Starlink Outlines Pending Regulatory Steps for Pakistan Service Launch
September 19, 2026
PTA’s Q2 2026 survey finds major citywide differences in Pakistan’s mobile networks, with Jazz leading 10 cities and broadband lagging.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority’s (PTA) second-quarter 2026 Quality of Service (QoS) survey has revealed sharp differences in how the country’s four major mobile operators perform across 11 large cities. Conducted between April and June, the independent assessment tested Jazz, Zong, Ufone and Telenor against regulatory benchmarks for coverage, mobile broadband, voice calls and SMS services.
Field teams logged around 27,300 voice and SMS tests and nearly 190,000 broadband samples while driving more than 2,000 kilometers through densely populated urban routes. Operators were scored on 12 key performance indicators (KPIs) in each city, with results showing clear leaders and laggards in network reliability and data speeds.
Jazz emerged as the most compliant operator overall, meeting 130 of 132 KPI checks and falling short on just two, according to the PTA report. Zong followed closely with 128 compliant indicators, while Ufone and Telenor recorded 121 and 112 compliant KPIs respectively, highlighting a significant performance gap at the lower end.
In 4G coverage, Jazz, Zong and Ufone satisfied the required signal-strength benchmark in all 11 surveyed cities, but Telenor complied in only five. The survey also found that mobile broadband was the weakest area industry-wide, with operators collectively achieving about 85 percent compliance compared with 98 percent for coverage, 92 percent for voice and 97 percent for SMS.
City-wise rankings showed Jazz taking first place in 10 of the 11 locations, including Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar, Multan, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi. Zong topped the list in Karachi West, while all four operators achieved full compliance across all 12 KPIs in Hub, Abbottabad, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi, indicating pockets of uniformly strong service.
The PTA has shared the findings with the cellular companies and directed them to address deficiencies within 30 days under existing quality rules. With new internet quality regulations allowing fines of up to Rs350 million for persistent non-compliance, the latest survey is expected to intensify pressure on operators to upgrade infrastructure and close coverage gaps.
