KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) has issued a statement welcoming the Malaysian government’s decision to retain the current Single Wholesale Network (SWN) model for 5G deployment. At the same time, they have also announced an extension for its free 5G access to telcos which was supposed to end on the 31st March 2022.

According to DNB, they are pleased that the government has reaffirmed that the current “cost-recovery”, “supply-led” SWN model being implemented by DNB is best suited to accelerating the deployment of the national 5G network and encouraging its adoption by the Rakyat. It added that it is consistent with the country’s digital economy aspirations and positions Malaysia as an attractive destination for global investors.

The statement also mentions that they are looking forward to engaging with the telcos to discuss and agree on all aspects related to the proposed equity participating in DNB. As revealed today, the government said they are willing to reduce their equity in DNB from 100 per cent to 30 per cent, allowing telcos to take up a 70 per cent stake in the company.

To facilitate a seamless transition for telcos that have yet to sign up, DNB is extending its current commercial pilot to 30th June 2022. The commercial pilot allows telcos to access the network without charge and provide 5G services to their customers. The commercial 5G pilot started on 15th December 2022 with only YTL Communications and Telekom Malaysia (TM), taking up the offer.

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At the moment, YTL’s Yes 5G is the only telco offering 5G services to consumers and they are giving away free 5G-enabled SIM packs with 30-day validity. Despite being the first to officially announce plans to offer 5G via DNB, TM has not provided any timeline to provide Unifi Mobile customers access to 5G services. The big four telcos such as Celcom, Digi, Maxis and U Mobile have yet to sign a wholesale agreement with DNB pending the finalisation of the Reference Access Offer (RAO).

At the moment, DNB’s 5G network covers selected areas in Kuala Lumpur, Cyberjaya, and Putrajaya. It is currently rolling out in Johor and they aim to achieve 40 per cent coverage by end of 2022. DNB ultimately aims to accelerate deployment with a goal of hitting 80 per cent coverage by 2024. — SoyaCincau