East Malaysia Gets P1 W1MAX in 2010

Having successfully met the target of 25% population coverage in Peninsula, Malaysia's No.  1 WiMAX telco gets the green light to also roll out in East Malaysia.

KUALA LUMPUR - Packet One Networks (Malaysia) Sdn.  Bhd.  ("P1"), Malaysia's first and leading WiMAX telco, announced today that it has received the necessary approvals to also roll out its P1 W1MAX service in East Malaysia.

"The deployment of WiMAX broadband is crucial in achieving the national household broadband penetration target of 50% by 2010.  WiMAX operators play an important role in meeting this objective and must work towards meeting or exceeding the targets committed", said Michael Lai, Chief Executive Officer, P1.

In the spirit of 1Malaysia and P1's mission to get as many Malaysians as possible to join the WiMAX Revolution, the P1W1MAX roll out will begin simultaneously in Sabah and Sarawak in Q1 2010.  East Malaysians in the cities such as Kuching, Miri, Bintulu, Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan and Tawau will be able to enjoy the freedom of P1W1MAX broadband as early as in Q2 2010. 

"East Malaysia is a market of tremendous importance to P1.  We're truly excited and feeling very gung ho about empowering the people of both Sabah and Sarawak with WiMAX soon," said Lai.

P1 W1MAX is primed to meet the tremendous demand for broadband in Sabah and Sarawak.  "The household broadband penetration rates of only 13.6% in Sarawak and 9.5% in Sabah at the end of 2008 are still very low compared to the national average.  We are looking forward to meeting a massive demand for quality broadband in both states, whilst spreading the benefits of next-generation high-speed wireless broadband!" Lai explained.

With the fastest wireless broadband network in the country, P1 expects to contribute positively to East Malaysia's economy, especially within the SME/SMI community and local state industries such as tourism. 

"Sabah has a lot to offer to the world and broadband access can make the discovery of the wonders of this state to a wider international market much easier.  Time and again, studies have proven that the increase in broadband penetration has a positive effect on the economic growth of a state and a country as a whole.  With P1 W1MAX available in the state soon, we plan to contribute positively to this potential growth." Lai explained.

Designed for rapid, wide area deployment, P1 W1MAX can cost effectively deliver broadband access to more areas faster compared to current broadband technologies, especially in remote and underserved areas within geographically diverse locations like Sabah and Sarawak.

About Packet One Networks (Malaysia) Sdn.  Bhd.

Packet One Networks (M) Sdn Bhd (P1) is Malaysia's first and leading WiMAX telecommunications company with the country's widest WiMAX network. 

P1 W1MAX represents the first large-scale commercial deployment of mobile WiMAX in Southeast Asia, and the first large-scale deployment of an 802.16e 2.3GHz WiMAX network outside Korea.

P1's goal is to bridge the digital divide by making access to the internet universal, ubiquitous and affordable for every Malaysian.  P1 hopes to play a major part in realizing the nation's goal - to have 50% broadband penetration by 2010.

P1 is the winner of the Red Herring Asia's Most Innovative Private Technology Company in 2008 and is listed in the Malaysia Book of Records as Malaysia's first WiMAX telco (August 2008).

For more information on P1, visit www.P1.com.my.