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19th July, 2008
KUALA LUMPUR: Maxis Communications Bhd hopes to bring in the third-generation (3G) iPhone to Malaysia but the hurdle is that the manufacturer, Apple Inc, is facing a tough call in meeting demand.
Maxis’s chief executive officer, Sandip Das, said as Apple was struggling to meet the increasing demand, its distribution policy plans for Malaysia had not been finalised yet.
“As and when Apple decides to finalise its plans for Malaysia, Maxis hopes to be one of the operators to offer the iPhone,” he told reporters at the launch of the 2008 Mobile Content Challenge (MCC) yesterday.
He said Maxis hoped that Apple would look at Malaysia favourably under the distribution plan.
It is understood that if Maxis were to successfully introduce the iPhone here, this will allow it access to a wider business user segment.
Energy, Water and Communications Deputy Minister, Datuk Joseph Salang, officiated at the event.
It is organised by Maxis together with Ministry of Energy, Water and Communications and Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission.
The MCC 2008 offers RM100,000 in cash prizes to students from institutes of higher learning to build content and applications on the mobile platform.
Entries will close on Aug 10 and winners will be announced on Oct 30.
Sandip said Maxis wanted to double its mobile data revenue from 23.7 percent recorded last year amid an increasing demand.
“With 19.5 million mobile subscribers in Malaysia, Maxis sees a big opportunity for it to provide content in that particular area,” he said.
He said although the growth momentum in mobile data sector was strong there were not enough content devices such as 3G phones and personal digital assistant in the market.
“The moment more of these devices are available, the industry will see a proliferation in content development.
“There is also a lot of room for growth for Malaysian mobile application and content developers,” he said.
Earlier, Salang urged Malaysian developers to tap the growing mobile content and services markets, both locally and internationally, which were expected to worth US$150 billion (US$1=RM3.24) in 2011.
“Locally, the market is worth about RM300 million annually. It is a lucrative business and it is imperative Malaysians move swiftly to seize the opportunities,” he said.
He said the ministry has disbursed RM5 million to six companies under the Network Content Development Grant.
The grant will be used to support potential content developers in line with the government’s commitments towards developing the content industry.
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