The call by Malaysia Communication and Multimedia Commission for telecommunication providers to ensure 4G coverage is widely available by end 2021 under the Jendela initiative is proving to be successful. Major players have embarked on upgrading works on existing sites with most reporting completion by end of the year, the rush is also due to MCMC insisting on shutting 3G network by then. In this aspect, Maxis a key provider of 4G coverage in the country has built more than 150 new sites and completed upgrades at more than 5,500 sites in key market centres in both Peninsula and East Malaysia.
This is part of the operators on going infrastructure improvement plans, to date Maxis has delivered 100% of its own 2020 targets for Jalinan Digital Negara (Jendela), achieving upgrades of more than 35% of the total upgrades of 16,367 sites by the industry. For remote areas, the company will leverage all its available platforms including mobile, fibre, WiFi and satellite communication capabilities to bring a better network experience to these areas.
“The pandemic has levelled the field for people from all walks of life and everyone can identify with the universal dependence on technology to connect with one another. This has brought digitalisation to new levels, as Malaysians began to fully leverage and experience technology in the true sense – from personal life, to learning, in businesses big and small, and running the economy. Maxis’ vision is to build the best network for the nation, driven by our purpose to bring together the best of technologies to enable all Malaysians to Always Be Ahead in a changing world,” said Gokhan Ogut, Maxis’ Chief Executive Officer.
Kiulu, a small town in Tuaran, Sabah, is one of the many locations where Maxis had built new sites and completed 4G upgrades last year. This has provided the community at six villages, Kampung Sinorut, Kampung Gonipis, Pukak, Lokub, Mantob and Kitapol, with high speed 4G coverage for the first time.
For 2021, Maxis will remain focused on optimising its network in anticipation of the continuing surge in Internet traffic. 4G coverage expansion is also being accelerated to rural and underserved areas as part of the USP projects, while strengthening Quality of Experience in urban, residential and industrial areas with upgrades to mobile sites in several states including Perak, Kelantan, Pahang, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak. Concurrently, Maxis will be rolling out fibre in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Penang and Johor, with greater focus on rural and remote locations, while collaborating with access providers to connect even more premises in the country. To provide further support and awareness to its customers, Maxis will also be amplifying its communications on 3G sunsetting scheduled for end 2021, including 4G device campaigns.
As for the future, Maxis has long prepared its next-generation IP network to be 5G-ready, conducting successful trials, including the first 5G live trials in the country in the past years. It has brought new and innovative 5G use cases to educate the public on the technology’s potential and capabilities, via the 5G Demonstration Projects (5GDP) and industry showcases. These include 5G in education via its eKelas VR use case, Smart Security, Smart Agriculture and Fixed Wireless Access applications. Meanwhile, Maxis and Huawei have also been progressing well on their TechCity initiative in Kuala Lumpur with a focus on increasing 4G capacity and user experience, enable fast 5G deployment, and achieve optimisation of existing network resources.
