Maxis Berhad | Annual Report 2012

Maxis Berhad // Annual Report 2012 71 In line with this, we invested RM803 million in addition to the RM3.7 billion capital investments made from 2009 to 2011 to build a network footprint of 95% 2G coverage and 82% 3G coverage. We were the first to launch high-speed networks in Malaysia including 3G, 3.5G and 3.5G+. Maxis had another historical first- to-market with the launch of its 4G LTE network on 1 January 2013. This ultra high-speed data network offers download speeds up to 10 times faster and works seamlessly with our existing 3G network. Today our 3G HSPA+ network is already providing throughput speeds of up to 21 Mbps and over 71% of our 3G network is activated with HSPA dual- carrier capability which further ups the throughput speeds to 42 Mbps. To further complement our high-speed mobile network and provide more value and convenience to our customers, we have built over 2,900 Maxis WiFi Hotspots across the country. This will enable our customers to have access to fast, affordable and reliable Internet services nationwide. Our high-speed fibre broadband network for residential and business customers is capable of delivering speeds up to 30 Mbps and 32 Mbps respectively. IPTV services will be available over the same infrastructure and were launched initially in December ahead of a wider launch in Q1 2013. With the exploding demand for data services, we have more than doubled our network capacity to 27.7 Gbps in 2012. We also upgraded and introduced various control elements within our core network to allow us to harness and prioritise our data network in different ways. Ultimately, our customers will be able to enjoy our network in a whole new way based on their needs and requirements. We are also moving to make our network more flexible as we modernise our radio access platform to be multi- technology capable. This is already happening across the nation starting with the Klang Valley, Penang, Johor Bahru, Sabah and Sarawak and it will eventually cover all other key cities and strategic areas. With this we will have the flexibility to seamlessly activate even more 4G LTE coverage. Alongside this we have introduced direct fibre and IP-based backhaul to 2,473 sites to support high-speed download capabilities required for 4G LTE service. In our commitment to deliver communications services to more rural areas, we deployed 114 Femto and 78 nano-BTS leveraging our VSAT reach to rural communities in Pahang, Sarawak and Sabah, the first operator in Malaysia to do so. In urban areas, we were also the first to deploy Femto solutions to give our valued customers significantly better mobile connectivity in their offices and homes. Many of the sales and service delivery advancements mentioned so far benefited directly from our investments in our IT capabilities. In addition, we have also invested in a modern data and billing platform which will enable us to launch more innovative integrated products and services more quickly. At the same time, we have expanded our CRM capabilities to gain even deeper insights into customers’ behaviour leading to improved retention programmes. We foresee making further investments in building up this capability going forward. Maxis also complied with SKMM’s Quality of Service (“QoS”) Mandatory Standards for voice in 2012, being the only operator to have passed all tests in the first half of 2012. We are proud to have set mobile industry benchmarks and our network clearly stands out as the most advanced, widest, fastest and the most reliable in the country. PARTNERSHIPS TO DELIVER ON OUR CUSTOMER PROMISE We believe in the power of strategic collaboration to bring the future to our customers. On 13 July 2012, Maxis Broadband and REDtone Marketing signed a network collaboration agreement for 2600 MHz LTE spectrum sharing. This collaboration is an important development, allowing us to gain the economies of scale and maximise our network utilisation. Our customers will be the net beneficiaries through lower unit prices. It will also allow us to pool the limited LTE spectrum to provide one of the best LTE services in Malaysia and in the region. During the year we successfully launched over 1,600 3G RAN sharing sites with U Mobile. This follows the landmark multi-billion ringgit network sharing arrangement signed by both parties in October 2011 which includes access to nationwide 2G roaming to ensure seamless services for U Mobile subscribers. We were the preferred integrated communications service provider in 2012, successfully rolling out more than 3,200 VSAT sites to business customers in the oil and gas, tourism, education, financial, plantation and forestry sectors. We remained the incumbent industry leader for VSAT solutions including being the largest provider of data connectivity over satellite in Malaysia. Our customers were our primary consideration when we entered into a strategic partnership with Astro (Malaysia’s leading consumer media entertainment group) on 30 August 2012. This partnership brings together the best of content and entertainment with our full range of fibre, fixed and wireless Internet products and voice propositions. WHAT’S INSIDE HIGHLIGHTS OUR STRENGTH LEADERSHIP OUR BUSINESS IN ACTION CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY