Pakistan is preparing new competition rules that could allow the telecom regulator to require dominant operators to provide national roaming access to competing companies.
The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication has proposed the Telecommunication Competition Rules, 2026, under which operators classified as having Significant Market Power (SMP) could be required to provide roaming access in certain circumstances.
The draft would allow the regulator to impose national roaming obligations when considered necessary to promote competition, expand network coverage, protect consumers or improve the use of existing telecom infrastructure.
Any such roaming arrangement would have to be offered on fair, reasonable, transparent and non-discriminatory terms. The regulator would determine the technical feasibility, operational scope and duration of the arrangement.
The proposed framework would also give the regulator enforcement powers. These would include issuing directions, requiring corrective measures, imposing proportionate regulatory obligations and initiating proceedings under the relevant law.
The regulator would also have authority to resolve disputes arising under the proposed rules. Factors considered could include market efficiency, consumer welfare, proportionality, technical feasibility and the effect of a dispute on competition.
The proposed rules would create a competition framework specifically for the telecom sector while retaining the jurisdiction of the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) under the Competition Act, 2010.
The move comes amid a longstanding jurisdictional dispute involving the Ministry of IT, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and the CCP. The Islamabad High Court has previously held that the CCP has overarching jurisdiction over competition matters.
The draft also proposes replacing the existing reference to “reasonable fees” with fees prescribed under Schedule I for applicants. The regulator would additionally be empowered to issue guidelines, determinations, frameworks and directions required to implement the proposed rules.
The national roaming proposal is aligned with the broader objective of expanding telecom coverage across Pakistan. The 2015 Telecom Policy had also envisaged national roaming for operators with Significant Market Power on fair and non-discriminatory terms.
The proposed framework comes as Pakistan’s telecom industry undergoes consolidation and faces increasing spectrum concentration, while operators prepare for wider 5G deployment.
Recent PTA proposals have also suggested using a 25 percent market share as an initial threshold for assessing Significant Market Power, alongside factors including market concentration, spectrum holdings, essential infrastructure, financial strength, network effects and barriers to entry.
