Nepal Telecom to launch prepaid 4G on Feb 4

Nepal Telecom signed up around 40,000 LTE customers in the first 15 days since launching Nepal’s first commercial 4G network.

The state-owned operator launched LTE services in the Kathmandu and Pokhara areas on January 1, and has seen a growing trickle of 4G subscribers, MyRepublica reported, citing comments from managing director Kamini Rajbhandari to Nepal’s parliament.

According to the report, 4G services will be enabled for iPhones shortly, and for prepaid customers from February 4. The operator is also targeting nationwide 4G services within a year.

But the parliamentary committee pressured the operator to address commonly-cited problems including weak network quality and credit recharge problems within a month.

The committee also instructed Nepal Telecom to provide internet services in rural areas through the Rural Telecommunication Development Fund.

Nepal Telecom, the Ministry of Information and Communications and regulator the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) have also been instructed to amend the nation’s 20 year old Telecommunications Act, as well as the 2003 Telecommunications Policy.