Malaysia to champion 5G in Southeast Asia — MCMC

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 20): Malaysia is set to carve its name in the global arena and be at par with developed economies with the nationwide implementation of 5G Demonstration Projects (5GDP), led by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

The progress in the implementation of the fifth generation mobile technology (5G) will also redefine the readiness of the Malaysia’s industries and small and medium-sized businesses to face the fourth industrial revolution.

In a statement today, MCMC said through the 5GDP, Malaysia has laid the foundation to be at the frontier in deploying 5G in Southeast Asia.

"In a recent study by the Malaysia Institute of Economic Research (MIER), the implementation of 5G can contribute approximately RM12.7 billion to the national gross domestic product (GDP) as well as create about 40,000 new jobs in the next five years.

"A comprehensive 5G ecosystem is in progress with various new approaches, which include network and infrastructure sharing between service providers, policy revisions and joint ventures,” it said.

Through the technology, many innovative services will emerge, ranging from advanced virtual reality, autonomous vehicle to remote medical surgery, it said.

5G will also deliver ultra-reliable low-latency communication with improved energy efficiency and enhanced privacy and security.

MCMC said the 5GDP in Langkawi involves 35 use cases in six verticals at 25 live 5G sites, actively operating from October 2019 until March 2020, with a total investment of RM101 million.

This constitutes more than half of a total of 72 use cases in six states: Kedah, Penang, Perak, Selangor, Terengganu and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur.

It said the 5G use cases in Langkawi include Smart Agriculture, Smart Airport, Smart City, Smart Traffic Light Solutions, Real Time Medical Data Transfer, 5G Live Video Surveillance, Remote Consultation and Virtual Tourism.

Additionally, there are three use cases at the Langkawi Port, namely Digital Boundary Control, Smart Tracking for Water Vessels as well as Geo-fencing and Smart Perimeters.

Prior to the launch of the 5GDP on Sunday, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had visited two 5GDP live sites, Langkawi Land and District Office and Langkawi Police Headquarters in Kuah, which demonstrated use cases such as the 5G Command Centre, eKelas, smart agriculture solutions as well as security and smart city solutions.

"He had also visited Hospital Sultanah Maliha to oversee the progress of digital healthcare use cases, namely real time medical data transfer and connected ambulance,” it said.

The launch of 5GDP was held at the Langkawi International Convention Centre, marking a major milestone for the country in advancing its digital economy agenda.

In conjunction with the launch, MCMC also organised its maiden 5G Malaysia International Conference on Jan 20-21 in Langkawi, featuring renowned international and local speakers and panellists from the industry.

The conference would discuss the development and prospects of 5G implementation in Malaysia and worldwide.

During the conference, MCMC chairman Al-Ishsal Ishak would submit the 5G Task Force Final Report to Minister of Communications and Multimedia Gobind Singh Deo.

The report underline the prerequisites for the implementation of 5G such as infrastructure requirements and spectrum management solutions.

It also covers regulatory matters such as cooperation with state and local authorities and addressing security, safety and health concerns.