Malaysia was one of the first few countries that launched WiMAX in the world having been rolled out since August 2008 and one company that was in the thick of it all was P1. The company has never look back since then and to date it is the most aggressive WiMAX operator in expanding coverage and rolling out WiMAX services. So aggressive in fact that when you say WiMAX the first thing you think of is P1.
Tell us more about the mobile & wireless industry today? What do consumers want?
Simply put, everyone wants a high-speed, high-quality, reliable and affordable broadband service that enables them to do simply – everything.
Malaysians from all walks of life are finding that their day-to-day activities are more and more integrated with the Internet. Users today demand a high performance, high speed and reliable connection when surfing the Internet. In fact, most can’t do without it.
From an industry standpoint, innovation is key. It needs to happen fast, it needs to happen frequently and it needs to happen consistently and we’re not just talking about technology here. Products and services too must evolve to cope with demands of Internet savvy Malaysians.
One such innovation is the integration of voice telephony and wireless broadband. We see it as a very real natural progression. Yes, there’s a lot of talk about this but there’s very little for consumers to bite on. Some countries are already doing VOIP on a large scale and Malaysia is not that far behind and that’s where P1 fits in perfectly. We see great opportunity in this, especially in developing next generation network telephony (NGN) that offers superior quality, reliability and affordability to consumers.
Talking about the present, we’ve proven what a wonderful technology WiMAX is. P1 W1MAX delivers high performance, high speed, and a ubiquitous wireless broadband connection that’s reliable and best of all – P1 W1MAX makes cutting edge technology affordable.
How is P1 playing a role from this angle?
My personal mission is to make broadband available for all Malaysians, to ensure that it is a right, not a privilege – and that is P1’s commitment. Our aspiration is to aid Malaysia in bridging its digital divide – that is, 50% of this beautiful country will have broadband access by 2010. With P1 W1MAX, we are forging ahead to achieve this aspiration. In achieving this, P1’s target is to provide broadband access to 35% of the population within this year!
To our customers, P1 is an enabler. Our products make the Internet more accessible, bringing the powerful contents and applications online closer to our customers. We are amongst the first companies in the world to introduce WiMAX to the public. At launch, we set out to innovate technology, products and services and I’m proud to say that we are right on track!
We listen to our customers and we will always try to deliver products and services that are relevant to their wants and needs. A prime example of this is in our latest P1 W1MAX broadband packages. From just RM49 a month, Malaysians can be a part of the WiMAX revolution and experience the superior flexibility and reliability of high-speed, high-performance wireless broadband that WiMAX has to offer.
We believe that there’s a package to suit virtually all types of users, from entry-level home users who need broadband for chatting, email and browsing websites, to power users who watch streaming videos, play online games, or rely on high-speed unlimited data broadband connections for work.
Tell us more about your Fair Usage Policy (FUP). How is it different compared to the other FUPs out there?
I’ll spare the lengthy legal explanations and get straight to the point.
P1’s fair usage policy is one of the best in the country. Of course some quarters will say that this is debatable but I’m sure many will agree that our FUP is heading in the right direction.
Here’s why: We are transparent with our data quotas. We put the numbers up front. You can see that in our plans. They tell you exactly what you need to know. Naturally, as a shared broadband service provider, there will be some mechanisms to ensure that every single one of our customers enjoy the best performance that they can get. In fact, some providers don’t mention FUP, not even in their fine print, but still impose some sort of restriction on their users. At P1, we try to accommodate the needs of our customers the best we can.
In addition, we send out email and SMS reminders to customers who are about to exceed their monthly quotas based on the plan that they have subscribed to. Customers can also login into our self-care system and monitor their data usage themselves. This allows them to manage their data consumption more effectively so they can always enjoy the best performance from P1 W1MAX. I believe P1 is the only high-speed wireless broadband provider in the country that gives customers this flexibility to check, self-monitor and manage their data usage online. For our customers who are interested to try out this service, they can log on to http://myaccount.p1.com my. In the end, it all comes down to P1’s role as an enabler. We provide the tool; how the tool is used, we’ll leave it to our customers’ imagination. In this case, the tool is the high-speed wireless broadband access of course.
Within 7 months we’ve seen the price of the WiMAX modem drop. Considering that the 3G players took years to reduce the hardware price, how did you do it in such a short term?
Essentially, at P1, we always put our customers’ needs first. In the fast-paced Internet industry, being able to react to customer demands in the fastest time possible will give us the competitive edge. We act fast and act right. In the case of the modem price, our customers tell us they love the product but not the price. So we made the price attractive as well. P1 is a company that genuinely looks out for its customers and is constantly seeking ways to improve our service offerings to the varied needs of Malaysian users today.
What do you think are the problems faced by ISPs in this country? Do you see other state governments adopt policies like the one adopted by the Penang Government, to make wireless development faster?
The demand for ubiquitous wireless access is there. Most important of all, the desire is also present. The government, the companies and the people all want to provide the best for Malaysia and for Malaysians. What it all boils down to is technology and cost.
That’s why WiMAX is the best, if not the perfect, technology to make this happen. It is one of the most efficient and cost-effective technologies currently available to roll out wireless broadband across the widest area, especially in rural areas where wired network delivery technology simply costs too much. P1 have been proactive in ensuring that as many Malaysians as possible have access to broadband affordably.
Wireless@KL is one of the very first iconic WiMAX-WiFi Metropolitan Wireless projects in the world. We’ve launched Wireless@KL as one of the pioneer projects initiated by DBKL and MCMC under the Klang Valley Broadband Push (KVB90) to transform Kuala Lumpur into a wireless city. It is also in line with Kuala Lumpur Structural Plan 2020 to make Kuala Lumpur a world-class city.
We are also working very closely with the Penang State Government to realize the Wireless@Penang initiative that aims to provide wireless access across the whole of Penang Island by 2010.
We hope to establish more such partnerships with more states in tandem with our own planned network rollout. Our commitment is to aid the country in realizing its broadband aspirations and provide broadband access for all Malaysians, hopefully soon in the near future.
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