As promised earlier, the Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil has announced a new Fixed Broadband package aimed at providing affordable internet for B40, veterans, people with disabilities (OKU) and senior citizens. The Pakej Perpaduan Jalur Lebar Tetap provides high-speed broadband up to 30Mbps with no data cap for RM69/month.
According to the official statement, the B40 broadband plan will be offered starting March 2023 and it will be tied to a 24-month contract. He added that the RM69/month plan is 22% more affordable than what’s available in the market which is typically offered for RM89/month. This would translate to a savings of RM480 throughout the 24-month contract period.
Fahmi added that the affordable broadband package is made possible with support from broadband providers such as Telekom Malaysia (TM), CelcomDigi, Maxis, U Mobile, YTL, Time and Astro. He added that the initiative is not only in line with the ambition to reduce the burden of the people but also as an indicator that the government is concerned about the needs and wellbeing of the people as well as ensuring digital connectivity is affordable in line with the MADANI Malaysia concept.
Pakej Perpaduan Jalur Lebar Tetap – Hanya RM69 sebulan
— Fahmi Fadzil
Pelan ini akan memberi penjimatan 22% dari harga asal atau penjimatan RM480 dalam tempoh 2 tahun. pic.twitter.com/gRIepkB6Nu(@fahmi_fadzil) February 2, 2023
While the affordable broadband plan is good for lower-income groups, it isn’t clear if the telcos would impose restrictive terms and conditions to lock in the B40 customers. As we’ve highlighted previously, several providers have amended their penalty terms, requiring customers to pay the full subscription fees for the total remaining months if they wish to terminate their fibre broadband plan early. This means if a customer on a RM69/month plan wishes to terminate 12 months earlier, they would be forced to pay a penalty fee of RM828 (12 months x RM69). According to the MCMC, customers are responsible for accepting the T&C as it is up to them to reach a service contract based on a willing buyer willing seller principle.
In terms of sub-RM100 fibre broadband plans available right now, both Maxis and TM offer 30Mbps for RM89/month while Celcom offers 30Mbps for RM80/month and Digi offers 50Mbps for RM90/month. Since the announcement only mentions fixed broadband, this opens up the possibility for not just fibre but also fixed wireless access. TM currently offers Unifi Air for RM79/month while Maxis offers its unlimited 4G WiFi plan for RM138/month. There’s also Yes with its “wireless fibre 5G” plan with unlimited 5G data that’s going for RM148/month.
In December 2022, Fahmi announced the Pakej Perpaduan Prepaid plan which claims to provide 3x the speed for half price and it is targeted at B40, senior citizens, veterans and people with disabilities. The plan is essentially an upgrade of the previous Pakej Remaja Keluarga Malaysia which now comes with double the validity period plus an extra 10GB a month. As we’ve pointed out, the plan didn’t really provide 3x faster speeds as there’s a 3Mbps speed cap. The full Pakej Perpaduan Prepaid plan details are not revealed yet and we expect the telcos to provide more info sometime this month.
Related reading
- Fahmi Fadzil: Good news for fixed broadband users to be announced in coming months
- Fahmi Fadzil, Pakej Perpaduan doesn’t offer 3x speeds for half the price
- Fahmi Fadzil says DNB shouldn’t make 5G coverage claims without verification
- Fahmi Fadzil expects to complete review of Malaysia’s 5G deployment within Q1 2023
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