China Mobile Pakistan, which operates under the Zong brand, will receive new 3G spectrum this month to replace its existing allocation that is disrupted by interference from cordless phones.

The operator, the country’s third largest operator with a 22 per cent market share, reached an agreement with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to have the disrupted spectrum replaced by the end of the year, ProPakistan reported.

Zong has long complained to the regulator that interference in the 1.8GHz band it acquired in the auction last year is causing serious quality of service issues. It spent $210 million on 10MHz of the spectrum, but the 1.8MHz frequency is also used by some versions of DECT 6.0 wireless phones, which causes interference in Zong’s services.

The PTA has banned the use of cordless phones operating on that frequency and has fined importers, but the issue has remained a problem for Zong.

The operator had demanded compensation of $40 million for additional costs incurred and lost revenue and market share over the past year, but it is likely to drop the demand after working out an agreement with the government, a PTA representative told ProPakistan.