The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has imposed a combined Rs. 145.833 million in fines on Telenor Pakistan, Ufone and Zong after the operators failed to meet prescribed Quality of Service (QoS) standards in multiple cities.

Telenor Pakistan received the largest penalty of Rs. 68.055 million, while Pakistan Telecom Mobile Limited (Ufone) and CMPak Limited (Zong) were each fined Rs. 38.889 million.

The three operators have been ordered to pay the penalties within 30 days of the issuance of the respective enforcement orders.

PTA found Telenor non-compliant in Buner, Murree, Risalpur, Pindi Bhattian and Matiari. Ufone failed to meet the required standards in Murree and Risalpur, while Zong was found non-compliant in Buner, Murree, Pindi Bhattian and Matiari.

The enforcement action followed an independent QoS survey conducted across 53 cities during different quarters of 2025. The assessment covered voice, SMS and mobile broadband services.

PTA’s subsequent re-verification surveys identified failures in several service indicators, including call setup and completion rates, SMS success rates, webpage loading times, latency and mobile signal strength.

The operators attributed the survey results to factors including difficult terrain, power outages, operational issues, external interference and technical discrepancies.

PTA rejected these explanations, stating that remedial steps taken by the companies could be considered while determining penalties but could not erase violations already established through the surveys.

The Authority has also ordered the three operators to maintain compliance with the prescribed standards and submit technically supported compliance reports within 30 days.

PTA warned that failure to comply with the directions could result in further legal proceedings.