Broadband prices likely to go down by 25pc year end
Published on: Thursday, June 21, 2018
Putra Jaya: The price of broadband in Malaysia is expected to fall by at least 25 per cent by year-end, says Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo.This followed the implementation of the Mandatory Standard on Access Pricing (MSAP) since June 8 this year, he told a media conference after attending a post-Cabinet meeting in his ministry here Wednesday."The relevant parties are now in discussion on setting the wholesale price and processes which are expected to be rolled out in July or August, during which cheaper broadband packages will be offered to consumers," he said.
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He said the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) had implemented MSAP since June 8, which came into effect on Jan 1 this year."Discussions will also be held among telcos on whether rebate will be given to customers," added Gobind Singh.The minister said MCMC had been told to consider other measures to reduce further the price of broadband and monitor the price of broadband so that the price of start-up packages was reasonable to the people.He said in comparison with other countries, the starting price for 50 megabit per second (Mbps) is RM74 in Thailand and in Singapore, it is RM134 for 1 gigabit per second while Malaysia is offering RM120 for only 10 Mbps.
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"Many questions have arisen over the matter, so the government is trying to enable cheaper broadband competitive to other countries,' he added.Gobind Singh said it was the policy of MSAP to impose the ceiling price for service and facility provider used by telecommunications companies in the market.
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"A reduction in wholesale price will lead to cheaper market price for consumers," he said.He said MCMC had studied the MSAP policy for a year since 2017 and a review of prices should have been introduced on Jan 1, 2018.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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