The Chief Minister of Penang, Chow Kon Yeow recently has announced that Penang is aiming to become the first in Malaysia to offer gigabit network throughout the state. In order to achieve this aim, the state will be working with seven local telco companies as well as the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) through a framework called Penang Connectivity Master Plan (PCMP).
According to Zairil Khir Johari, the state’s Executive Councilor for Public Works, Utilities, and Flood Mitigation, PCMP will become the main guide for all things related to telecommunications in Penang including coordination, planning, and execution. Related Federal government’s policies such as the National Fiber and Connectivity Plan (NFCP) will also be taken into consideration for the formation of PCMP.
Gigabit network is just the tip of the iceberg though since PCMP main objectives include fulfilling the demand of consumers and industry within the state as well as addressing the challenges that telco companies are facing when it comes to infrastructure rollout. At the same time, it will also be used to transform state policies and governance procedures.
In general, this is quite an ambitious plan by the state government of Penang but then again, we are talking about the very state that is already trialling Facebook’s Terragraph wireless gigabit network. However, there are still a few months to go before we are able to see the full picture though as PCMP is still being draft at the moment and is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
(Source: Zairil Khir Johari // Malay Mail. Main photo by Linus Mak, shared under Creative Commons license.)
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