Malaysia Takes Its Dual 5G Network Experience to Doha in Bid for ITU Council Seat
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil says Malaysia will highlight its wholesale 5G model, rural connectivity, digital literacy and efforts to combat online scams.
Malaysia will seek reelection to the International Telecommunication Union Council at this month's conference in Doha. Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said the delegation would bring lessons from Malaysia's move to a dual wholesale 5G network, a policy change that has already led some Malaysian service providers to reconsider where they buy network access.
Fahmi, who will lead the delegation, told Bernama and RTM that Malaysia would also discuss rural connectivity, digital literacy and efforts to tackle online scams. The country has held a seat on the council during the current term. Its bid is for another term, so the delegation goes to Doha seeking to retain a place in the organization's governing body between conferences.
The ITU says the conference will run from Nov. 9 to 27. The conference sets the organization's overall policy, adopts strategic and financial plans and elects its senior management. Delegates also elect the 48 countries on the next council and members of the Radio Regulations Board. The ITU's conference briefing says members will agree on the organization's strategic and financial roadmap for 2028 through 2031.
The conference is held every four years. Its decisions on the union's work program reach beyond mobile service. The ITU's members also deal with the coordination of radio frequencies and satellite orbits, and the organization develops technical standards used across borders. The Radio Regulations Board has 12 members, whose election is separate from the vote for the council.
How Malaysia's 5G Market Changed
A wholesale network sells access to mobile operators that in turn provide services to customers. In Malaysia, Digital Nasional Berhad supplied wholesale 5G access before the government moved toward a second network. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission announced in November 2024 that it had selected U Mobile as the second provider. The selection concerned the network infrastructure behind mobile plans. A subscriber's connection still depends on the retail provider, device and coverage where the service is used.
Telekom Malaysia announced in February that it would enter a new wholesale arrangement with U Mobile. TM described it as a way to support mobile service and bundles that combine fixed and mobile connectivity. U Mobile later said it had moved to its own network and that its wholesale access agreement with DNB ended on July 1, Bernama reported. The company said its network then reached more than 85% of populated areas. That is a company coverage figure for populated areas, which is different from coverage measured across all Malaysian land.
The domestic rollout and the council election are separate developments. The wholesale arrangement affects how a provider obtains capacity to serve its customers. The ITU election determines which countries sit on a body that oversees the union's work between conferences. A council seat does not determine which network a Malaysian operator uses or what prices it charges.
The shift gives Malaysia a specific example to bring to a forum where members discuss telecommunications standards and how networks work together. It also raises questions other governments may face, such as how to make wholesale access available during a rollout and how to assess coverage where users actually need service. The announcement of Malaysia's delegation sets out the subjects it plans to discuss. The negotiations and election in Doha will determine the conference's decisions and the composition of the next council.