TM LAUNCHES ITS SEVENTH EARTH SATELLITE STATION

Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) today officially opened its seventh and latest earth satellite station at Cyberjaya, Selangor. Besides the Cyberjaya satellite earth station, TM has six other stations located in Kuala Lumpur, Melaka, Pahang, Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan.

Cyberjaya was chosen as the location for the latest earth satellite station due to its geographical location. It is located in the heart of Malaysia’s Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) and gives room for TM to expand its service. In addition, many foreign companies with MSC status are located in the area, thus opening up possibilities for TM to serve them with timely and updated facilities tuned to world class benchmarks. This proves TM’s commitment towards supporting the MSC, the Government’s main ICT growth engine. TM’s Cyberjaya satellite earth station is connected to the MSC via fibre optic backhauls.

“The provisioning of VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) technology in a bid to help rural and isolated communities to be connected is yet another effort by the TM Group to help in nation building by bridging the digital divide between the urban and rural communities in this nation. In this regard, the TM Group is an active contributor and participant in the Government’s USP fund which is instrumental towards pushing the agenda for bridging the digital divide,” said Tan Sri Dato’ Ir. Md. Radzi Mansor, Chairman of TM.

The RM15 million satellite earth station houses TM’s Telephony Earth station for data and voice services, TM’s Starnet VSAT data service, international VSAT leased circuits as well as serves as a base for TM’s mobile broadcast facilities.

The VSAT service carried by the station delivers Internet, telephony and payphone facilities to schools, clinics, libraries and communities in rural areas throughout Malaysia. In the near future, the station will also carry another VSAT service which will deliver data communications to companies that have sites in hard-to-reach areas such as oil palm plantations, light houses and island resorts.

TM is using VSAT technology to provide Malaysia with a wide variety of telecommunications applications, including corporate data networks, rural telephony and rural internet access in its concerted effort to connect both urban and rural communities across the nation.

VSAT is a small satellite dish capable of both receiving and sending satellite signals. It is a single, flexible communications platform that can be installed quickly and cost effectively to provide telecommunication solutions. VSAT systems can be designed to serve interactive applications such as data, voice or video to support a wide range of applications which include point-of-sale transaction, order entry billing, inventory control, financial management, data processing, reservation systems, news wire services, virtual private networks and high speed Internet access. It will be a great benefit for the finance and banking sector, government agencies, manufacturing companies, shipping and freight handling companies, news agencies and travel agents. Others who can benefit from VSAT communications are schools, clinics and libraries in the rural areas, rural communities, long houses, plantations, petrol stations, logging camps, remote hotels, resorts and airports.

VSAT equipment is also relatively small, easily transportable and the installation lead time is much shorter compared to normal terrestrial links. In addition, VSAT allows rapid, low cost network reconfiguration and expansion.

VSAT is currently in demand as it offers a cost-effective means of implementing a high quality and reliable communications network to widely distributed sites and isolated areas. It is reliable because it is distance-independent and not hampered by terrestrial obstructions such as buildings, hills, mountains, rivers and seas.

Through its involvement in various VSAT projects with the Ministry of Water, Energy and Communications and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, TM is actively contributing to bring all sectors of Malaysian society into the mainstream of information and communications technology, thus helping to reduce the digital divide in the country.

The TM Cyberjaya Earth Satellite Station was officially launched by YB. Dato’ Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, Minister of Energy, Water and Communications.

About TM
Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), a leading regional information and communications group, offers a comprehensive range of communication services and solutions in fixed-line, mobile, data and broadband. As one of the largest listed companies on Bursa Malaysia with an operating revenue of more than RM13 billion. TM is driven to deliver value to its stakeholders in a highly competitive environment.

The Group places emphasis on continuing customer service quality enhancements and innovations. Currently, with investments and operations in 12 countries around Asia and globally, TM is focused on sustainable growth in both the local and international markets.

For further information on TM, visit www.tm.com.my.

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