Here is the latest TOI article:
Call rates cheaper in Pak
ISD Tariffs Start At Below Re 1/Min While In India It’s Rs 5
Shalini Singh | TNN
New Delhi: India can no longer lay claim to having “amongst the world’s lowest telecom tariffs”. Neighbouring Pakistan boasts of far more competitive mobile services, especially for international (ISD) calls.
So while Indian telecom consumers have been celebrating the benefits of competition and low calling rates, they can now happily push operators and telecom regulator Trai to lower their tariffs further.
International calls to some of the most frequently called countries from India and Pakistan — such as US, UK, Canada, Germany and Hong Kong — present a stark comparison of how Pakistani mobile users are so much better off than us.
Pakistani operators offer such ISD calls at rates as low as (Pakistani) Rs 1-1.99. In comparison, Indian mobile subscribers are still paying Rs 5-6 per minute to call these countries. In some cases, ISD rates from Pakistan while calling mobile phones in these countries are slightly higher, but for the most part, the prices are far lower than those available to Indian consumers.
Ironically, an Indo-Pak dialogue is the most damaging to wallets on either side. Both Indian and Pakistani mobile users have to pay Rs 8 to 9 per minute when calling each other. A call from Lahore to New York (a 15-hour flight) costs Re 1 per minute, while a call between Lahore and Amritsar (a 15-minute flight) costs a whopping Rs 9 per minute in either direction.
Even where local calls from mobiles are concerned, some Pakistani operators offer rates as low as 30 to 50 paise per minute, especially when calling within their own networks.
A range of incumbents and new operators in Pakistan such as Mobilink, Ufone, Telenor, Warid (Singtel) and Zong (China Mobile) in strong competitive play are responsible for these low rates. Etisalat-owned Ufone is amongst the most aggressive price warriors. Together, these operators serve nearly 85.02 million subscribers across Pakistan.
Nearly 53 of every 100 Pakistanis have access to a mobile phone, which is more than double India’s mobile teledensity — currently hovering around 24 mobile phones per 100 citizens.
Well hope to get 2 INR ISD soon
Call rates cheaper in Pak
ISD Tariffs Start At Below Re 1/Min While In India It’s Rs 5
Shalini Singh | TNN
New Delhi: India can no longer lay claim to having “amongst the world’s lowest telecom tariffs”. Neighbouring Pakistan boasts of far more competitive mobile services, especially for international (ISD) calls.
So while Indian telecom consumers have been celebrating the benefits of competition and low calling rates, they can now happily push operators and telecom regulator Trai to lower their tariffs further.
International calls to some of the most frequently called countries from India and Pakistan — such as US, UK, Canada, Germany and Hong Kong — present a stark comparison of how Pakistani mobile users are so much better off than us.
Pakistani operators offer such ISD calls at rates as low as (Pakistani) Rs 1-1.99. In comparison, Indian mobile subscribers are still paying Rs 5-6 per minute to call these countries. In some cases, ISD rates from Pakistan while calling mobile phones in these countries are slightly higher, but for the most part, the prices are far lower than those available to Indian consumers.
Ironically, an Indo-Pak dialogue is the most damaging to wallets on either side. Both Indian and Pakistani mobile users have to pay Rs 8 to 9 per minute when calling each other. A call from Lahore to New York (a 15-hour flight) costs Re 1 per minute, while a call between Lahore and Amritsar (a 15-minute flight) costs a whopping Rs 9 per minute in either direction.
Even where local calls from mobiles are concerned, some Pakistani operators offer rates as low as 30 to 50 paise per minute, especially when calling within their own networks.
A range of incumbents and new operators in Pakistan such as Mobilink, Ufone, Telenor, Warid (Singtel) and Zong (China Mobile) in strong competitive play are responsible for these low rates. Etisalat-owned Ufone is amongst the most aggressive price warriors. Together, these operators serve nearly 85.02 million subscribers across Pakistan.
Nearly 53 of every 100 Pakistanis have access to a mobile phone, which is more than double India’s mobile teledensity — currently hovering around 24 mobile phones per 100 citizens.
Well hope to get 2 INR ISD soon
roaming call rates have been made so cheap comparatively