Malaysia 5G Dual Network Landscape
Introduction Established in March 2021, Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) was tasked with rolling out Malaysia's first nationwide 5G infrastructure across both urban and rural areas. This infrastructure was designed to be leased to mobile network operators (MNOs) under a Single Wholesale Network (SWN) model. The primary goal of the SWN was to accelerate the nation's digital transformation by reducing overall capital investment costs and preventing the duplication of network infrastructure. Under this model, DNB built the infrastructure, and telecommunications companies purchased wholesale access. Despite the promise of lower access costs, major telcos were initially reluctant to accept DNB's 5G access offer. Their reservations stemmed from several key factors: Prices were locked for a 10-year period with no provision for reduction. Telcos feared that if network costs increased, the established 5G pricing structure would be insufficient to support future growth. There were conce...