Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil has confirmed that four telecommunications companies – Telekom Malaysia, CelcomDigi, Maxis, and U Mobile – have submitted bids to run Malaysia’s second 5G network.
He, however, did not commit to a specific timeline as to when a decision would be made, but said it would be by the end of the year.
“In principle, the dual 5G network is designed to break the existing monopoly in 5G services and to promote healthy competition within the telecommunications sector. This is to ensure the sustainability of the entire telecommunications ecosystem, and that the public has access to high quality and affordable 5G services,” said Fahmi, on the sidelines of the Huawei Malaysia supplier ecosystem convention in Kuala Lumpur today.
“The second provider will be the one who offers the best price. MCMC will make that decision. I will not be involved.
“No one in the world thought we could roll out a 5G network using a single wholesaler. No other country has migrated from a single, to a dual network, which is what we’re about to do. We can do this because the conditions have been met.”
CelcomDigi announced that it submitted a proposal to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) on July 31. It is not known when the other three telcos submitted their bid.
Some had been critical of the government’s decision to take the dual network approach, claiming that Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) could become another white elephant.
DNB, an agency under the Digital Ministry, achieved 82 per cent 5G network coverage of populated areas within three years.
Fahmi said: “We reached 80 per cent coverage in less than 10 months. It was not easy, but we managed it.
“We want to make sure that our internet is not only the fastest in Southeast Asia, or the fastest among the fastest in the world, among the cheapest in the world, among the most widely covered in Malaysia, but we also want to make sure that it’s safer,” he added.
