PENANG: Maxis Communications Bhd sees potential in the third-generation (3G) business, which it views as one of the sectors that will determine the future development of the telecommunications company (telco), chief operating officer Edward Ying said.
“If you know how to use it, it (3G) can be a very useful tool,” Ying said in an interview here recently.
He said the growth potential of the local 3G market would be further enhanced, going forward, when the prices of 3G handsets decreased in line with wider access to such services.
“I foresee 3G handsets coming down to at least RM800 per handset by end-2007 from about RM1,000 currently,” he said.
“We have plans to provide 60% of the population with 3G coverage by 2009.”
Ying also said the mobile operator currently had 200,000 3G subscribers and had a target to achieve a total of about 5 million subscribers within the next three to five years.
“We plan to spend about RM1.5bil over the next three years to expand our 3G business,” Ying said, adding that about RM600mil had already been spent so far to grow the segment.
Maxis announced last Friday that it had completed the expansion of its 3G network in Penang island.
With this, its 3G coverage now extends to Penang, Kuantan, the Klang Valley and Johor Baru.
“At the same time, we have also installed High Speed Data Packet Access, an upgrade of the 3G network, to deliver high-speed broadband connection to key residential areas in Penang,” Ying said.
He said with Maxis' 3G high-speed data network, customers could enjoy video calls, LIVE TV (Maxis TV) and video streaming on their handsets while downloading ring tones and video clips in mere seconds.
Ying said the telco’s Maxis TV feature enabled customers to enjoy international television programmes such as Discovery Mobile, SportsTV and Astro’s Astro Ria, Astro Vaanavil and Astro AEC on their mobile phones.
As part of efforts to boost the usage of Maxis 3G, Maxis has extended its free video call promotion to Dec 31.
With this promotion, Maxis post-paid customers can make video calls for free from 7pm to 7am, while Hotlink customers can enjoy free video calls to Active 5 numbers all day.
The company recently concluded its three-day roadshow in Penang to mark the island as a Maxis3G island.
