Four telecommunication companies in Malaysia have slashed prices for entry-level broadband packages by 56%

Entry-level packages from Telekom Malaysia (TM), TIME dotcom (TIME), Maxis, and Celcom are now priced below RM100 after the implementation of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission’s (MCMC) Mandatory Standard on Access Pricing (MSAP).

The reduction of prices were put in motion after Minister of Communications and Multimedia, Gobind Singh Deo called on telcos to provide more affordable fixed broadband prices for the rakyat in May.

Some telcos are also offering higher speeds at lower prices, with TIME leading the way by becoming the first telco in Malaysia to introduce a gigabit level package for RM199

In comparison, TM – inarguably the largest broadband services provider in Malaysia – only offers Turbo Packages up to 800 Mbps from RM129 to RM329.

However, TIME’s broadband plans have yet to be available to all Malaysians. In fact, potential customers have long complained about TIME’s limited scope of coverage, especially when it comes to landed properties.

TIME revealed that they “simply cannot get approval to plant new poles or get access to existing poles” that would enable them to serve landed properties

The telco added that they are not keen on reselling “someone else’s network either”, as their network runs purely on their own infrastructure so that they can control quality and speed of their services.

“The same goes for our submarine cable network that connects to the global Internet across four continents. That’s what we believe sets us apart from the rest,” it added.