Illegal spectrum battle continues between Zong and PTA

These days, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and Zong CMPak are in the headlines for providing legal notices to each other on the use of radio frequencies for the illegal spectrum that the Chinese telecommunications company has been using for the past few years.

On Tuesday, PTA directed Zong to pay $29.5 million for the illegal spectrum of radio frequencies as a fine, with a notice for the telecom firm to actually stop using the said frequencies.

PTA was presented by Zong CMPak with a notice seeking PKR 600 billion in compensation for the company’s damages due to the disrupted radio frequency band it received from PTA.

As per the order, in 1997, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority extended Paktel Limited’s non-exclusive licence, which was later renamed as a China Mobile Pak Limited in 2007 for fifteen (15) years in order to provide Pakistan’s licensed cellular mobile services under the terms and conditions of the license.

Due to conflict with the company’s already assigned frequencies in parts of the Pakistan-India border between Punjab and Sindh in 2007, Zong CMPak was given official license by the Frequency Allocation Board to use additional radio frequencies. The problem emerged because of the Indian Code Division Multiplexing Access network in service near the border, which, despite being contacted by the PTA, was not resolved by the Indian authorities.

2 x 13.6 MHz Radio Frequency Range in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands is aligned with the licence in the following manner. The intrusion developed due to the service of the Indian Code Division Multiplexing Access network near the border, which was not settled by the Indian authorities after being addressed by the PTA.

Also See: Zong Internet Settings for Android and iPhone