Asian Roaming Charges May Be Halved

Published on: 5th October 2008

International roaming charges may be reduced by up to half throughout the Asian region if a proposal from Malaysia's Communications Minister, Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor is accepted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"We plan to reduce the roaming charges with Singapore first. In fact, I told the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) two weeks ago to proceed with this," he told local newspaper, The Star.

Shaziman said his ASEAN counterparts had also agreed to this during the 8th Asean Telecommunications and Information Technology Ministers meeting held in August.

He added that the move would particularly benefit the many thousands of Malaysians who commute across the border to work in Singapore each day. The regulators in both countries are currently working on a plan to lower the roaming rates across the border.

"If you ask me, anyone making a call from [Malaysia] to Singapore should be charged a local rate. But let the MCMC and the telcos come up with a structure that is acceptable," he said.

ASEAN is a geo-political and economic organization of 10 countries located in Southeast Asia, comprising of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

On the web: The Star

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: [roaming]  [malaysian communications and multimedia commission]  [mcmc]  [Singapore]  [Malaysia]