Published April 24, 2009

YTL building RM2.5b IT network

Nationwide mobile Internet network aims to land 14 million subscribers

By PAULINE NG
IN KUALA LUMPUR

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MALAYSIAN conglomerate YTL group plans to invest RM2.5 billion (S$1.04 billion) for the nationwide roll out of its mobile Internet network, which is due to be completed in 14 months.

About RM1 billion would be spent in the first year, YTL e-Solutions (YTLE) executive chairman and managing director Francis Yeoh said yesterday at the signing ceremony between its wholly-owned subsidiary Y-Max Infra with Samsung Electronics Co. Malaysian stock exchange listed YTLE is the technology unit of the group.

More than 2,000 sites have been geographically mapped for the base stations, and in six to eight months subscribers would get a taste of the technology.

Under the agreement Samsung would provide YTLE a total WiMAX network package which includes base stations, an end-to-end IP Multimedia Service (IMS) solution, and a range of Mobile Internet Devices. The Korean electronics giant would also supply YTLE the world's first WiMAX-enabled handsets.

YTLE is aiming to land 14 million subscribers, or half of Malaysia's 27 million population - an objective that is not impossible, he said, but a do-able 'blue ocean' initiative which would create new jobs and generate an 'explosion' in knowledge workers.

Indeed, Mr Yeoh who helms the YTL group and its vast business interests ranging from power, real estate, hotels, to water utilities, believes Internet technology is a huge growth engine which has potential yet to be fully unleashed.

US President Barack Obama used technology to great effect to win the presidential election, he observed, adding that while former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad's vision for the Multimedia Super Corridor was fantastic, it remains largely unexploited 12 years later.

However, giving easy Internet access to Malaysians everywhere in the country could transform the way information is accessed and leveraged.

It could also change the way businesses are run, he said, pointing to Chinese companies that have leveraged the platform to establish far bigger things such as Alibaba.com. 'This is so exciting for me, Jurassic though I am.'

But competition will be fierce. There are four WiMAX operators - including YTLE - that hold 2.3 GHz spectra licences. Moreover, the government had also awarded 14 other players, 3.5 and 2.5 GHZ spectra licences, although some have not launched their services.

YTLE's partners are expected to make a difference. Besides its partnership with Samsung, it had also teamed up with Sprint and Clearwater.