THE four largest telecommunications providers in the country plan to seek a majority stake in Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB), a state 5G agency, a May 9 letter sent by the firms to the Finance Ministry (MOF) reveals.

Reuters reported that the move taken by Celcom Axiata Bhd, DiGi Telecommunications, Maxis Bhd and U Mobile is a counter-proposal to Putrajaya’s minority ownership offer of up to 70% of the country’s sole 5G network operator spread among a wider group of companies.

The firms reportedly said a stake of at least 51% would be “most viable” to reach an agreement.

“We would not be able to justify a passive minority investment in this venture without being able to exercise influence and control to safeguard our investment.

“The MOF-proposed role as minority shareholders does not appear to make it feasible for any of us to add value as shareholders and is not commensurate to our contribution to the industry, or our duty to our shareholders and customers,” the letter said.

The providers are also seeking a review of the pricing model and network access plan on offer, the portal reported.

At press time, MOF, the Communications and Multimedia Ministry and DNB have yet to respond to requests for comments.

The carriers also reportedly called for a review of DNB’s “commercially unviable” Reference Access Offer – which sets out pricing, service commitments and other details – saying customers would likely have to pay more and will be slow in taking it up.

“The absence of complete transparency on DNB’s rate of return and the linkage with the pricing arrangements in the RAO raises governance questions… which will have a material impact on the affordability of 5G access,” the letter said.

At this juncture, only Telekom Malaysia and YTL Communications have signed up to the government’s 5G plan, Reuters reported. – May 19, 2022.