The strategic collaboration affirms TM’s commitment and readiness to drive Malaysia’s Digital Economy aspirations as the national digital infrastructure accelerator
Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) marked another milestone as the national connectivity and digital infrastructure provider when its wholesale domestic and international business arm, TM WHOLESALE, entered into a collaboration with nine (9) tower providers (TowerCos), enabling access to tower sites facilities.
The nine (9) TowerCos are the members of Persatuan Penyedia Infrastruktur Telekomunikasi (PPIT), namely D'Harmoni Telco Infra Sdn Bhd, Melaka ICT Holdings Sdn Bhd, Perlis Comm Sdn Bhd, Infra Quest Sdn Bhd, Perak Integrated Network Services Sdn Bhd, EdgePoint Towers Sdn Bhd, PDC Telecommunication Services Sdn Bhd, Desabina Industries Sdn Bhd and Yiked Bina Sdn Bhd.
The ceremony was held recently in Johor Bahru attended by TM and nine (9) other TowerCos. TM was represented by Amar Huzaimi Md Deris, Executive Vice President, TM WHOLESALE, while the TowerCos were represented by:
- Dato' Haji Mohd Rehat Ahmad, Chief Operating Officer, D'Harmoni Telco Infra Sdn Bhd, who is also the President of PPIT
- Dato' Mohd Fauzi Yaakub, Deputy Chairman, Melaka ICT Holdings Sdn Bhd
- Dato' Ramli Abd Rahman, Managing Director, Perlis Comm Sdn Bhd
- Ab Aziz Yunus, Executive Chairman, Infra Quest Sdn Bhd
- Iwan Che Wan Che Ismail, Chief Executive Officer / Managing Director, Perak Integrated Network Services Sdn Bhd
- Muniff Kamaruddin, Chief Executive Officer, EdgePoint Towers Sdn Bhd
- Hasmunir Hamid, Acting Chief Executive Officer, PDC Telecommunication Services Sdn Bhd
- Shikh Badrudden Shikh Ismail, General Manager, Desabina Industries Sdn Bhd
- Azhan Abdul Hamid, General Manager, Yiked Bina Sdn Bhd
Under the collaboration, the nine (9) TowerCos will provide TM with access to their tower sites, including land and rooftop facilities. This will enable TM to connect the towers with its high-speed fibre optic network to support high quality network performance and capability.
Commenting on the collaboration, Amar Huzaimi said, "TM through TM WHOLESALE, is committed to ensuring our national telecommunication industry is provided with cutting edge connectivity and extensive fibre infrastructure solutions as a catalyst to accelerate the delivery of a high quality digital experience to all Malaysians, true to our role as national digital infrastructure accelerator. This will allow service providers to serve their customers with faster connectivity speed and greater bandwidth capacity for the current 4G and future 5G services nationwide. This partnership further demonstrates our commitment as the enabler of Digital Malaysia in supporting the country's digital aspirations, which include the Jalinan Digital Negara (JENDELA) and the Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDIGITAL)."
Meanwhile, Dato' Hj Mohd Rehat said, "TM has been a long-standing partner of PPIT for over a decade, and together, we have developed a high level of trust among each other. After a few series of fruitful discussions, PPIT and TM have once again agreed to ink a new collaboration to continue to work hand-in-hand in respect of the access to tower sites facilities."
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TM turns in solid 1Q2021 performance; strong start to transformation programme
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This subsequently led to a strong 113.4% YoY growth in Group PATAMI from RM152.5 million last year to RM325.5 million. In 1Q2021, the Company invested 8.8% of revenue in capex amounting to RM247.0 million as it continued to modernise its network and technology platforms towards delivering current and future solutions for customers. Of the amount invested, 69% was for network access including JENDELA (fibre broadband expansion), 12% for core network, and the balance 19% for support systems. 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Meanwhile, its IT systems are also undergoing enhancements to provide better customer experience and cost optimisation via simplification and consolidation of platforms. Notably, unifi rolled out a new order management system that reduces order processing time by more than 60%, to improve customer experience across its sales touchpoints. TM ONE continues to enable the digital transformation journey of enterprise and public sector customers with a comprehensive suite of connectivity, data centre, Cloud, cybersecurity and smart solutions. After cautious spending in 2020, customers are now accelerating their digitalisation, and this has translated into new sales and contract renewals to provide comprehensive digital solutions, especially in key verticals such as oil and gas, the banking and financial services industry (BFSI) as well as from higher broadcast, ICT and customer projects. 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Towards establishing Malaysia as an ASEAN digital hub, TM strengthened its partnership ecosystem with international carriers and hyperscalers registering higher revenue for International Data Services as compared to last year. TM expanded its portfolio of data centre customers with more major Asian and US hyperscalers co-locating at the nation's only Tier III twin core data centres at Iskandar Puteri (IPDC) and Klang Valley (KVDC). Its wholesale Content Delivery Network (CDN) services also expanded its digital media delivery network ecosystem with more new customers in 1Q2021. TM remains committed to sustainable growth, with continued emphasis on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), maintaining its strong track record as one of the 75 Bursa companies on the FTSE4Good Bursa Malaysia Index, with the full rating of 4/4. Environment: TM complies with the Environmental Quality Act 1974, and has reduced its annual carbon emissions by 13%; integrating sustainable practices in all areas of operations. Social: TM ensures the safety and health of customers and Warga TM with special working arrangements implemented and enhanced Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) towards business and customer service continuity. TM also supports the nation and communities in need through connectivity initiatives such as Jaringan Prihatin, CERDIK, MYBAIKHATI and other humanitarian aid. Governance: Committed to uncompromising integrity, TM continuously assesses the Group's corruption risk and ensures its corruption mitigation practices are independently certified. Imri Mokhtar, Managing Director & Group Chief Executive Officer commented: "We began 2021 with a positive momentum and a strong start to our 'New TM' 2021-2023 Transformation Programme. 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As an essential enabler, we are ready to play a leading role in the execution of both, the JENDELA implementation plan and the realisation of the Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDIGITAL); leveraging on our comprehensive connectivity, digital infrastructure and innovative solutions. We are also committed towards sustainable growth, with increased emphasis on ESG by our Board and management. We remain focused on our ESG sustainability journey. I am pleased to update that we maintained our track record as one of the 75 Bursa companies on the FTSE4Good Bursa Malaysia Index, with a full rating of 4/4. With this encouraging set of overall results, we are on track to meet our 2021 market guidance and look forward to delivering greater customer experience and shareholder value with our New TM Transformation Programme."
TM expands its unifi service to more areas in Kuching
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As Malaysia’s national telecommunications services provider, with its extensive network and expertise, I believe TM is more than capable to facilitate Sarawak’s digital transformation journey.” Meanwhile in his speech, Jafer Sadig said, “As the enabler of Digital Malaysia aspiration, we are excited to deliver our unifi service to Kpg BGS so the residents there can fully utilise the high speed connectivity to cater to their digital lifestyle. We will also continue to upgrade the network infrastructure to fibre optic beyond Kpg BGS in Kuching Division to fulfill the increasing demand for unifi. This has become more essential as the nation adapts to the new normal in which our activities including work, education, business and leisure have been digitalised. 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Consolidation of TM’s business in Malaysia to strengthen fixed-mobile convergence leadership and improve operational efficiency
Telekom Malaysia Berhad ("TM" or "the Group") today announced an internal reorganisation which involves the transfer of its business in Malaysia to a single operating entity named TM Technology Services Sdn Bhd ("TM Tech"). The internal reorganisation is anticipated to complete by 31 December 2023. The reorganisation – which includes Unifi, TM One and TM Wholesale, among others – marks the next phase of the Group's transformation to be the enabler of a digital Malaysia, and to further improve its operational efficiencies, streamline processes and simplify customer touchpoints to provide a more seamless customer experience. Incorporating its diverse businesses under TM Tech will also reinforce TM's Fixed-Mobile Convergence leadership, offering integrated fixed broadband, mobile services, data services, digital content and innovative solutions to communities, businesses and the Government. Group CEO, Imri Mokhtar said, "As digital lifestyles, increasing competition and stakeholder expectations reshape the industry, consolidating these businesses into one operating entity will allow us to serve our diverse customer segments better and deliver their needs more quickly. "Consolidating our suite of connectivity and digital offerings will also enable us to easily tap into the right combination of solutions to meet the unique needs of individual lifestyles and businesses." "Furthermore, this reorganisation aligns us to industry best practices and will improve TM's competitive edge among Malaysian and international Telcos and digital players, as we continue to pursue our aspiration of becoming a leading human-centred TechCo," he added. Under TM Tech, consumers will continue to enjoy the fastest and widest all-in-one connectivity and digital content. Enterprises and the public sector will also benefit from TM's digital and smart solutions, including cloud and data centres, cybersecurity and smart industry offerings. The operating entity will also continue to champion TM's nation-building efforts in expanding and modernising the country's fibre network, data centres and submarine cable systems. TM Tech will be led by TM's existing senior management team and will bring together its diverse talents under a single company, encouraging greater agility and cross-functional collaboration to improve service quality. Imri explained, "Our Warga TM will remain the execution engine for TM and the country's digital transformation. While our workforce will be realigned to this single operating entity, employee functions, entitlements and benefits will remain unchanged." Similarly, all of TM's partnerships, vendor and service agreements will remain in effect. Telekom Malaysia Berhad will now serve as an investment holding company for this operating entity, with all other subsidiaries within the Group to remain status quo. "Beyond TM's own growth, this reorganisation strengthens our role in advancing the country's digital transformation and to serve our customers in a more cohesive manner. While it marks a new milestone in our continuous transformation, we remain anchored to our purpose of enabling digital inclusion, opportunities and progress for all," Imri concluded.