola's director of WiMAX
global marketing, Hossein Parandeh receiving the award from
Mike Saxby

Pierre SEILLAN the Counsel General of France, Amin Muhammad Lakhani of McDonalds, Strategic Partner of the
event along with the winners (Lahore Team) of the Electronic Sports World Cup 2007 - National Final.

Lowest prices of cell

phones have not only
made it easy for the
poorest segments to
purchase but also
increase their produc-
tivity by using modern
Erika Sawajiri, a Japanese actress, model and gravure idol, poses
technology.
with a mobile handset "Walkman W52S" produced by Sony
Ericsson during a press preview on its CM campaign in Tokyo. 77
 IT Asad Mushtaque
Information technology came to Pakistani market in late 70s but the
industry started strengthening its roots in 90s. The number of players
has now reached to 200 as compared to 1996 when they were 80
I
nformation technology (IT) has assumed unprece-
dented importance in the global economic arena.
In Pakistan, the present Government is giving a
very high priority to IT. One of the pre requisites,
for ensuring sustained growth of the industry in the
economy, is the provision of a definite framework con-
sisting of policy, legislative, financial, and operational
guidelines, which can provide a stable umbrella for
growth. Thus, the government, as the main facilitator,
enabler, and promoter of the IT sector, has evolved an
effective national IT Policy and Action Plan that clearly
caters to the needs of nurturing the industry and is
responsive to the dynamic forces of change that can
affect its future growth. The private sector is also being
brought into the mainstream as the main driver for
growth.
History of IT Industry
What is information technology?. IT Industry is the
industry that began with the idea that technology must
be used to serve the most complex need of any orga-
nization's information. Hence it started with bringing
first database server to US Army. Later on commercial
companies started copying and handled their informa-
tion through software technology.
Information technology came to Pakistani market in
late 70s but the industry started strengthening its roots
in 90s. The number of players has now reached to 200
as compared to 1996 when they were 80.
Opportunities of the Industry
IT Industry in Pakistan is in its growth phases. On
one side there are attractive domains and on the other
is industry establishment attractiveness. Let us see the
opportunities from these two separate glasses.
Attractive Domains or Areas
Today Pakistan has developed industrial experi-
ence in areas such as Customized Software Solutions,
Call Centers, ERP Solutions for the Textile, Insurance,
Banking, Pharmaceutical sectors, Mission Critical
Complex systems for various industries, E-Commerce
& E-Business Solutions, Multimedia and Training
Applications, Medical & Legal Transcription, HR &
Financial Applications, Engineering and Design
Applications, Risk Management Systems etc.
Several software houses have developed Industrial
information backbone on technology, yet the demand
for improved information technology infrastructure is
still enormous.
Despite of so much development in this field, there
are so many areas that are not explored properly.
Generic product softwares, gaming software and many
others can be taken as examples. Any new comer can
come into any such field to serve the untouched mar-
ket.
78
Attractiveness
If we think strategically and view the government
policies we will see big reasons for investing into IT
business. The statistics given below are provided by
Pakistan Software Export Board that is continuously
engaged in promoting it industry in Pakistan.
„ Mild competition - Easy to enter
„ Flexible Government - Easy to Register
„ Market demand for Product Software Very High
„ Low funds required for establishment
„ Information technology parks with low rents, fiber
optic connectivity, libraries and conference rooms
„ Provision of funds for software companies to get
ISO-9000 and CMM level certifications
„ Foreign investors allowed 100% ownership of equi-
ty in "IT/ITeS companies"
„ Tax exemption for IT companies till
Pakistan's IT industry is facing many
2016
„ 100% repatriation of profits
allowed to IT companies
„ 5% custom duties on import of IT-
threats like low number of skilled
related equipment workers, rare skilled IT managers,
„ Seven years' tax holiday for
Venture Capital funds difficult recruitment, Global Market
Image and un-stable political
„ The rate of depreciation on com-
puter equipment is 30%
system
„ The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)
has allowed the opening of Internet
Merchant Accounts by banks
„ Instant, reliable and high-speed connectivity avail-
able
„ Over 85% of telecommunications infrastructure is
on fiber optic cables
„ Internet access is available in over 1862
cities/towns across Pakistan
„ Several cellular companies are using digital trans-
mission (GSM and TDMA)
„ The cost of 2 Mbps connection has been lowered
to $2000/month
Threats to the Industry
Pakistan's IT industry is facing many threats.
These threats are creating a lot of problems for the
progress of the industry.
Low number of skilled workers
Pakistan government has worked very hard to
build up HR Pool for IT industry but unfortunately it has
gone all the path in haphazard way, today there are
many software personals but only few are technically
sound just because of improper education and lake of
professional training.
Rare skilled IT managers
Talking about IT technicians, we have a very big
pool of such people, but business is never run through
technicians. There is also a major flaw in our educa-
tion system that causes this dearth. Students are
taught to become coders but they are not taught how
to manage software products. On one hand simple
programming education is provided to some students
and on the other hand Management training provided
is inadequate. The prime need of the industry is peo-
ple with expertise in management and having good
technical knowledge.
Difficult Recruitment
Recruitment is very difficult because of institutes
giving improper education. With the boom of IT indus-
try many institutes have mushroomed up providing
substandard education and awarding degrees to
unworthy students. It has created a big pool of IT grad-
uates but also has initiated a major problem; how to fil-
ter out the pool to find best people really eligible to do
their job.
Global Market Image
When compared to other countries Pakistan is not
able to earn respect in the eyes of foreign investors.
The same is the case with software quality image of
Pakistani firms, unfortunately Pakistani software are
buggy just because we are so hasty to get out money
that we don't properly test our products before launch-
ing. We never launch beta versions even for testing.
Unfortunately Pakistani firms (most of them) are
famous for not completing the projects taken just
because they take more than their capacity.
Unpredictable Government
Government policies are very good but you never
know when they will change, creating problems in
planning. Managers have to concentrate more on polit-
ical changes than at strategic thinking.
Any firm willing to compete will have to overcome
all these threats and bank on these opportunities to
achieve success. „

One day, a Sardarji gets a new born child. So
he starts filling the birth certificate. At the same
time, a couple who are touring India, meet him
and congratulate him on getting a son. The
Sardarji is very happy.
The next day, the couple go to Delhi. There
they find the very same sardarji writing the
very same form. The puzzled couple go to the
Sardarji and ask him "Sardar Bhai, yesterday,
We saw you at Mumbai filling the same certifi-
cate, but today you are here?"
Sardarji replies, "I came here because on the
certificate said WRITE IN CAPITAL"
---------------------------------------------------------------
Our sardarji was filling up an application form
for a job. He promptly filled the columns titled
NAME,AGE,ADDRESS etc. Then he came to
the column salary expected : He was not sure
as to what to be filled there. After much
thought he wrote : Yes
---------------------------------------------------------------
Joke
When he finished he explained, "That's my
ANCESTORS mobile phone. I have a microchip
After digging to a depth of in my hand. The Sardar felt low-tech and inferi-
100m last year, Russian sci- or. He didn't know what to
entists found traces of copper do to be as impressive as the American & the
wiring dating back 1000 Japanese. He decided to take a
years, and came to the con- break in the toilet.
clusion that their ancestors When he returned, he didn't realize that there
already had a telephone net- was a piece of toilet paper
work one thousand years got stuck and hanging from his backside. The
ago. others raised their eyebrows
So as not to be outdone, in and said, "Wow! What's that?"
the weeks that followed, Instead of being embarrassed, inspiration
American scientists dug struck his mind. The sardar
200m, and headlines in the explained, "I'm getting a FAX. . . . ."
US newspapers read:- "US scientists have ---------------------------------------------------------------
found traces of 2000 year old optical fibres, The world`s first fully computerized airliner was
and have concluded that their ancestors ready for its maiden flight without pilots or
already had advanced high-tech digital tele- crew.
phone 1000 years earlier than the Russians. " The plane taxied to the loading area automati-
One week later, the Pakistani press reported cally, its doors opened automatically, the steps
the following: came out automatically. The passengers
"After digging as deep as 500m, Pakistani sci- boarded the plane and took their seats. The
entists have found asolutely nothing. They steps retreated automatically, the doors
have concluded that 5000 years ago, their closed, and the airplane taxied toward the run-
ancestors were already using mobile phones" way.
--------------------------------------------------------------- "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen," a
An American, Japanese, and a Sardar were computer voice intoned.
sitting in the sauna. Suddenly "Welcome to the debut of the world`s first fully
there was a beeping sound. The American computerized airliner. Everything on this air-
pressed his forearm and the craft is run electronically. Just sit back and
beeping stopped. relax. Nothing can go wrong...nothing can go
The others looked at him questioningly. "That's wrong...nothing can go wrong.... nothing can
my pager," he said, "I have go wrong.... nothing can go wrong.... nothing
a microchip under the skin of my arm." can go wrong...."
A few minutes later a phone rang. The
Japanese lifted his palm to his ear.
79
 Pictorial

Bollywood actress Dia Mirza holds

a Samsung mobile handset during
its launch in New Delhi.

A Chinese promoter shows off a latest mobile phone using

solar power, in Beijing. Sales of mobile phones in China
increased 40 % year on year to 120 million units in 2006.

A model displays the new Nokia E90 mobile phone sets during a launching ceremony in Jakarta. Nokia E90 communicator
launched for the Indonesian market.

A commuter talks on the mobile phone as the rickshaw

puller wades through a water logged street in Calcutta,
India. Seven persons were killed as the first monsoon
showers lashed Gangetic West Bengal, water logging
large parts of Calcutta and adjoining districts.

Miss India 2007 Pooja Gupta, center, with President Consumer Business of Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL) Naresh
Malhan, right, and Chief Operating Officer TTSL Delhi Debashish Sur, launch the 'Freedom call voucher' and entry level
color handsets, in New Delhi, India.

Indian models hold cameras as they

pose for photographers at an
Olympus Camera launch in New
Delhi. Olympus Imaging Corporation
announced it's foray into the Indian
market with the opening of a brand-
ed showroom in the Indian capital.
Two camera model launches were
also made onto the Indian market Japan's microscope and other optical and electronic
with the Miju-770SW a 7.1 megapix- devices maker Scalar Co. Employee Miyako Fujioka
el water and shockproof compact demonstrates newly developed compact TV monitor
model. Teleglass T3-F attached to the side of her glasses while
80 holding its remote controller.
 Pictorial

Nozomi Ando, an employee of Panasonic Mobile Communications, shows off the

new mobile "P904i" at the head office in Tokyo. Japan's biggest mobile carrier
NTT DoCoMo will put the new mobile series on the market.

A Taiwanese model displays the "OLPC" (One Laptop

Miss India 2007 Pooja Gupta poses with a cel-
per Child) during the Computex Taipei Taiwan. OLPC is
lular telephone at a ceremony held to launch
a new, non-profit association dedicated to research to
the Tata Indicom 'Freedom Call Voucher' and
develop a $100 laptop, a technology that could revolu-
entry level colour handsets in New Delhi.
tionize how we educate the world's children.

Japan's toy maker Tomy employee displays the new robot figure toys (L-R)
"Transformers Speed-dial, Long-view, Spy-shot", which transformed to these
shapes from a mobile phone, binoculars and camera, at the company's head-
quarters in Tokyo.

Indian visitors examine a display panel inside the first class cabin of a recently acquired Boeing Labourers carry long wires as they are busy in laying telephone lines under
777-300ER aircraft on display at Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai. Karimabad Flyover.

A woman displays the latest 3.5-inch 1,000 GB Hitachi hard drive during the the Taipei A Chinese promoter shows off a latest mobile handset at a hitech expo in Beijing.
International Information Technology Show (Computex Taipei 2007) at the World Trade Center in Sales of mobile phones in China increased 40 percent year on year to 120 million
Taipei. units in 2006, as China become one of the world's largest handset markets.
81
Gartner Inc to Conduct Study on Pak Government IT Policy Brings Digital
IT Industry Revolution: Sehba Musharraf

P
akistan Software Export Board (PSEB) has signed a contract

with Gartner Incorporated the world's leading information
technology research and advisory company to conduct a study
on the Pakistan IT Industry.
The contract was signed in the presence of
Secretary IT, MD PSEB, President PASHA and
VP Gartner Consulting.
Dr.Tony Murphy, Vice President, Gartner
Consulting arrived in Islamabad to deliver
the technology related insight need to
boost the IT Industry in Pakistan. He will
undertake a review and study of the
existing conditions of the Pakistani IT sector
with particular emphasis on the software and
IT services sector,” the statement said.
It said the study would also develop a
practical strategic blueprint for the sector to
achieve a step-change improvement in the
performance of the IT Industry.
“Dr. Tony Murphy would act as Engagement
Manager and Chief Author for this study. His
recent book 'Achieving Value from Technology: A
Practical Guide for Today's Executives' has become
international best seller and is becoming standard practice for many
organizations worldwide,” added the statement.
extremely happy with this success in bringing the
world's leading IT research company to Pakistan.”
the statement quoted Yusuf Hussain, Managing
Director PSEB as saying.
Dr. Murphy said the technology based
businesses would be the key to national
success in the coming years. He said Pakistan
had ambitious plans in this regard and
Gartner was pleased to assist the country
achieve its objectives.
1.6m Broadband
Connections Target
Set for Next 3 years:
Shaukat Aziz
T
he First Lady Begum Sehba
Musharraf had said that the
government's policy to promote
information technology had brought a
digital revolution in the country and
had greatly increased the demand for well
trained computer literate youth in the
country.
She was speaking at ceremony, to award
job appointment letters, to the successful
candidates at the end of Nadra's Welfare
Data Entry Computer Operator course.
She further added that there was a need
to ensure multifaceted training of our
talented youth including technical
training, character building and worth
ethics.
The programme of NADRA was a true
manifestation of successful public private
partnership from which other public sector organizations
can also take lead and work for the progress and prosperity of the
nation, she said.
an Begum Sehba Musharraf said that besides this programme the
government's initiatives about national vocational and technical
“We are education commission and internship programme would equip our young
generation with necessary knowledge and training to face the challenges
of the modern world.
Chairman, NADRA Saleem Ahmed Moeen, said that
NADRA's Database includes 86.8 million
citizens with more than fifty-seven
citizens having an Identity card. The
registration of 2.15 million Afghan
Refugees was completed in fifteen
weeks by the organization and that our
first international project won through an
international tender was the driving
license for the Bangladesh government.
Mobile Zone Gives
Away First Mobile
insurance Claim

P
rime Minister Shaukat Aziz has said that the government was

M
obile Zone gave out the first
fully conscious of importance of broadband for convergence of mobile insurance claim through a
computing, communication and broadcasting. He was speaking short ceremony held at their
at a function held in connection with World Telecommunication customer support centre. Akbar Ali
Day. Aziz said that a target of 1.6 million broadband from Peshawar, the first recipient
connections had been set for the next three years against the present of mobile insurance claim received the
less than 100,000 connections. cheque against theft of his Nokia 1600
“The government wants to develop infrastructure mobile phone.
for covering 75 percent of the households in Mobile Zone's Director Sales Peshawar,
the country with high speed Internet by Asghar Shanwarim presented the
2015,” he added. insurance cheque. The Assistant
Executive Director of EFU (Mobile Zone's
Employees Protested partners in this offer) was also present at
the occasion.
against Retrenchment Commenting on the mobile insurance
claim, Pervaiz Abbasi, CEO Mobile
Plan of PTCL Zone, said, "We are a company of
ethics and we believe that whatever

P
TCL workers staged a big rally at the we commit is delivered. Credible
call of Pak-Telecom Employees Union warranties, exceptional outlets service
(CBA) to protest against the proposed standards, quality of after sales services are
retrenchment of 31,000 employees by all indications of our commitment to Pakistan mobile
the management of Etisalat. Kanwar Atta phone market. Now mobile insurance is the next step towards
Jilani, Saif-uddin Qureshi, Qazi Mehmood, Malik our commitment to provide convenience to our customers," he added.
Nazar Hussain, Haji Ghulam Mustafa and Zafar
Baig addressed the rally.
They said that their struggle would continue till the withdrawal of the plan
Motorola Unveils Slider Bluetooth
of retrenchment of workers particularly upper division, lower division
clerks, technicians, telephone, tele-printer, telex operators, chowkidars
Headset H800

and peons. The protestors shouted slogans against the president,
federal minister for IT & Telecom, and the government. They demanded
immediate revision of their pay-scales, grant of 15 percent dearness
allowance, 25 percent house requisition, restoration of son-quota, and
granting 2.6 percent shares to the employees as per agreement signed
at the time of privatization of the company.
M
otorola Inc. has launched a Slider Bluetooth headset H800.
The device offers a fresh new way of experiencing wireless
communication in an absolute hands-free mode. H800 is the
Motorola's new Slider Bluetooth headset with both style and
performance.
The company has launched this advanced device in an era of 83
 technology where the demand for use of wireless communication and
convenience with style is increasing day by day.
It boasts innovative slider design, distinctive laser-etched details and
advanced functionality.
Sarim Alvi, head of Country Marketing (Mobile Devices), Motorola
Pakistan stated, “Motorola's seamless mobility is enabling consumers to
take control of their calls without touching their phones.
”This is the first Bluetooth headset with slider rapid connect technology;
the Motorola H800 gracefully glides open for easy one-touch
connections.” He added.
Omantel set to take over Pakistani
firm soon
O
man Telecommunications Co. (Omantel) should conclude the
purchase of a majority stake in a Pakistan-based telecom
operator this month, Omantel's chief executive
said. Omantel, the smallest telecom
operator in the Gulf Arab region
by market value, is also in negotiations to
buy a minority stake in a Gulf Arab
telecom operator, Mohammed al-Wohaibi
said.
Wohaibi declined to name the Pakistani
firm, but said the take-over would give
Omantel access to Asia's fourth most-
populous country as competition grows at
home. An industry source in Pakistan said
Omantel was in talks with Worldcall, which runs
long distance and international (LDI) as well as
wireless local loop (WLL) services.
Seventh ITCN Asia to be
held in August
T
he Seventh ITCN Asia will be held at Karachi from August 9 to
11 at the Karachi Expo Centre. An announcement of E-
commerce Gateway Pakistan said that the event would serve as
a comprehensive showcase of the latest technology, equipment
and machinery as well as allied services.
It would also provide the investors with a definite outlook of the regional
information technology (IT) and telecom industry and provide an
opportunity to meet their perspective counterparts and
business partners.
Franchise Selling SIMs
without a CNIC Copy to
be Sealed
C
hairman Pakistan
Telecommunication Authority (PTA)
Maj. Gen. (Rtd) Shahzada Alam
Malik has directed the Cellular
Mobile Operators to ensure that
antecedents of the customers acquiring
mobile connections from the respective
mobile companies are properly documented
before issuing new connections. He was chairing
a meeting with the representatives of Cellular Mobile
Operators. Malik said it has been witnessed that proper procedure is
not being adopted with regard to acquiring the particulars of the
customer intending to have a mobile connection and the Authority has
also received a number of complaints in this regard.
Chairman PTA directed the representatives of CMTOs to make sure that
a copy of Computerized National Identification Card (CNIC) is
demanded from the customer at the time of issuance of SIM besides
electronically maintaining the particulars of every subscriber as given in
the customer agreement form.
He categorically made it clear that this policy would be implemented
immediately and strict action would be taken against those franchises
that would be found in violation.
He told the CMTOs representatives that by the beginning of July, PTA
teams would be visiting various franchises of all the cellular mobile
operators across the country to check whether proper procedure is being
adopted while issuing the respective mobile connections.
Any franchise found to be selling SIMs without a copy of CNIC duly
incorporating the SIM number being issued, would be immediately
Sealed and strict action, including cancellation of Franchise, would be
taken.
84
Prime Minister Lauds Telenor Futures
Program
P
rime Minister Shaukat Aziz has appreciated Telenor Pakistan's
efforts "as a responsible corporate citizen" and has called the
expansion of its Telecom Futures program to Attock "an
auspicious sign for the local community."
"As a model program, if implemented and expanded with
genuine commitment, it will Insha Allah help develop a strong human
resources base in the field of telecommunication, delete reliance on
expensive expatriate resources, and enable the local youth to generate
income for themselves and their families," he said in a special message,
which was read out to the audience at the launch ceremony of
Teleco m Futures in Attock.
"Telenor Pakistan has been playing its role as
a responsible corporate citizen with vigor and
enthusiasm running several community
support programs to empower the truly
disadvantaged section of the society. I wish
Telenor Pakistan the best in their
endeavours."
Telenor Pakistan CEO Tore Johnsen said,
"After the successful implementation of
Telecom Futures at Tevta's Lahore
campus, I am very pleased to see that
the project model now has been
replicated at Attock as well. Telenor
Pakistan and its partners realize that
vocational training institutes are
building human capital from the lower
socio-economic classes and there is huge
opportunity and potential in this area.
The Telecom Futures program will build on Tevta's Higher National
Diploma in Telecom by aligning curriculum with industry expectations,
providing advanced trainings and rewards to teachers, sharing
specialized equipment with students, and offering internships or jobs to
suitable diploma holders.
HP Introduces New PCs
H
P introduced an attractive new line of consumer PCs that,
for the first time, have been designed to complement any
room of a home featuring the latest consumer electronics
and home appliances. Part of HP's "The Computer is
Personal Again" campaign, the redesigned PCs have an
elegant, piano-black finish with refined silver trim and subtle
blue LED light accents.
New features include a power button
positioned on the top of the chassis for
easy reach, a built-in bay for
removable digital storage and a more
easily accessible media card reader to
simplify enjoyment of digital music,
videos and photos.
Fixedline Phone
Segment not Showing
Required Growth
F
ixed Local Loop (FLL) segment of
telecom industry which is 98
percent owned by incumbent PTCL
was not showing required growth,
rather it was witnessing a decline in
its expansion.
Besides capacity and coverage issues, this segment is facing stiff
competition from cellular and wireless phone operators, which is
resulting in customer churning and traffic migration.
Because of this, fixed line tele-density, which was 3.4 percent, a year
ago, has also declined to 3.2 percent. Pakistan Telecommunication
Authority (PTA) in its quarterly report said only four new FLL licensees
are operational with the network coverage in few cities of Punjab and
Sindh.
It said the licensees are also facing difficulties in their roll-out plans and
expected business. But few other companies are at their roll-out stage
and it is hoped they would start their operations in the coming months.
However, their coverage is limited with low capacity.
The report said incumbent Pakistan Telecommunication Company
Limited (PTCL) lost 75,972 fixed line subscribers during first quarter of
this year. Major loss of subscribers was in Punjab where fixed line
subscribers reduced by 59,616.
However, during second quarter, 22101 subscribers were added due to
expansion in the subscription of Sindh. PTCL is mainly focusing on the
expansion of its subscriber base on wireless network. The report said
new FLL operators including Worldcall, Brain net and Union
Communication have a total of 14,848-subscriber base.
Over $3 billion Invested in Telecom
Sector in Three Years: PTA
C
ountry's telecom sector has attracted record inflow of Foreign
Direct Investment (FDI) during the last three years, which has
crossed 3 billion dollar mark. This is continuing and new
companies are investing in their network and infrastructure build
up. Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), in its quarterly
report said the telecom sector attracted 472 million dollar FDI
during the last half year in which only 133.2 million dollar
was under privatization proceeds of Pakistan
Telecommunication Company Limited
(PTCL).”This shows that 72 percent of
telecom FDI is purely new investment
mostly in expansion of infrastructure and
services and eliminates the misconception
in some quarters that privatization is the
dominant component of FDI in telecom," it
added.
During the last few years, this sector has
witnessed astounding growth as a result of
credible government policies and prudent role
of the regulator, the report said and added this
has resulted in the above 109 percent average
annual growth rate of overall tele-density during
the last two fiscal years.
The sector exhibited the same growth trends in the
first two quarters of fiscal year 2006-07. Currently the
overall tele-density in the country is crossing 37 percent.
The report said besides astounding growth, this sector is also
contributing increasingly in the government exchequer through various
taxes and regulatory duties. The major component of these collections is
GST/CED, collection of which remained Rs 16.92 million during the first
six months of this year which is 43 percent higher than the same
period last year. The
mobile contribution in total telecom GST/CED
Collection is also increasing and during second
quarter of 2006-07, its share was 77.7 percent as
compared to 66.9 percent during the
corresponding quarter last year.
Mobilink, Box Office
Launch Spider-Man 3
in Pakistan
M
obilink and Box Office,
Pakistan's leading distributor
of quality films, have
announced the formal launch of
Spider-Man(tm) 3 - an adventure
movie in Pakistan, initially will be shown in Karachi and
Lahore on June 15.
Addressing a press conference, Sadaf Zarar, brand manager indigo,
Mobilink and Maria Lotia, general manager, Box Office said that they
were committed to play their role in the revival of country's cinema
culture. They said that provision of better entertainment facilities to the
public would be continued.
Despite the fact that theatre in the country was on the decline, Mobilink
and Box Office would continue to provide the people with good movies,
besides opening Cineplex theaters in the country, they added.
At the premier of the movie, Sadaf Zarar said: "It is Mobilink's endeavor
to make a genuine contribution to the social uplift and welfare of our
people." To a question, she replied that Mobilink would also sponsor
Pakistani movies.
Being Pakistan's favorite cellular company, this was the beginning of its
value-added services to customers, in addition to a commitment to the
public, she added. Maria Lotia said that Box Office was committed
towards reviving the cinema culture in the country by bringing the latest
Hollywood movies throughout the year.
"We are happy to have partnered with Mobilink, which also understands
the need to breathe life into this activity that we all believe is for the
social development of people," she maintained. Box Office would
introduce new Hollywood movies in the country in days to come, she
added.
2.8 million New Mobile Customers
Join Ranks
A
lmost 2.8 million new mobile customers joined the ranks in
Pakistan in of April - the second highest total ever recorded in
the market, behind October 2006. Monthly proportionate growth
stayed above 5 per cent by a whisker, after 5.1 per cent in
March, taking the total customer base in the market to 58.4m
and penetration to 34.7 per cent from 33.0 per cent a month earlier, a
private TV channel reported.
A total of 10.0m new customers were added in the first
four months of 2007, these being shared
almost equally between the market's four
largest operators.
Telenor garnered the biggest portion, with
3m or 30 per cent of the total, ahead of
Mobilink (27 per cent), Ufone (25 per cent)
and Warid Telecom (21 per cent). Warid
Telecom recorded a market-best 8.5 per
cent increase in customer numbers in
April.
Countrywide Mobile
Phone Banking
Soon: Awais
F
ederal Ministry of Information Technology and
Telecommunication (IT&T) will initiate fast
Internet connectivity and mobile phone banking
within next six months. Federal Minister for IT&T
Mr. Awais Ahmed Khan Leghari said this while
addressing the inaugural ceremony of the Global Business Management
Solution (GBMS), an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) for the
Ready-made Garments and Hosiery industry.
The GBMS is the first locally developed and implemented open source
ERP in Pakistan.
He said the fast internet facility would initially be provided in cities having
200,000 population; adding that this would increase usage of computer,
which would help increase the productivity.
Leghari said that a new and fast system of banking
through mobile phone would also be
launched within next four to five
months. Under this system, mobile
phone users would be able to pay all
the utility bills through mobile phone,
which is a fast and secure means of
transaction. The project will be
implemented with the collaboration of
State Bank of Pakistan, he asserted.
Leghari said that Federal IT&T Ministry's
vision is to bring a positive change in the
common man's life.
"We are also trying to introduce automation
in all the ministries so that every stakeholder
should have an easy access to the relevant
information," he added.
Integrated Telecom Plan
Evolved for Northern Areas
A
n integrated plan has been formulated by the Special
Communications Organization (SCO) to extend modern and
quick means of telecommunications to the people across
Northern Areas (NAs), a spokesman said.
Under the plan the existing telephone numbers would be
changed and all the districts in Northern Areas would get a new
telephone code in the next few months, he said.
A latest modern billing system will be introduced at a cost of Rs. 580
million within one and half years in the region to facilitate the people, the
spokesman said. He said Pakistan had inked an agreement with China
for laying optical fibre line from Rawalpindi to Gilgit and then onto
Khunjerab at a cost of Rs 490 million. China will lay the line to Khunjerab
on their side, he said.
85
 International

Samsung's main Mobile Plant to Etisalat’s Egyptian Unit Attracted

Move to Vietnam over 300,000 Subscribers in first
20 days
S
outh Korean high-tech
giant Samsung
Electronics plans to he Egyptian unit of Etisalat, the

relocate its main
mobile phone factory
to Vietnam because of rising
wage costs at home. Industry
sources revealed that Samsung
had this year suspended
recruiting for its main plant at
Gumi, 260 kilometres south of
Seoul. The Gumi factory accounted for some 60 percent of total produc-
tion of mobile phone handsets last year.
"As part of its new (global outsourcing) strategy, Samsung has decid-
ed to build a bigger plant in Vietnam than the one in Gumi in the last
quarter of this year," one of the sources said.
The Vietnam plant, the site of which is yet to be decided, will eventu-
ally produce 100 million units per year, according to the source.
Samsung Electronics has concluded that its domestic factories no
longer have merit because the labor cost is 10 times higher than in
Southeast Asia. Last year, Samsung produced 130 million mobile hand-
sets -- 80 million from the Gumi plant, 45 million from its factories in
China and the rest from production facilities in other places. „
T
telecom giant of the United
Arab Emirates (UAE), attracted
more than 300,000 subscribers
in the first 20 days of opera-
tion. Etisalat Misr, the company's sub-
sidiary in Egypt, launched its services on
May 1 with the country's first 3.5G net-
work, bringing rich multimedia content
and enabling mobile business across
Egypt. It also brought mobile television,
high-speed internet access and video calling to the Egyptian market for
the first time.
Aiming at attracting 10 million subscribers by 2010 in the Egyptian
market which has a population of more than 70 million, Etisalat Misr plans
to invest up to 8 billion Egyptian pounds (1 U.S. dollar equals to 5.68
Egyptian pounds) additionally in the next three years, the report said.
"These investments will be allocated to all aspects of our business in
Egypt including new base stations, enhancing the network, customer serv-
ice centers, and so forth," Etisalat Misr's chairman Jamal Al Sadat was
quoted as saying.
The company is also planning to launch an initial public offering (IPO)

Sri Lanka Signs $600 Million of to list itself on the Egyptian stock market within two years, the report
added. Etisalat Misr is one of 14 service providers managed by Etisalat in

Investments
the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Etisalat's services currently reach more
than 32 million subscribers. „

S
ri Lanka has signed nearly 600 million dollars worth of invest-
ment deals with foreign and local companies mainly to set up
World's Largest Memory
or expand businesses in the telecom and IT sectors. Among
major investors, India's largest publicly-listed telecom firm
Capacity Card for Mobile

S
Bharti Airtel pledged to spend 150 million dollars to set up Sri
Lanka's fifth mobile phone company this year, told Investment outh Korea's Samsung Electronics said that it had developed the
Promotions Minister Sarath Amunugama. world's largest storage-capacity memory card for mobile phones.
"We expect about a third of this year's investment target of two bil- The eight-gigabyte memory card, microSD, can store some
lion dollars to come from telecom and IT related services which is 2,000 MP3 music files, 4,000 photographs or five DVD-quality
proven to be a winning success for our country," Amunugama said. movie files, the company said in a statement. It is only a quarter
Sri Lanka, an island nation attracted 604 million dollars worth of for- the size of the widely used and existing SD card but much faster in down-
eign investments last year, and Amunugama said the bulk of this year's loading and uploading multimedia data, it added. SD cards are largely
target will come from used for data storage in digital cameras and televisions. Samsung, quot-
phone services, infor- ing market researcher Gartner Dataquest, said the global multimedia
mation technology, memory card market would grow 10 percent annually until 2010. „
clothing, power and
housing.
"Sri Lanka is a
very promising mar-
ket for telecom services, with phone penetration low at 20 percent,"
Airtel's Director, Narendra Gupta, said. Sri Lanka Telecom, the biggest
fixed line operator which is partially owned and managed by Japan's
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone, also committed to invest 200 million
dollars over a two-year period to expand its network. Mobitel, Sri Lanka
Telecom's mobile phone unit, signed up to invest 50 million dollars to
rollout high speed third generation network capable of offering video
calls and high-speed Internet surfing.
Telecom is one of the fastest growth sectors in this South Asian
island of 19.5 million people, with the number of mobile phone users
already crossed 4.5 million, according to Central Bank of Sri Lanka.
Amunugama admitted that attracting foreign investment has
"become a bigger challenge" because of an upsurge in fighting between
Tamil Tiger rebels and government forces since December 2005 that
has left more than 4,800 people dead. „ French-US telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent's President of governing
board, Serge Tchuruk (2ndL), gives a speech during a meeting, in Paris, next to Chief exec-
utive officer, Patricia Russo (2ndR), and Financial Director Jean-Pascal Beaufret (R).

Alcatel-Lucent Wins $460 Million order from Chinese Operators

F
rench-US telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent has signed deals worth 460 million dollars with two major Chinese mobile
operators. According to a report, Alcatel-Lucent will provide China Mobile, the country's largest handset operator, with radio and core network
equipment, customized solutions and services for 340 million dollars. The company has also inked a 120-million-dollar agreement with China
Unicom to support the latter's broader mobile network expansion in the mainland as well as in Macau, the Beijing Times added. China Mobile
and China Unicom this year have budgets totaling 125.8 billion yuan (16.4 billion dollars).
Other telecommunication equipment vendors, including domestic firms Datang and ZTE and Sweden's Ericsson, have won orders topping 20 bil-
86
lion yuan in the two operators' previous online bidding, it added. „

VSNL; First Indian Operator to
Provide Global Wi-Fi Roaming
V M
SNL is the first Indian operator to provide
global Wi-Fi roaming for customers as they
travel overseas and need Internet access;
Quiconnect to deliver Wi-Fi interconnectivity
initially with WBA members and with other
international telecoms companies following shortly.
Quiconnect will deliver the Wi-Fi technical roaming
integration and implementation services required to
deliver this for all parties, branded to the consumer's
familiar telecoms provider.
VSNL is part of the $27 billion Tata Group. It pioneered Internet servic-
es in India and today provides dial-up, broadband, and Wi-Fi services
under the Tata Indicom brand name. VSNL operates around 300 hotspots
throughout the country at important, high traffic locations comprising inter-
national and national airports, hotels, cricket stadiums, cafes, hospitals,
banks and shopping malls. VSNL plans to open another 1,000 hotspots
this year to increase Internet access to business and net-savvy travellers
on the move.
Prateek Pashine, VSNL's Vice President Marketing & Technology,
Retail Business said, "VSNL's philosophy is to offer products and services
that can be accessed seamlessly across the globe without customers
having to change their service providers. Working with Quiconnect, we
want to create a VSNL branded global Wi-Fi network to enhance cus-
tomer convenience as more and more people from India travel and
require Internet access."
Initially, VSNL will be marketing enhanced global Wi-Fi services to its
business customers given the majority of business users have laptops.
Quiconnect has long been championing the approach, recently adopt-
ed by the WBA, to make WLAN access on the move simple and easy. In
October 2006, it became one of three companies to be WRIX accredited
and able to provide public WLAN services to the WBA membership which
comprises 28 of the world's leading telecoms companies. „
Stephane Bret, director of Porsche Design Mobile Group, holds a Porsche Design Mobile
Phone P'9521 in Essen. The Porsche Design Group and Sagem Communication are pre-
senting the first Porsche Design Mobile Phone, the P'9521, at the Red Dot Design Museum
in Essen.
Chinese gamers play online computer games at an internet cafe in Shanghai. Electronic
Arts (EA).
International
Motorola to Slash 4,000 More
Jobs
otorola will cut an additional 4,000 jobs as the mobile phone
maker tries to cope with tough global competition. The latest
belt-tightening move announced aims to save 600 million
dollars in annual costs for 2008. It comes on top of an earlier
effort to save 400 million dollars and trim 3,500 positions,
which Motorola said would be completed by this month. "Long-term, sus-
tainable profitability is -- and always has been -- Motorola's top priority,"
said Motorola Inc., chief financial officer Tom Meredith. "Today's actions
are an update
to the commit-
ment we
made during
our first-quar-
ter earnings
conference
call -- to drive
out additional
costs -- and a
continuation of
the plan we
announced in
January," he added.
The company expects to record additional restructuring charges of
some 300 million dollars to pay for the new job cuts. Motorola has been
lagging competitors like Nokia in the market for mobile handsets and has
been fighting an effort by corporate raider Carl Icahn to get on the board
and make drastic changes to the company.
Icahn failed earlier this month to win a board seat at Motorola after he
sent a letter to shareholders saying it was a "troubled" company whose
shares had lost nearly one-third of their value since last October. „
Etisalat Selects Alcatel-Lucent
to Expand its GSM Network
A
lcatel-Lucent has received a contract from Etisalat, one of the
Middle East's leading service providers, to upgrade and
enhance the operator's wireless network with the latest genera-
tion of Alcatel-Lucent's GSM and EDGE technology, which is
based on the industry's most advanced hardware architecture.
With its compact new design and high performance, this platform will
leverage Etisalat existing network while reducing operating expenses.
Based on the leading Alcatel-Lucent GSM/EDGE technology, the con-
tract covers the upgrade and expansion of Etisalat mobile network in the
UAE, enabling the operator to provide higher quality and more widely
available mobile communica-
tions services to its cus-
tomers.
Alcatel-Lucent's 9130
Base Station Controller/Multi-
BSC Fast Packet Server
(BSC/MFS) is a new BSS
(Base Station Sub-System)
controller platform that sup-
ports the ever-increasing
market-driven volume of voice and data traffic. This state-of-the art
equipment based on the field-proven Advanced Telecom Computing
Architecture (ATCA) will enable Etisalat to create a more centralized and
optimized GSM/EDGE network architecture, thereby bringing significant
cost savings in network deployments and extensions.
"This contract is the result of many years of faithful cooperation with
Etisalat, and we are very proud of their continuing confidence towards
Alcatel-Lucent," said Olivier Picard, President of Alcatel-Lucent's Europe
and South activities. "We will devote all our efforts to deliver the best-in-
class solution to Etisalat to help it enhance the high corporate quality of
service it insists on providing to its subscribers."
Alcatel-Lucent has more than 170 GSM/EDGE customers in over 90
countries, making it a leading provider of mobile communications solu-
tions. „
87
 International

HP and NASA Ink Seven-year New Virus Threats for Mobile

Contract this year; McAfee

I T
t's all systems go at Hewlett-Packard as
the PC and printer maker announced a
new seven-year contract with NASA, to the
tune of $5.6 billion. The pact will allow
NASA's procurement department to select
from HP desktops, workstations, blade PCs
with Linux and Unix capabilities, servers, and
printers, among other offerings.
The agreement is an indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) con-
tract, meaning that the space agency has an open date on the purchas-
es as well as the exact amount spent on individual products. The entire
federal government and its authorized prime contractors also have the
option to purchase HP technology through the contract, also known as a
"Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) IV Class 5."
The partnership agreement ends when the money runs out, but the
government's procurement office has the option to renew or expand the
contract if it sees fit. For example, the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs said it also is making NASA's relationship with HP its mandatory
contract for acquiring technology.
The deal is a boon for taxpayers as well since the contract specifies
that HP's products must be guaranteed at or below U.S. General
Services Administration schedule prices. That means the government is
paying the lowest surcharge (0.6%) -- capped at $18,000 for orders
more than $3 million.
To date, HP said it has delivered more than $620 million worth of
products and services to federal government agencies between 1992
and 2007 through previous NASA contracts.
But the company's relationship with the government IT contracts has
not been without its controversies. The U.S. Department of Justice said
in April 2007 that it will investigate claims suggesting HP and others
made kickbacks to other companies involved in technology contracts
with government agencies. „
he number of mobile viruses is set to double by the end of the
year as virus writers are creating new ways to attack the frag-
mented cellphone software market, a senior official from data
security firm McAfee said. "We expect this trend to increase as
data transfers to mobile," Jan Volzke, marketing manager for
McAfee's mobile business, said in an interview. Even though the chance
of catching a virus on your cellphone is stillrelatively small, it is continu-
ously increasing as the use of e-mail and Internet on cellphones is grow-
ing. The most pernicious viruses can render a phone useless or swell
phone bills through pricey messages or calls to unwanted numbers.
Volzke said attackers were increasingly creating so-called spyware,
which can steal all data from the
phone, enable call monitors, and follow
the phoneowner's tracks. Volzke said
McAfee has also found that "edited"
picture formats can crash the Opera
Software Internet browser, opening a
way for virus writers to attack the
phone.
Opera's browser was installed in
around 40 million phones sold last
year. Since the first mobile virus
appeared in 2004, the number of differ-
ent viruses, worms or other type of
"malware" has reached 361.
While smart-phones represent less than five percent of the total cell-
phone base, and form a small part of the one billion phones sold annual-
ly, the first virus has been created to abuse JAVA technology, which is
used in more than half of the phones sold each year. „

MTC Shows Interest in Qatar's Second Cell Licence

K
uwait's Mobile Telecommunications Co (MTC) said it was interested in bidding for Qatar's second mobile
phone licence. A MTC spokesman said "Yes, it's true. We are investigating. We are very interested in find-
ing out more details, the process, what's the opportunity," an MTC spokesman said when asked about a
report in al-Rai, which quoted MTC's Chief Executive Saad al-Barrak as saying the firm planned to compete
for the license. Barrak told Kuwaiti daily al Rai he expects intense and tough competition for the Qatari
mobile license, expected to be awarded in the last quarter of this year.
Qatar's Supreme Council for Information & Technology Communication is finalising a list of firms after receiving prequalification applications. Pre-
qualified companies will be invited to submit technical and commercial offers by July with a final award expected in November.
The licence will end Qatar Telecom's monopoly in the saturated market, which has a mobile penetration rate in excess of 100 per cent. The
spokesman said MTC, which has expanded strongly in the Middle East and Africa, was investigating new opportunity.
Barrak also told the paper the MTC-led consortium, which was declared the highest bidder for Saudi Arabia's third mobile license earlier this year,
was still waiting for the Saudi cabinet to issue the license. The consortium offered 22.91 billion riyals ($6.11 billion) for the Saudi license. MTC bought
Netherlands-based Celtel, which is operating in 14 sub-Saharan countries, for $3.4 billion in 2005 as part of its expansion. The spokesman also con-
firmed Barrak's comments in the newspaper that MTC still planned to list on a European bourse next year but that it would not necessarily be on the
London stock exchange. „

Microsoft to boost China R&D unit

M
icrosoft Corp plans to add 1,200 staff for research and devel-
opment in mainland China this year at an estimated cost of
US $60 million. The world's largest software company has
also bought land to set up corporate campuses in Beijing
Shanghai, Zhang
and Yaqin, Microsoft's head of
mainland R&D operations, told
the newspaper. The article said
Microsoft, which has about 3,000
employees on the mainland, last
year invested about US $150
million "in just people costs" in
China and will "add probably 40
percent in people" this year.
Much of the new spending
will be on Microsoft's mobility software, including Web services, digital
entertainment and media applications for mobile telephones. With the Japan's computer giant Fujitsu employee displays the company's new paperback book-
land purchases in Beijing and Shanghai, Microsoft will have the capacity sized notebook PC "FMV-Lifebook U8240", based on the latest platform of Intel's Ultra
for 8,000 people in 2-3 years time. „ Mobile Platform 2007 and a 5.6-inch swivel and flip multi-angle LCD display on its compact
88
body, weighing 580g, at the company's advanced technology exhibition in Tokyo.
 Press Releases
Govt to roll out High-Speed Internet in 6 Months; Awais

F
ederal Minister for Information Technology Awais Ahmad Khan
Leghari vowed to take fast and high-speed broadband internet
service to all major cities of the country within the next six
months. "We have made elaborate plans to provide fast, reliable
and always-on broadband services to all cities with more than
200,000 population within the next six months by using funds from the
multi-billion Universal Service Fund," he said in a keynote address to a
function organized by Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) in Lahore
to mark the signing of two memorandums of understanding aimed at
seeking implementation of global business management solution (GBMS)
in over 700 SME units in the readymade garments and hosiery units in
Pakistan. The MoUs were signed separately between Pakistan
Readymade Garments and Manufacturers Association (PRGMEA) and
SME Business Support Fund (BSF) and between Pakistan Hosiery
Manufacturers Association (PHMA) and SME Business Support Fund
(BSF).
The development of GBMS, a locally produced ERP software to be
used in the readymade garments and hosiery units, was initiated by
Pakistan Software Export Board as part of its industry automation project
launched a couple of years ago to improve the productivity of SME units
by providing them ERP software in those sectors of the economy with a
high export potential. With the emergence of WTO, the ERP software will
allow the SME units in these sectors to be able to compete with the
industries in other countries. „

Ericsson Acquires Drutt Corporation

E
ricsson has signed an agreement to acquire 100 percent of the
shares of Drutt Corporation, a world leading provider of Service
Delivery Platform (SDP) solutions. This deal represents yet
another step in Ericsson's ambition to become the leader in multi-
media. Telecom operators need solutions to provide consumers
with new attractive multimedia services and applications which can be
created, launched, and presented to consumers easily, reducing costs
and time to market.
This is where service delivery platforms play an important role by pro-
viding flexible tools for pricing and packaging, as well as uptake and con-
sumer behavior analysis.
Jan Wäreby, Senior Vice President Multimedia, Ericsson, says: "Being
such an innovative and focused company, with close to 70 percent of its
workforce dedicated to R&D and service delivery, Drutt adds an important
piece to the Ericsson SDP strategy."
"Ericsson is already the leader in the fast growing SDP market. By
acquiring Drutt, we will be even better positioned to support our cus-
tomers to offer a better consumer experience by adapting content for the
individual, and making it attractive to use," he added. "Our combination
will provide operators with integration-ready platforms, thus reducing sys-
tem integration complexity".
Drutt's flagship solution - MSDP (Mobile Service Delivery Platform)
offers an end-to-end multi-channel solution for establishing a profitable
mobile service delivery business helping operators mobilize and charge
for any content to any kind of mobile device, over any mobile network
and delivery channel. Today, Drutt's MSDP is commercially deployed in
more than 60 telecom operators in 35 countries, managing millions of
transactions every day. „

PIA - ABN AMRO Bank Sign Us $ 522 Million Loan Agreement

I
n a ceremony arranged by ABN AMRO Bank in Amsterdam, Pakistan
International Airline (PIA) and ABN AMRO signed a landmark loan
financing arrangement for a total sum of US Dollars 522 million to
fund the acquisition of three state of the art brand new Boeing 777-
300 ER aircraft for PIA. The financing arrangement comprises a 12
year term loan facilities of US Dollars 470 millions supported by Export
Import Bank of the United States of America and Government of Pakistan
guarantee.
Present at the ceremony were senior members from ABN AMRO's
Cross Border Structured Finance group including Mr. Maarten Klessens,
Global Head of Structured Funding & Investments, Mr. Paul Kranendonk,
Global Head Cross Border Structured & Commodity Finance and
Mr. Naveed A. Khan, Country Executive, ABN AMRO Pakistan. Mr. Anil
Patel represented the Boeing. While PIA team was headed by Mr. M.
Abdul Aleem, Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Maarten Klessens, congratulated PIA for a remarkable achieve-
ment which has resulted in fleet modernization through a very attractive
financing package. Naveed A. Khan, Country Executive ABN AMRO
Pakistan appreciated the efforts of both ABN AMRO and PIA teams and
termed this deal a landmark achievement for the aviation sector and for
Pakistan.
PIA Chairman, Mr. Zaffar A. Khan also appreciated the agreement in
finalizing this large transaction at commercially attractive rates. „

Etihad Airways Holds North Pakistan Agent Awards

E
tihad Airways hosted Travel Trade
Partner Recognition Award Ceremony
for travel agents in North Pakistan, to
honor their tremendous contribution to
the airline in the year 2006. The event,
which was held in the capital city, had active
participation from leading travels agents repre-
senting the two cities of Peshawar and
Islamabad. Award categories included
Appreciation Awards for the Top 10 agents in
Islamabad and Peshawar, along with special
trophies for the highest revenue-earning agents
from the two cities.
Speaking on the occasion, Joost den
Hartog, Area Manager for Etihad Airways
Pakistan, said, "Etihad Airways believes that the
travel traders, who support us throughout the
year, are our partners. It is with their support
that our flights from Islamabad alone have
increased from 3 to 7 per week, with excellent
inbound and out bound connections to many
international destinations like New York, Picture shows Joost den Hartog, Area Manager Etihad Airways in Pakistan(6th-Left), and Ken Marshall(4th Left), Sales
Toronto and London. " Manager, Etihad Airways Pakistan, along with the winnings agents of the region."
A similar ceremony has also been sched-
uled in Lahore, where agents from Lahore, Faisalabad and Sialkot will be from Islamabad and two times per week from Peshawar to Abu Dhabi,
honored for their support to Etihad Airways. ETIHAD Airways currently providing swift and convenient onward connections to the airline's fast
flies 10 times per week from Karachi, daily from Lahore, 7 times per week growing global network of 42 destinations. „
90