KUALA LUMPUR: The decision to move away from a 5G single wholesale network (SWN) does not involve additional financial implications for the government, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
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The Prime Minister said this was because the private service providers involved agreed to fully finance the dual network.
Anwar also told the Dewan Rakyat that the decision to transition to a dual network was to break the monopoly by Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) and provide more options to the public.
“(Offering) more network options to the public… will then overcome single (point of) failure issues.
“It will also ensure that the participation of telcos is more comprehensive to guarantee the sustainability of the telecommunications industry in Malaysia,” he told the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday (May 23) during Prime Minister’s Question Time.
Anwar was responding to Rodziah Ismail (PH-Ampang) who asked him to state whether or not the decision to move away from the SWN model resulted in losses in terms of breach of international contracts, security risks, additional financial implications for the government and increased 5G prices for consumers.
On the service prices, Anwar said telcos are bound to the terms set by DNB which will not allow them to increase pricing.
“This transition to a dual-network model will not increase the price of existing 5G services that consumers currently enjoy,” he said.
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The wholesale price of 5G for both networks will be equivalent to or cheaper than the existing wholesale price offered by DNB which is RM30,000 per gigabit per second (Gbps) or equivalent to approximately 13 sen per gigabyte.
Anwar also added that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) will be empowered to monitor and regulate the service provided by the telcos.
“MCMC’s roles are currently limited. The rules and laws will soon be streamlined so that the commission can effectively regulate the telcos even after (implementation) of the dual network model,” he said.
MCMC will also be responsible for cybersecurity matters along with agencies such as Cybersecurity Malaysia (CSM) and National Cyber Security Agency (NAcsa).
On May 3, Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil said DNB will continue to roll out the 5G network infrastructure in Malaysia until 80% coverage is achieved by the end of this year.
– The Star