Pakistan’s fixed broadband networks are still falling short of the quality standards set by the regulator, according to a new Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) survey covering the third quarter of 2026. The survey, published on November 11, found slow upload speeds, network congestion, high latency, jitter and packet loss affecting services in several cities.
What happened?
The PTA carried out two Quality of Service (QoS) surveys for fixed-line broadband during July to September 2026, under the Fixed Broadband Quality of Service Regulations, 2022. One survey measured the service as customers experience it, covering 12 broadband operators in 15 cities. The other checked networks from the operator side, covering 23 operators across 21 cities. The regulator’s Enforcement Division ran the checks through field testing and inspections of network operation centres.
Key details
- At the user end, Multinet Pakistan’s Rawalpindi operation was among the weakest, meeting only two of eight quality indicators for a compliance score of 25%.
- Cyber Internet Services scored 37.5% in Lahore and 50% in Islamabad on the user-end survey.
- Wide Band Communications in Peshawar was the only operator to meet all eight user-end indicators.
- At the network end, 16 of 28 city-operator entries met all seven indicators. The rest scored between 57.14% and 85.71%.
- Pace Telecom and Broadcasting recorded the lowest network-end score, 57.14% in Abbottabad, after missing both core network availability (99.73% against a required 99.9%) and access network availability (97.13% against 99%).
- Falcon Broadband in Vehari recorded jitter of 40.61 milliseconds, well above the permitted maximum of 15 milliseconds.
- Upload speed was one of the most common weaknesses. Under PTA rules, upload speeds must reach at least 25% of the advertised package speed for xDSL connections and over 50% for other technologies, while download speeds must exceed 80% of advertised speeds.
- Several operators, including PTCL, Naya Tel, Connect Communications, Nexlinx Networks and Burak Tech, were flagged for download throughput shortfalls, and some networks exceeded the 80% bandwidth utilisation limit, which can slow speeds during peak hours.
- On a positive note, all surveyed operators met the prescribed local and international latency limits at the network end, and the minimum throughput of 4 Mbps download and 2 Mbps upload.
- The PTA has asked the non-compliant operators to fix the problems, including capacity upgrades, network optimisation and congestion management, and will run follow-up tests to check whether the issues have been addressed.
What it means for people in Pakistan
For households and businesses, the survey explains a familiar frustration: a connection can look fine on paper yet feel slow when uploading files, joining video calls or working during busy evening hours. The findings give customers a public record to hold their provider to, and the promised follow-up testing means operators that fell short will be checked again. The full survey results are published on the PTA website.
Source: Business Recorder
