MCMC to raise Mandatory Standard for Quality of Service for telcos, 2.5Mbps for mobile and 25Mbps for FWA

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is having a Public Inquiry (PI) to relook into the Mandatory Standard for Quality of Service (MSQoS). According to the MCMC, a new MSQoS with higher standards will be required in line with the latest technology developments, consumer demand and the country’s digital economy development under MyDigital.

The commission has issued a notice of PI under Section 61 of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998 to relook into 3 MSQoS related to telco services and 1 new MSQoS for telco customer service. Below is the full list of MSQoS that will be covered by the PI:

• MSQoS (new) Customer Service
• MSQoS Wireless Broadband
• MSQoS Wired Broadband
• MSQoS Public Cellular Services

The PI is aimed at collecting the views of the public and all relevant stakeholders on the proposed new MSQoS. The MSQoS determines the minimum quality which telcos would need to adhere to when providing their services.

Some of the conditions that need to relook into include duration of resolution of complaints, response by customer service, notifying customers if there’s a interruption involving network speeds, data breach and network latency. Telcos that fail to meet the MSQoS can be issued a fine for each offence under Section 242 of CMA 1998.

Under the proposed revision for wireless broadband, telcos will have to maintain a network latency of “not more than 150ms” at 90% of the time, versus the current “not more than 250ms” at 70% of the time.

In terms of wireless broadband speeds, the current minimum standard of 650kbps at 80% of the time for TDD and 65% of the time for FDD technology, will be raised to 2.5Mbps at 90% of the time. For Fixed Wireless Access, the minimum speed proposed is 25Mbps at 90% of the time. When it comes to Packet loss, the new standard is made more stringent from 3.00% to 0.5% packet loss.

For wired broadband, all DSL users must get 70% of its subscribed speed for 90% of the time. Meanwhile, all fibre broadband customers must get 90% of their subscribed speed for 90% of the time. Maximum latency for wired broadband has been reduced to 50ms at 95% of the time, while latency for DSL remains unchanged at 85ms for 95% of the time.

The public and all stakeholders are invited to view the proposed MSQoS and provide their feedback on the official website at mcmc.gov.my. The PI will be running from 8th April until 4th June 2021 at 12pm. The MCMC said that it will consider all views to support or to amend the proposed MSQoS.

Under JENDELA, Malaysia aims to provide an average speeds of 35Mbps on mobile with 96.9% 4G population coverage. While network upgrades are currently on track, the average mobile down speeds are still low at 25.44Mbps according to the latest JENDELA quarterly report.

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