wi-tribe Introduces Endless Downloads, Sort of!: ProPakistani

wi-tribe Introduces Endless Downloads, Sort of!
National Rabta Information Portal Launched
Multinet to Deliver Global MPLS IPVPN Services in Pakistan
Zong and TransferTo Partner for International Topup
Cellcos’ Price-War and a Compromise on Quality and Innovation
Social Network Disasters: Ufone, Case in Point!
Century Paper Reduces Financial Reporting Time with Oracle E-Business Suite

wi-tribe Introduces Endless Downloads, Sort of!

Posted: 13 Dec 2010 11:25 AM PST

wi-tribe Introduces Endless Downloads, Sort of! is a post from: ProPakistani

wi-tribe has revised its wireless WiMAX packages to allow its customers endless downloads, with fair usage policies in place.

Endless downloads come with wi-tribe's Desktop and Wi-Fi modems for 512 KB and 1.5 MB packages. wi-tribe says that service parameters may change upon utilizing 30GB on 512Kbps endless package & 40GB on 1.5Mbps endless+ package in any given month.

Tariff:

Desktop Modem / Wi-Fi Modem

wi-tribe Dongle

Activation Charges (for new subscribers):

Desktop modem (slider): Rs. 500
Wi-Fi modem (slider PLUS): Rs. 1,500
wi-tribe dongle (USB device): Rs. 2,500
Activation charges are non-refundable

Things to know:

Refundable deposit equal to monthly charge along with activation charges are to be paid in advance
Excess usage will be charged at Rs. 0.15 per MB

**Fair Usage Policy:

Service parameters may change upon utilizing 30GB on 512Kbps endless package & 40GB on 1.5Mbps endless+ package in any given month
All wi-tribe packages are for consumer usage and not permitted for commercial use and/or reselling as per PTA regulations

For order and details: call 111-1-tribe (87423)

National Rabta Information Portal Launched

Posted: 13 Dec 2010 10:27 AM PST

National Rabta Information Portal Launched is a post from: ProPakistani

State Minister for Information & Broadcasting Mr. Syed Sumsam Ali Shah Bukhari has inaugurated today 'National Rabta Information Portal (www.pakistan.pk), a single source facilitation web portal developed by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), providing information and content repository to information seekers from within and outside the country at one place.

Secretary Cabinet, Mr. Abdur Rauf Chaudhry and Member Telecom, Ministry of IT were also present during the ceremony.

Speaking at the occasion, State Minister for Information & Broadcasting Mr. Syed Sumsam Ali Shah Bukhari said

The Government of Pakistan has a strong believe in utilizing Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) to move into the era of electronic service delivery (e-Services) by simplifying procedures, and making credible and timely information available to all the citizens at all levels. The electronic access of information will improve the productivity and efficiency of public and private organizations.

This would ultimately contribute to economic activities and bring benefits to the country.

Government is committed to promote freedom of expression and access to information in the greater public interest. The State Minister congratulated Chairman PTA and his team, on the development of such an informative portal for Pakistan. He said that it will bring plenty of information not only to the residents and ex-patriats Pakistanis but also to the foreigners visiting Pakistan.

In his opening remarks, Chairman PTA Dr. Mohammed Yaseen said

Every information medium has its own importance and impact on the society. Nevertheless during the last decade internet has emerged as the most important source for information dissemination, in addition to TV and radio. He emphasized that the outreach of internet has recently touched 2 Billion users mark globally.

He briefed about the objectives behind the development of a dedicated 'National Information Portal' the primary objective being to create a single source facilitation web portal that allows users to access any and all information regarding Pakistan that is already available electronically.

It has a theme of 'connecting the un-connected' Internet links so any user who visits the portal can be able to access information from a single source. He said that the portal would act as an enabler platform for fast access to one source of information and will increase effectiveness of public and private sector. The local information search via this portal would help retrieve information thus saving international bandwidth cost, he added further.

Chairman PTA further informed the dignitaries that PTA has also planned to develop the Urdu and Mobile version of this National Portal in order to provide more facilitation to the internet community of Pakistan.

The web portal has currently more than 1000 web links. Similarly it has 84 downloadable forms of various categories placed on it. It also contains links on educational institutions of the country, hospitals of Pakistan, print and electronic media, federal and provincial institutions and private sector.

Multinet to Deliver Global MPLS IPVPN Services in Pakistan

Posted: 13 Dec 2010 03:15 AM PST

Multinet to Deliver Global MPLS IPVPN Services in Pakistan is a post from: ProPakistani

Multinet Pakistan (Private) Limited today announced that it has forged a strategic alliance with Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), Malaysia's leading Next Generation Network service provider, to deliver Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network (IPVPN) services to its corporate customers via Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) technology.

With the partnership, Multinet, and TM combine efforts to provide unparalleled IPVPN services, catering to the rapidly increasing demand from corporate customers in Pakistan and Malaysia, especially for multipoint-to-multipoint connectivity services and highly scalable network solutions that support the bandwidth-demanding applications.

"We are pleased to partner with TM, a well-established telecom carrier with a fully-meshed MPLS IP network around the globe, to provide seamless data connectivity to suit the diverse requirements of our customers," said Mr. Rashid Shafi, Senior Executive Vice President of Multinet. "I believe TM shares our vision to deliver best-in-class network services to our multinational customers."

Meanwhile, Mr. Rozaimy Abdul Rahman, Executive Vice President, TM Global, TM, also looks forward to the mutually benefits the partnership between Multinet and TM will bring, as it introduces an additional choice of high-speed network service to TM's corporate customers.

Rozaimy said, "As we continue to see Malaysian enterprises' demand for a greater variety of telecommunication services to serve their different business needs, we are very pleased to join forces with Multinet. This partnership not only enables us to provide customers with more choice of connectivity services but also helps us deliver a far-reaching service coverage and scalable bandwidth services to TM's corporate customers."

The partnership will boost the two companies' network reach through the combined strength of Mutinet's strong nationwide network in Pakistan, coupled with TM's extensive network coverage in South East Asia, Middle East, Asia Pacific, the US and the UK; hence providing better access for customers of both companies. Multinet and TM will be interconnected via the undersea cable system Southeast Asia – Middle East – Western Europe 4 (SMW4).

By interconnecting these state-of-the-art networks, TM, and Multinet seek to broaden the Global IPVPN service coverage while enhancing the service level and cost-effective network solutions provided to corporate customers in Pakistan.

This collaboration will also facilitate enterprises in Pakistan and Malaysia to transform their business models to achieve economies of scale in today’s economic environment as it will reduce the need for companies to build independent networks and provide ongoing operational support for their own regional and global networks.

Corporate customers in Pakistan can now seamlessly access the MPLS-enabled TM's global network through Multinet's existing access infrastructure, both domestically and internationally. Similarly, this will enable TM to fulfill the increasing needs of its corporate customers back in Malaysia by leveraging on Multinet's extensive domestic access and capacity.

Global MPLS IPVPN services bring great advantages to organizations which include scalability, ease of deployment and low operating costs. This service allows users to optimise the flow of information by differentiating traffic according to its nature and Class of Service. The advanced MPLS technology used for this service also provides highly secure and efficient networks solutions for the transmission of data, voice, email and video conferencing.

Zong and TransferTo Partner for International Topup

Posted: 12 Dec 2010 10:29 PM PST

Zong and TransferTo Partner for International Topup is a post from: ProPakistani

Zong and TransferTo recently announced that Zong Prepaid airtime will now be for sale on TransferTo's extensive international top-up network.

With this new development, Pakistanis living abroad can easily top-up Zong prepaid subscribers back home via TransferTo's international airtime transfer network, which is comprised of mobile operators, point of sale retailers, and its online top-up service, www.transferto.com.

Customers can also top-up any Zong number from the web: http://www.transferto.com/

"We're thrilled to welcome Zong on our network, which now enables top-ups to all prepaid mobile subscribers in Pakistan," said Eric Barbier, TransferTo Founder and CEO. He added: "Pakistanis living abroad now have many ways to send low cost, high value gifts to their loved ones back home as a complement to their cash remittances."

Expressing his views Salman Wassay, Head of Marketing at Zong said: "Our vision is to offer innovative products. With such value propositions we will be able to establish a strong connection with the Pakistani consumers and their families worldwide besides boosting our presence throughout Pakistani communities."

According to the World Bank, approximately 200 million migrants send more than $400 billion back home each year. For many of those migrants, making the gift of airtime is an inexpensive way to complement their regular cash remittances. International top-ups are also a great way to reach out to loved ones on special occasions such as birthdays or religious holidays. International Top-ups are a growing trend: today, millions of migrants worldwide send International Top-Ups back home several times a month.

Cellcos’ Price-War and a Compromise on Quality and Innovation

Posted: 12 Dec 2010 08:31 PM PST

Cellcos' Price-War and a Compromise on Quality and Innovation is a post from: ProPakistani

As another week commences, so does the barrage of advertisements from all of Pakistan's cellcos, adamant on grabbing as many clueless subscribers as possible.

Ufone letting its usual suspects run around some city in an attempt to downplay other networks, Mobilink producing some Jazzy tunes to let everyone know that they still dominate, Telenor jingling away showing the flexibility of their product portfolio, Warid parading a beautiful model to explain some great offering which most of us forget to listen to as we were too mesmerized by the visuals, and Zong grasping at its target market of low income for dear life with offers of anything and everything that can be free.

With so much to digest, what does the consumer actually end up gaining?

Well, we can now link ads with companies within the first few seconds of it appearing; thank you Ufone and Telenor for keeping it consistent. However, while many rejoice at the seemingly low rates that are being constantly revived, for the pre-paid segment predominantly, it takes deeper analysis to see that all this run-around is definitely not the ideal option for Pakistan's cellular market.

From 45 paisas every 30 seconds to 30 paisas every 20 seconds; we are spoiled for choice. But in reality, this war is all in the name of numbers; subscriber numbers, that is.

Every push made by Pakistan's cellular company is done to increase those stats prior to the end of a quarter, in a bid to inflate the users on the network. This assists in additional revenue and helps project a healthier image of the company when results are reported.

Anyone thought about measuring quality?

While the PTA performs random checks on each cellular network, very few consumers undertake any deep analysis of the quality of service that will be offered by a company prior to subscribing. Yes, opinions are voiced. But over 70% of subscribers make their choice simply due to pricing they have seen or been advised of. After all, if I say that Cadburys is good quality but you get three Dodo bars for the same price, the masses will choose the latter. That's the tested fact.

And the cellular companies in Pakistan know that. The level of innovation in the industry is equivalent to the evolution of man from a single-cell organism. Which consumer group is actually demanding it? How many of us would stand behind the company which proclaims to charge more than the others, but offer a guaranteed service quality irrespective of location?

Of course, this trend could be linked to our poverty levels and the importance of getting as much out of your money as possible. But seriously, if poverty was such an issue, where are the stated '100 million' subscribers getting the billions of rupees to continue topping-up their phones? We are prepared to pay Rs.100 for a scratch card that ends up giving Rs.70 of credit, and then pay more for the gimmicky weekly offers.

India's launching 3G, the West is moving towards 4G and Japan and Korea are so far ahead, the rest of world just gawks with amazement. The reason for these transformations is the strong consumer sense that prevails in those markets; people want quality and value, and this pushes the cellular companies to innovate rapidly in order to compete effectively.

My message to all you subscribers is to simplify. Sit down and calculate what you spend for your mobile service and the quality received. Is it worth it? If not, step up and let your voice be heard. If so, let everyone know.

So, the next time you are watching the 'U' team on TV or being emotionally connected to the 'Apna Hai' shout; take some time to make sense out of it all. Then send a message to the cellular network letting them know that you are no longer buying scrap.

Social Network Disasters: Ufone, Case in Point!

Posted: 12 Dec 2010 08:30 PM PST

Social Network Disasters: Ufone, Case in Point! is a post from: ProPakistani

So, the social networks are here for people to interact with each other, right? We get to see what our friends are up to by going through their latest photo album of another friends's mehndi or find out our class fellow has got a new laptop by reading his status on Facebook and Twitter.

Now, while all this is so good and rosy and all so pretty – the whole idea of staying in touch with your social circle all the time online, there are many times these social networks end up in huge social reputation disasters.

Imagine what harm it can do to big people and big companies – with thousands of fans following? One wrong step and your over 2 and half lacs fans (once you were proud of) are going to grill you to the core.

Being customers, we tend to get extremely aggressive if we are not given proper service and if companies lie to us or hide the real deal from us. We feel complied to let them know of our anger in the form of our feedback and most of the times, it gets way too harsh.

Just recently, Ufone faced the wrath of its Facebook and Twitter fans when Ufone services went down and there was no announcement as such on their Facebook or Twitter page.

Fans got crazy angry and left annoyed comments as to why nobody is telling them when the services will be restored. Obviously, the issue in the social media was not handled properly and that led to many fans of Ufone unsatisfied and angry. All this ended up real bad when Ufone started restricting its fans to comment on their page.

However, what's done is done but let's think over what Ufone and for that matter any company could have done in this situation.

This is the first thing a company and in this case Ufone should have done:

They should have updated their Facebook and Twitter page status right away announcing;

"Dear Ufone fans, Ufone is experiencing service outage due to some technical problems which are being resolved and the service will be restored in 3 hours (let's suppose). Sorry for the in convenience but we'll let you know as soon as we're back on!"

With this act, they would have bought their fans trust and even sympathy and everyone would have known by default that there is a problem going on which will soon be resolved.

The second thing to do is keep monitoring what people are saying. If someone is really agitated, try to calm them down by replying to comments in an apologetic and empathetic tone. Such acts make them feel you have not left them in the middle of a desert with no help. It makes them feel company cares and is doing whatever it can to bring the services back to order for them.

Last, when the services are restored, be the first ones to let the fans know that you are back with a bang! Be cheerful, be happy and be caring. Let them know how much it means for the company that they (fans) have been patient and cooperative. That is how you actually and successfully make use of social networks in difficult times.

Remember the first rule of Social Networks: "Nothing can remain hidden in the world of internet for too long! Truth comes out one day or the other so instead of hiding your flaws, be big enough to step forward, admit the problem, give the solution and win the trust of your customers because if you won’t say it, you’ll definitely hear “IT” from your customers"

Century Paper Reduces Financial Reporting Time with Oracle E-Business Suite

Posted: 12 Dec 2010 08:25 PM PST

Century Paper Reduces Financial Reporting Time with Oracle E-Business Suite is a post from: ProPakistani

Century Paper & Board Mills Limited (Century Paper), a producer of packaging paperboard, has cut 11 days out of its monthly financial reporting time and now finishes the process three times faster with the Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.

Century Paper initiated the project in 2008 to replace a range of legacy accounting, purchasing, inventory, and production systems that were unreliable and were slowing down decision-making across the organization.

"The Oracle E-Business Suite has streamlined Century Paper's business processes," said Irfan Farooqui, Senior Manager, Supply Chain, Century Paper & Board Mills Limited. "Senior management now have the right data to make better business decisions, which enables us to provide a better service to our customers, while protecting our cost controls"

"Oracle has eliminated the repetition of data entry and has made our system faster and reliable", said Muhammad Ayaz Khurshid, Head of Information Technology, Century Paper & Board Mills Limited. "Faster reports generation is essential to our business success. With Oracle, we were able to cut our reporting time from 16 days to five days, and as we continue to streamline and stabilize the process we hope to bring down the reporting time to three days."

"Oracle has equipped more than 1100 organizations across Pakistan with the right IT tools for decades, enabling them to further enhance their efficiencies and profitability," said Ahsen Javed , Managing Director , Oracle Pakistan and South Asia Growth Economies. "The benefit Century Paper is reaping from this implementation will help the organization optimize and utilize their resource in an effective manner to gain competitive advantage".

Oracle Financials gives Century Paper's senior managers a comprehensive view of the company's financial situation. The accounts department now completes the consolidated monthly financial reports three times faster than previously possible, while extending reporting capabilities to 120 essential management reports.

Oracle Inventory Management now provides clear and up-to-date inventory data, enabling easy access to inventory levels thus eliminating the risks of over-ordering or under-ordering.

The Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 has made the Century Paper's systems more reliable, resulting in faster transfer of funds between the company's three locations

Century Paper now produces more-detailed production plans, and can more accurately calculate the depreciation of factory equipment.

In addition to Financials, Century Paper deployed Oracle Advanced Supply Chain Planning, Oracle Purchasing, Oracle Order Management, Oracle Process Manufacturing, Oracle Discrete Manufacturing, Oracle Advanced Pricing, and Oracle Enterprise Asset Management.

The company also deployed Oracle Database 11g and Oracle Real Application Clusters, which provided high availability and automatic failover capabilities. If one of the server nodes fails, the system will failover to another node, thus eliminating system downtime.