Pakistan's first Pager service

[Safriz]

DC Pager was the first Digital pager company in Pakistan mainly operating in Karachi and Lahore.
Their service started around the same time , late 80s , when Pakistan's first Mobile phone service "Paktel" started operating.
Paktel Mobile phones were very bulky and expensive, about 4 Lakh rupees in today's money and battery the size of a Motorcycle battery.
Pager was a small device (Actual device shown in the picture), with very long battery life.
In 1995 ,DC pager had about 15 Thousand users in Karachi. Like any pager service it was a text message based device. The user carried the pager device with him or her. Anyone wanting to contact the user had to ring the DC pager call center , ask them to page a message to the user. The user would then be sent a small message,which was most of th etimes a request to call a certain land line number.
It was very cheap and affordable service at the time.
The company started taking financial hits during 1995 Mohajir-Pushtoon riots in Karachi. Their service was repeatedly shut due to security concersns and rioteers on both sides using pager service for planning attacks.
The company closed their doors in 2001.
They also had in-house research and development wing in collaboration with TIP of Haripur. They invented Pakistan specific telex serivice and implemented in many telephone exchanges.

 

[war&peace]

So how does it work? where is the keyboard?

 

[Safriz]

So how does it work? where is the keyboard?

It was a one way text service.
You couldnt reply, you had to go visit or call the sender. The sender had to contact the pager comany's office and ask them to send you a message.

 

[Azadkashmir]

 

[Musalman]

They used to their office in cricket house on Jail Road Lahore. Unfortunately TIP is also closed and we spend billions in cell phone imports. I really wish GOP revive its old industrial base and ban import of unnecessary items in Pakistan

 

[Safriz]

They used to their office in cricket house on Jail Road Lahore. Unfortunately TIP is also closed and we spend billions in cell phone imports. I really wish GOP revive its old industrial base and ban import of unnecessary items in Pakistan

TIP is still functional but now a military institution making radios for Pakistan army.

 

[Thorough Pro]

I think pagers came a lot earlier than mobile phones.

View attachment 522318
DC Pager was the first Digital pager company in Pakistan mainly operating in Karachi and Lahore.
Their service started around the same time , late 80s , when Pakistan's first Mobile phone service "Paktel" started operating.
Paktel Mobile phones were very bulky and expensive, about 4 Lakh rupees in today's money and battery the size of a Motorcycle battery.
Pager was a small device (Actual device shown in the picture), with very long battery life.
In 1995 ,DC pager had about 15 Thousand users in Karachi. Like any pager service it was a text message based device. The user carried the pager device with him or her. Anyone wanting to contact the user had to ring the DC pager call center , ask them to page a message to the user. The user would then be sent a small message,which was most of th etimes a request to call a certain land line number.
It was very cheap and affordable service at the time.
The company started taking financial hits during 1995 Mohajir-Pushtoon riots in Karachi. Their service was repeatedly shut due to security concersns and rioteers on both sides using pager service for planning attacks.
The company closed their doors in 2001.
They also had in-house research and development wing in collaboration with TIP of Haripur. They invented Pakistan specific telex serivice and implemented in many telephone exchanges.