P1 W1MAX, KEY COMPONENT IN WIRELESS@PENANG INITIATIVE

http://www.p1.com.my/PressReleases/20080925_Penang_Initiative.htm
P1 W1MAX, KEY COMPONENT IN WIRELESS@PENANG INITIATIVE

PULAU PINANG - Wireless Internet surfing via WiMAX will be a reality in Penang as early as December 2008, as part of the state government’s move to ensure that the island state becomes an "i-Land" by 2010. Today’s announcement is also part of Packet One (P1)’s expansion of its WiMAX broadband service nationwide.

The Penang State Government and P1 today entered into a partnership for P1 to supply the infrastructure for WiMAX@Penang under the Wireless@Penang initiative to bring the state’s infrastructure offerings to a higher level.

Chief Minister of Penang, YAB Lim Guan Eng said, "We are all responsible for continuously driving the state of Penang forward. We need to take the next natural course of action in order to further improve the standard of living of the people here. The wide availability of WiMAX in Penang will certainly provide a welcome boost to the existing and future industries."

"With this project, Penang will be the one of the first few WiMAX states in the world. And for Malaysia, we are taking another step closer towards making Malaysia a WiMAX hub in the region," CEO of P1, Michael Lai informed.

The first phase of WiMAX@Penang project will commence in October 2008, with the deployment of P1 base stations to cover areas around George Town, Penang Island, and Seberang Prai. The targeted areas are based on the highest population density and commercial viability.

The partnership with the Penang State Government is slated to expedite the Phase 1 rollout of WiMAX@Penang to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2009.

"With this partnership announcement, P1 is keeping to its promise of delivering wireless broadband via WiMAX to Malaysians. As the first WiMAX telco in Malaysia and one of the first in the world, we hope to contribute positively to the economic development of Penang as the Silicon Valley of Malaysia," Lai informed.

"P1’s deployments of the iconic Wireless@KL (May 2008) and Wireless@Sunway (July 2008) initiatives to bridge the digital divide of Malaysians are our notable WiMAX milestones. Adding a feather to the cap, we are very proud and excited that our partnership with the Penang State Government on the Wireless@Penang project is another milestone that will go into history," Lai said.

P1 is the first Malaysian WiMAX converged telco to commercially offer WiMAX services, branded as P1 W1MAX on a large scale. The service is currently available in the Klang Valley.


About Wireless @ Penang

Wireless@Penang is one of the Penang State Government’s ICT initiatives. Wireless@Penang is technology and vendor neutral.


About Packet One (P1)

P1, one of the first WiMAX telcos in the world, bridges humanity and technology to enrich lives. For more information on P1, visit http://www.P1.com.my.


For P1 media enquiries, please contact:
Loh Chyi Jen, chyijen.loh@packet-1.com / +603 7450 8888 Ext 8705