ISLAMABAD, Aug 9: A Chinese telecommunication player is investing about $300 million in Total Telecom, a local company to re-launch Instaphone with CDMA technology, Dawn has learnt reliably.

Six million CDMA (Code Division Multiplier Access) lines will be available for the subscribers from early next year soon after its re-introduction.

Total Telecom has recently purchased all the shares of Instaphone (Millicom Group) in Pakcom Limited, a cellular operator in Pakistan. Total Telecom is also the owner of Tele Card, the first Pakistani company providing alternative, integrated service provider of telecommunication users through Long Distant International (LDI).

Launched in 1991, Instaphone is the pioneer of mobile telephony in Pakistan and has over 360,117 subscriber base across the country.

At present the company has a wide range of economical packages in both pre-paid and post-paid categories, having a network reach over 185 cities across Pakistan but currently operating on the TDMA network, an old digital technology.

Instaphone is also first mobile operator in Pakistan whose licence was renewed for 15 years after completion of its full tenure of operations.

Telecommunication experts believe that CDMA is the choice of the future since it offers better sound quality, handles more call volume than old technology and has the potential of providing television services.

Based on spread-spectrum communication technique, it can handle data transmissions better than other technologies.

CDMA networks are also built with standard IP packet data protocols, when other network requires costly upgrades to add new data equipment in the network for which they also need new data phones. Standard CDMA phones also have TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) and PPP (Point to Point Protocol) built into them.

It is believed that China Telecom Limited has shown interest to invest and activate the Instaphone to compete in the growing mobile telecommunication sector of Pakistan.