How to watch a cricket match without electricity? Mobilink TV – a life saver

Pakistan vs India cricket match is always a popular event to watch not only in these two countries but everywhere else cricket is played, understood and liked. I was also very excited about the match on Saturday but was also afraid of the possible power failures. It went great for the initial hours but when the match reached the climax at midnight, power company employees showed their dutifulness and switched the power off for an hour.
Now what?
Quickly I tried a few options. First of all, I tuned into a good old FM radio channel that was quick and convenient. At least I could get live score and updates. In addition, I had a few other options for live score updates, for example:

• Cricinfo.com on my mobile browser (http://m.cricinfo.com)
• Cricinfo.com widget on Snaptu, a mobile app that is much more cool than a website.
• Mobilink cricket companion that is a J2ME app for your phone
• Cricinfo’s own J2ME app available from Plusmo

All of the above are text based cricket score tools and eventually were much slower than that of FM radio. I was still missing the TV as I knew that the power is not going to be available. Then I recalled a service that I tried several months ago. Yes, Mobilink TV. I simply directed my browser to Mobilink TV’s wap site and launched the sports channel on my phone. Within a few seconds I could watch the match live. That was the best thing that happened to me in several days :)
It was an amazing experience. I watched the match for almost 45 minutes. But I must warn and inform you about a few facts here:

• The service is very expensive but at that time, it was worth it. It costs Rs. 6/megabyte plus tax. According to a careful calculation, it must have costed me around Rs. 100 or more for these 45 minutes. (I’ll post the exact amount once I get my bill)
• The TV transmission sound was crystal clear but you need external speakers for better experience.
• The quality of video for a 3 inch screen was moderate. I could hardy read the score at the bottom of the screen but could clearly understand what’s going on in the game.
• Like any other internet video solution, there were points when video got stuck for data buffering. May be a few seconds pause every couple of minutes.
• There was around 25 seconds delay as compared to normal TV or radio’s live coverage.
• And yes, there is a specific set of compatible handsets that runs this service. Not all smart phones are compatible. Even the BlackBerries are not :(
• Last but not least, there is a separate access-point setup needed to access these TV streams. Make sure to get the settings by calling the helpline.

In short it was fun to watch cricket without electricity. Lets see how much fun it will be to pay for it :)
Please share your experience if any.

Standard & Poor’s Raises Rating on Pakistan’s Mobilink

Why did S&P raise ratings for Mobilink, despite the tough economic conditions in Pakistan? Two reasons: reduction in capital expenses and savings resulting from suspension of management fees to Orascom. From Cellular-News.

Mobilink continues to remain exposed to the weak macroeconomic environment, external liquidity position and security situation in Pakistan. However, they expect the recent improvement in macroeconomic environment to result in better operating performance. Also, in the near term, S&P expects Mobilink to face less funding challenges as it is expected to register positive free operating cash flows through significant reduction in capital expenditure and suspension of management fees to Orascom Telecom. Pakistan’s cellular market continues to face intense competition, resulting in lower subscriber numbers and market share for Mobilink. Nevertheless, Mobilink has maintained its No. 1 market share both in terms of subscribers and revenue in Pakistan’s wireless market.

S&P believes parent Orascom Telecom would continue to provide support to Mobilink, if required, considering: (1) the cross-default clause at the parent company in the event of a covenant breach of material subsidiaries, including Mobilink; and (2) Mobilink is the second-largest operation of Orascom Telecom by most financial measures and accounted for 20.6% of the consolidated EBITDA for 2008.
This follows Standard & Poor’s decision to raise the long-term sovereign credit ratings on Pakistan (B-/Stable/C).

Mobilink CEO – Nominated For WCA CEO Of The Year

This year the CEO of the year category in World Communication Awards (WCA) has a nomination from Pakistan – Mr. Rashid Khan, President and CEO of Mobilink Pakistan.

Rashid Khan took over as CEO of Mobilink Pakistan in October 2008. He previously served as chief executive of Bangladeshi mobile operator Banglalink, also an Orascom company.
“In this moment of recession he has shown his skills to manage the sinking ship Mobilink and put it to road of success,” said one of Khan’s supporters.
“Excellent vision and knowledge of the industry with a vast experience in telecom industry,” added another.
The awards would be held on 25th November 2009. You can cast your vote and see the other nominations here.
The WCA are held every year to recognize the companies and individuals responsible for the innovations, achievements and great new services that are helping to build tomorrows industry.

Cellular Trend Watch – July 2009

The latest numbers from PTA reveal that the total subscriber base of cellular services has reached 95.5 million, and the trend between Moblink and Telenor as discussed earlier continues.

The neck to neck race of subscriber acquisition continues between Mobilink and Telenor as Mobilink gained 414K in July 2009 and Telenor added 406K.

A significant increase as compared to May 2009 in subscriber base of Warid can also be seen, possibly due marketing comeback from Warid and introduction of the Glow prepaid package.

Ufone despite their intense marketing gained less than Zong in July.

The month to month subscriber change for the first half of 2009 shows a consistent increase in subscriber base over the past three months.

If the current growth pace is sustained, the subscriber number should be close to 100 million by end of December 2009.

Ali Zafar after leaving Telenor has joined Mobilink

The race of teleco adverts has taken a new turn now. We have the on-going trend of taunting at each other in adverts but now its about acquiring over the brand ambassadors.

Ali Zafar, the renowned brand ambassador of Telenor Talkshawk has left all with a shock with his entry in the Mobilink Jazz latest promotion commercial. Talkshock!

The latest promotion is , if you haven’t used your Jazz Sim from May 20th, simply switch it on, and recharge. You will get instant Rs.30 plus 100 percent free balance on your first recharge.

The best part of the commercial is “Aaj hi join kia hai, dusari company se aye hain”

New commercial

Waridtel, Zong, Ufone, Telenor, Mobilink sms service center numbers

• Enter Menu Mode on your hand phone
  


• Select \"Messages\" or \"Mail\"
  


• Select \"Message Setting\"
  


• Select \"SMS Centre\"‚ \"Message Centre Number\"‚ \"Route Centre\" or its equivalent
  


• Enter Message Centre Number:

Ufone sms service center number +923330005150 or 00923330005150

Waridtel Service sms center number +9232100006001 or 00923210006001

Telenor Pakistan sms service center number +923455000010 or 00923455000010

Zong Pakistan sms service center number +923040000011 or 00923040000011

Mobilink Pakistan sms service center number +92300000042 or 0092300000042