Over US$ 1 Billion worth of handset imports were recorded in Pakistan during 2005-06, thus the industry is showing signs of tremendous growth opportunities.
Total cost of mobile phones imported to Pakistan went above US$ 1 Billion during 2005-06 and number of mobile subscribers grew by 1.7 Million every month on an average during the period, showing a mobile penetration level of 22.2%.
As per a PTA (Pakistan Telecommunication Authority) report, there will be a 25% annual increase in mobile handset imports & 65 Million additional mobile subscribers will be added by 2007. Total mobile subscribers added per month were 1.3 Million on an average for last six months of 2005, while nearly 22 Million mobile subscribers were added from January to June 2006.
"Despite the big numbers, there're several regions in Pakistan that still don't have access to mobile phones. There's still a huge growth potential in Pakistan mobile industry", said an analyst at RNCOS.
Mobilink achieved the best net addition mark among all service providers with 1.1 Million users added in June 2006. Penetration in the region of Balochistan rose by 125 % in a single year.
Mobile handset industry is dependent on worldwide industry trends along with growth in national subscriber base. Handset imports through legal channels are on rise and decline in smuggled sets has been observed. As per estimates by resellers, number of handset imports is about 750,000-800,000 every month.
Nokia leads the market with 55% market share followed by Sony Ericsson with 22% market share. Samsung comes third with 17% & Motorola holds a mere 5% share in Pakistan mobile market.
Advanced Technology & stylish handsets are now easily available for purchase in local market & camera phones are increasingly becoming popular. The trend will probably remain same in the coming 2 years, since these features are all set to become future standards for mobile phones.
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