MCMC publishes review of access pricing

Malaysian telecoms operators may be required to review prices for those wholesale services currently regulated by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), Bernama reports. The suggestion comes after the MCMC issued a public inquiry paper entitled ‘Review of Access Pricing’, which examines the cost to telcos of providing services; the report forms part of the regulator’s efforts to create a level playing field among operators. The document sets out the regulatory principles adopted by the MCMC, as well as proposed wholesale prices and the watchdog’s preliminary views on whether prices should be regulated. ‘We believe this review is timely as it is expected to lower prices for consumers in the long term and contribute towards higher broadband penetration in Malaysia,’ said MCMC chairman Datuk Mohamed Sharil Tarmizi, adding: ‘By end of this year, we will make a final decision on which facilities and services to regulate and their final prices after careful consideration of all feedback from this inquiry.’