Malaysia, Singapore phone companies to reduce roaming fees: Update

Malaysia and Singapore agreed to cut roaming mobile phone and SMS charges between countries from May 1, with seven companies including Singapore Telecommunications and Maxis  bowing to government pressure to reduce fees.

 

Roaming voice call fees will be reduced by 20% and text message charges by 30%, according to a statement from the Malaysian government today. Costs will drop again in May 2012, it said.

 

“This is a significant effort for Malaysia and Singapore as it marks the close cooperation between our countries,” Rais Yatim, Malaysia’s Information, Communications and Culture Minister, told reporters in Putrajaya, outside Kuala Lumpur. “It is also the first bilateral cooperation to reduce roaming charges within ASEAN and paves the way for other similar efforts among Asean countries.”

 

Singapore’s StarHub and M1 also signed up to the pact, along with Malaysia’s Celcom Axiata, DiGi.Com and U Mobile, the statement said.

 

“There is no issue of compensation here,” Rais said. “It’s voluntary and a noble act for telco companies to do.”

 

The government are still working on reduce data traffic costs, said Rais and Lui Tuck Yew, Singapore’s Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts.

 

“Volume of calls and SMS may very well increase after this agreement,” Lui said.