Maxis Communications
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Maxis Communications Bhd | |
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| Type | Private |
| Founded | established 1993, publicly listed 2002 |
| Headquarters | Headquartered at the Maxis Tower, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Industry | Telecommunication |
| Products | Telecommunication services Wireless/Mobile services |
| Revenue | 6.37 billion MYR (2005) |
| Employees | 2200+ |
| Website | http://www.maxis.com.my |
Maxis Communications Berhad is the leading mobile phone service provider in Malaysia. It was started in the year 1995. It uses the dialling prefix identifier of "012", "0142" and "017". Their mobile services are provided over the 900 & 1800 MHz GSM band and as July 2005, the 2100 MHz UMTS band.
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[edit] Products and services
Maxis provides a variety of mobile communication products and services. They offer prepaid call plans, monthly subscription plans, global roaming, MMS, WAP (over both GSM and GPRS), Residential Fixed Line services, Broadband Internet plans, and as of early 2005, 3G services to both pre-paid and subscription customers.
For business customers, Maxis offer VSAT services (satellite based communications) and BlackBerry based mobile services besides regular services. Maxis also provides an online Music store for its customers to download multimedia content.
Maxis' most popular service is its pre-paid brand, that currently serves over 6.3 million customers in Malaysia. They are currently heavily promoting a new IDD 132 service, which offers discounted calls to landlines in selected countries, at a rate of 20 sen (roughly 6 US cents) per minute which is, at certain times for many subscribers, even cheaper than a local call.
Maxis is currently involved in a price war with its competitors (particularly DiGi) in the pre-paid SIM market which has driven its Hotlink starter pack prices down to RM 6 (about USD$1.2).
There are several high profile celebrities who have signed on as spokespersons for Maxis, including big names such as Siti Nurhaliza, all the Akademi Fantasia's stars, along with many other local celebrities.
It is allegedly linked to some content providers that is siphoning money out of the users' pocket. As the evidence could only be found in monthly bill's statement, it is reluctant to provide such service for its prepaid customers. Such intent is unknown for all.
[edit] Recent corporate history
In 2002, Maxis purchased Timecel, a rival mobile service provider, from TimedotCom Berhad. Prior to the purchase, Maxis offered phone numbers beginning with 012, and TimeCell 017. Now, subscribers can choose between the two. In 1999, Maxis introduced the popular pre-paid brand "Hotlink", which currently has 6.3 Million customers.
On April 27, 2007, an offer was made to buy out Maxis and privatise the company in preparation for expansions into the Indonesian and Indian markets. The deal was offered by Ananda Krishnan, who pledged Maxis RM17.46 billion (US$5.1 billion) in exchange for all remaining shares of the company. The offer is to be formally made by Usaha Tegas, a company owned by Krishnan, on May 3, 2007, while the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange suspends trading of the company's shares until May 3.[1][2][3][4]
[edit] Majority shareholders
Maxis Communications is part of Ananda Krishnan's business empire. In 1996, the company launched Malaysia's first two satellites; MEASAT 1, 2 and 3. A fourth satellite, MEASAT 1R, is currently under construction.
Saudi Telecom Company bought 25% of Maxis.
[edit] Maxis 3G
Maxis officially launched its 3G services on July 1, 2005 (the 3G datacard service was soft-launched earlier in February 2005). The 3G service is available in selected regions of the country since nationwide coverage does not make economic sense (due to the high CAPEX involved). The main coverage areas include:
- The Klang Valley (including large part of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor) - the initial launch in July 2005
- Penang - Dec 2005
- Johor Bahru - Jan 2006
- Kuantan - Sept 2006
Maxis appears to be adopting a "thick coverage" strategy for 3G. This means 3G service will be rolled out only in areas where data traffic is heavy, or with strategic importance (example, Putrajaya which is the government's administrative centre). The rest of the country will be served by 2.5G (GPRS; nationwide coverage) which is progressively being upgraded to 2.75G (EDGE or E-GPRS).
The key "shouting points" for Maxis 3G appear to be:
- video call & videomail
- packet-switched video streaming services (including live channels, video-on-demand & video clip downloads)
- Traffic Check (Maxis claims to have 50 video cameras installed around Klang Valley, Penang & Johor Bahru)
- Full-track music download
- 3G datacard
In Sept 2006, Maxis launched 3.5G (HSDPA) as part of the "wireless broadband modem" service which is targeted at "mass market consumer/home" users (instead of business or corporate). Maxis is progressively upgrading its entire 3G network to 3.5G capability. As of Dec 2006, the entire Penang island, and part of Klang Valley/JB/Kuantan are already 3.5G-capable.
[edit] Competitors
Maxis is the largest mobile phone operator in Malaysia. But it does face competition from Telekom Malaysia's (TM) Celcom, Packet One Networks , U Mobile and also DiGi.
[edit] References
- ^ E-Ling, Liaw (April 30, 2007). Malaysia's Maxis Receives Takeover Bid From Parent. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved on 2007-04-30.
- ^ Azman, Syed (April 29, 2007). Malaysia tycoon to buy out telco Maxis. The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2007-04-30.
- ^ Azman, Syed (April 30, 2007). UPDATE 5-Malaysian tycoon to buy out telco Maxis. Reuters. Retrieved on 2007-04-30.
- ^ Announcement: MAXIS COMMUNICATIONS BERHAD REQUEST FOR SUSPENSION OF TRADING. Bursa Malaysia (April 30, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-04-30.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Official website
- Maxis Group CEO appointed to Binariang GSM Board
- Latest update in Maxis-Telco Talk Malaysia
- Maxis coverage
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