KUALA LUMPUR: A report on the 5G Testbed and Trials is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of this year, Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo (pix) said today.
He said the outcome of the trials, to be coordinated by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) from April to October this year, would be shared with the multi-stakeholder 5G Task Force which, among others, would be responsible in preparing the report.
This, he said, was an initiative of the government to ensure a holistic plan for the implementation of the high-speed network in the country.
“The task force has been formed to develop the relevant recommendations for 5G implementation. It is made up of both the demand and supply side from the private and public sectors,“ Gobind said in his keynote address at the British Malaysian Chamber of Commerce Digital Innovation Conference, here.
It has been reported that the 5G live trials kicked off in Cyberjaya early this month, conducted by Maxis Bhd in collaboration with Huawei, while Meru in Perak would be the first location outside the Klang Valley to have a similar trials, under an initiative of the Perak government.
Gobind said the National Fiberisation and Connectivity Plan under the MCMC had also set a target of Gigabit-speed Internet services for selected high-impact and strategic industrial areas by 2020 and all state capitals by 2023.
“This is to ensure that areas where there are high-use cases for 5G would be ready for network deployment when the standards have been finalised,“ he said.
He reiterated that the government believed that access to technology and the Internet is every Malaysian’s right and not a privilege, and thus high-speed broadband Internet access needs to be accorded the same importance as water and electricity.
Gobind said that on the other hand, there is a tremendous opportunity for Malaysia’s cybersecurity industry, especially in the Asean market where Malaysia is seen as one of the top three Asean countries that are expected to contribute 75% of the cybersecurity services market share by 2025.
He noted that Asean’s cybersecurity spend was forecast to register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% between 2015 and 2025, while regional opportunities across Southeast Asia showed that the security services market would reach RM10 billion by 2021 at a CAGR of 22.28%.
“As the nation is enhancing footprints in digital economy development, and with the advent of the newest technologies, we must take into consideration the cyber threat concern and risks. Cybersecurity will be one of the most pressing issues of our time,“ he said.
At the event, Gobind also launched the 2nd Business Excellence Awards organised by the British Malaysian Chamber of Commerce. — Bernama
