TIME dotCom has bought a 60% stake in leading local cloud services provider AVM Cloud Sdn Bhd for RM58.7 million, shoring up cloud computing as the newest pillar of its business. This development is the latest in what seems to be a race between local telcos to capitalise on the rapidly increasing interest in cloud products in Malaysia.

TIME’s expansion into the cloud business is arguably a natural one – the company already operates data centres in addition to its fibre network services for consumer and enterprise alike. AIMS, the telco’s data centre division, is a well-known name in the local industry and is also the anchor site for the Malaysia Internet Exchange (MyIX).

time dotcom hq shah alam 01 — *TIME dotCom’s headquarters in Shah Alam.*

“TIME is excited to grow cloud computing as the next pillar of our business. We believe we’ve found the right partners in AVM, considering their comprehensive product suite and customer base,” said TIME CEO Afzal Abdul Rahim.

With nearly two decades of experience, AVM Cloud is said to be a leading VMware service provider in Southeast and North Asia, and currently has more than 250 enterprise customers. Company CEO David Chan said that it hoped to “capitalise on TIME’s regional footprint to grow a regional cloud business.”

avm cloud idc meet 01 — *AVM Cloud’s CTO, Kenny Lim at a round-table session co-hosted by IDC in 2019.*

In Malaysia alone, the cloud computing market’s worth is expected to hit US$3.7 billion (~RM14.9 billion) in 2024, according to one estimate cited by The Star. It’s no wonder that big telco names are quickly wading into the business through acquisitions and partnerships.

Last year, Maxis acquired local cloud solutions company Infrastructure Consulting & Managed Services (ICMS) for their talent pool of experts. Around the same time, TM partnered with Huawei Malaysia to enhance the telco’s cloud capabilities and services.

So, the race is on. In the end, that’s probably a good thing for the local tech ecosystem.

(Source: TIME dotcom via Bursa Malaysia. Image: Google Map, AVM Cloud.)