Pakistan’s five mobile operators added about 16 million 3G/4G users last year, expanding the country’s mobile broadband user base to 23.65 million, according to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

3G/4G connections now account for nearly 19 per cent of total mobile connections, which increased by 1.65 million in December to end the year at 126 million, ProPakistani reported.

Market leader Mobilink had a 29 per cent market share in Q4, followed by Telenor (28 per cent), Zong (19 per cent), Ufone (18 per cent) and Warid (8 per cent). Mobilink will widen its lead over Norway’s Telenor after its planned merger with Warid, which will give it 47 million mobile connections compared with Telenor’s 34 million.

Only China Mobile-backed Zong and Warid offer 4G service. Zong has a slight lead over Warid (283,000 vs 214,000). Warid recently expanded its 4G coverage to 34 major cities. Zong said it has 4G coverage in all the major cities.

The country’s mobile teledensity ended the year at 65.3 per cent, while the number of total broadband subscribers increased to 26.3 million, the PTA said.