Broadband pricing down 56pct

KUALA LUMPUR: The recent announcement made by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) saw broadband pricing in Malaysia reduced by up to 56 per cent and made the new pricing applicable to all including telecommunication companies’ (telcos) existing customers.

Communications and Multimedia Consumer Forum of Malaysia (CFM) chairman Mohamad Yusrizal Yusoff lauded the initiative made by the Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo and the support given by the service providers particularly Celcom, Maxis, TIME and Telekom Malaysia (TM) in ensuring the broadband is affordable to all Malaysians.

On his first day in office, Gobind said he would work towards achieving broadband connections that are “double the speed, half the price” for Malaysians.

He said the public has been complaining about the quality of broadband in Malaysia, which is said to be inferior to broadband in developed countries.

However, Mohamad Yusrizal said while prices had been reduced, the consumer body continues to receive number of queries as well as grievances expressed through CFM’s social media, on detail information of the new offer.

“This review in pricing is new to all subscribers and consumers, and I believe, they did not get sufficient information of the new prices, speed, and the details of the terms and conditions.

“As the consumer forum on telecommunications and multimedia services, we continue to engage actively with our members (service providers) for the right information to be shared with the consumers,” he said in a statement.

He said certain packages come with an extension of the contracts. Customers are advised to contact their service providers for further information and clarification.

“Besides that, we continuously received complaints regarding no coverage and speed issues from the consumers. In Malaysia we note that there are so many options available to the consumer.

“We have different packages of wireless and satellite broadband. We should be smart in choosing the best option for us by knowing our type of usage and its respective level of consumption,” he said.

With this move made by the service providers, Mohamad Yusrizal said CFM is confident that Malaysia is making one more step forward to achieve the National Connectivity Plan (NCP) for people to have the internet access throughout the nation.

“CFM on the other hand, will continue to monitor the delivery of these new services being offered to consumers and would encourage consumers to keep themselves well-informed before subscribing to any packages,” he said.

Source: NST