As Malaysia welcomes the testing of the next generation internet infrastructure Terragraph, we should not forget that for far too long, Malaysians have been paying exorbitant prices for Streamyx, the only home fixed line broadband available to users outside of fiber coverage, using TM’s copper network.
Ranging from RM110/month for a 1Mbps to RM160/month for 8Mbps, Malaysians who are still on Streamyx are paying much more than that their counterparts who have the option to opt for fibre broadband services, as fibre services from either TM’s UniFi, Maxis or Time cost less from RM79/month for 30Mbps and RM129/month for 100Mbps.
The irony and frustration is that the slower internet is far more expensive than the faster internet.
Many of this Streamyx customers do not have a choice to opt for fibre broadband as our fibre network deployed by the various service providers is not exhaustive, and many secondary towns, what more villages don’t have access to it. This deprives millions of Malaysians of high speed fibre broadband.
While fibre coverage takes time to expand, and while new technologies are being tested, it is only fair if the government intervenes to bring down the prices of Streamyx.
While previously the higher speed fibre broadband was more expensive than Streamyx, the situation has turned in the last few months, where competition between Telekom, Maxis and Time coupled with intervention by the Minister and government has resulted in fibre broadband prices reducing, fairly, to amounts that are comparable.
The same could and should happen for Streamyx customers, especially those in areas without fibre coverage.