Celcom and TM in Phase 2 of infrastructure-sharing agreement

• Phase 2 will see Celcom using additional LTE sites provisioned by TM
• In line with MCMC requirements for 'fiberised’ backhaul networks

CELCOM Axiata Bhd and Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) have signed an agreement for the provisioning of additional Long-Term Evolution (LTE) sites through TM’s ‘next-gen backhaul’ services.
 
Leasing wholesale bandwidth services and leveraging on TM’s strength nationwide fibre coverage and network platform for access allows Celcom to focus on its core business while outsourcing the backhaul planning and deployment to TM.
 
“The demand for high speed and quality Internet services has accelerated in the country,” said Celcom Axiata chief executive officer Shazalli Ramly.
 
“Malaysians have become technologically astute and require access to always-on, high-speed data connectivity to cater to their increasing needs.
 
“With this leasing opportunity … Celcom will be able to obtain quick access to fibre infrastructure to support our future network capacity demands,” he added.
 
Under this agreement, TM will continue to support Celcom’s transmission requirements, whilst enabling Celcom to optimise cost and efficiently utilise its infrastructure.
 
This collaboration will avert the unnecessary duplication of network infrastructure, Celcom said in its statement.
 
The new agreement follows a 10-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the two companies in November 2013.
 
Phase 2 of this network collaborative agreement includes additional LTE sites, provisioned by TM across Malaysia, with a special focus for Putrajaya, the Klang Valley, Johor Baru, Pahang, Terengganu and Kelantan.
 
The move is in line with requirements by industry regulator the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) for service providers in the country to have a ‘fiberised,’ robust backhaul network for LTE rollout within a two-year timeline.
 
“This is definitely in line with TM’s aspiration of being the partner of choice for our customers' end-to-end connectivity and ICT requirements,” TM group chief executive officer Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa.
 
“This collaboration is an achievement in itself as it represents another step forward in enabling TM to provision additional LTE sites for Celcom in Peninsular Malaysia, in the wake of our earlier collaboration in 2013.
 
“The signing of this agreement reiterates TM’s commitment to providing open access for all MCMC-licensed service providers, allowing these operators to provide and deliver value-added services to their end-users – hence strengthening TM’s position as a neutral service provider and as an Information Exchange,” he added.
 
Following this partnership, Celcom said its subscribers will be able to enjoy seamless and quality services via their mobile devices everywhere and anywhere, as it paves way for nationwide fibre coverage and will greatly improve the resiliency of its network.
 
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