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Wateen gets Greenpacket contract for hybrid modem(Flare (Pakistan) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The UH350 hybrid modem is particularly suited to serve Wateen Telecom’s youth segment in key metro areas such as Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad, and will help the company significantly grow this market segment by improving network and service quality “Pakistan is one of the region’s first countries to adopt WiMAX and we have seen the acceleration of mobile broadband in the past few years,” CEO Wateen Telcom, Naeem Zamindar Wateen Telecom has awarded Greenpacket, a leading developer of next generation mobile broadband and networking solutions, a two-year contract for the supply of Greenpacket’s high-gain modem, the UH350. Pakistan’s broadband market is expected to reach 4.3 million by the end of 2013, with the mobile broadband segment accounting for almost 50 percent of the total market; Wateen Telecom currently serves 22 percent of the wireless broadband market in Pakistan. With 60 percent of the country’s population below the age of 30, the highest proportion of online users hail from the country’s youth. Wateen plans to enable this explosive growth by providing users low-cost and reliable personal broadband service, catering to their infotainment needs. Greenpacket is the world’s third largest supplier of WiMAX CPEs. The award-winning UH350 modem demonstrates exceptional performance in terms of usability. Its advanced embedded high-gain omni-antenna radiates and receives signals from any direction, automatically selecting the best antenna within the modem to improve signal strength performance. The feature-rich WiMAX modem, which can be used both indoors and outdoors, will now allow Wateen to offer consumers even better instant and reliable network connections. The UH350 hybrid modem is particularly suited to serve Wateen Telecom’s youth segment in key metro areas such as Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad, and will help the company significantly grow this market segment by improving network and service quality. Commenting on the deal, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Wateen Telecom Naeem Zamindar has said: “The personal broadband segment is currently missing from the broadband offering in Pakistan. We see a great opportunity in closing this gap to over 500,000 subscribers within the next three years by offering customers on-the-go, smooth and seamless internet access, making connectivity agile for them. “We’re confident that Greenpacket’s hybrid UH350 will help us achieve this goal, enhancing our customers’ access to infotainment as we continue providing the best wireless broadband anywhere and everywhere, indoors and outdoors in Pakistan.” “Pakistan is one of the region’s first countries to adopt WiMAX and we have seen the acceleration of mobile broadband in the past few years. Today’s consumers expect a lot more from their service providers; absolute performance, mobility and portability all at the same time. We are confident the UH350 will meet Wateen Telecom customers’ high expectations of high-speed connectivity, anytime and anywhere, putting them customers in control,” says Kelvin Lee, senior general manager of Greenpacket. On the other hand, Wateen Telecom has been awarded Rs 2.4 billion project to develop an extensive optical fibre network in Balochistan. The project, called USF Balochistan Package 4 (BP-4), entails the laying of over 1,100 km of an optical fibre network in northern Balochistan. The new optical fibre network will connect 20 un-served cities. Wateen has joined hands with the Universal Service Fund Company (USF) to undertake this project of national importance, which will go a long way in bridging the digital divide in the country. The project, funded through a USF subsidy, will provide state of the art digital infrastructure in remote areas of Balochistan, and could be further exploited to build IT, telecom, education, health and business services in these areas. Recently, Wateen WiMAX services reached in Mandi Bahauddin in collaboration with Universal Service Fund (USF). Wateen’s WiMAX network is the largest in the country and the addition of Mandi Bahauddin increases its WiMAX coverage to 23 cities. Community Broadband Centres are also being established in underserved areas proving broadband services to the consumers. Wateen CEO Naeem Zamindar said, “The Internet is the perfect tool for connecting people, increased connectivity means increased development.” |