THE Penang government is working towards providing better Penang Free WiFi service for Penangites.
State Works, Utilities and Flood Mitigation Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said the Penang government wanted to upgrade the Penang Free WiFi; to make it faster and more user-friendly.
“The state has decided to temporarily stop the current Penang Free WiFi, as the current WiFi service is less than satisfactory and needed an upgrade.
“The state, during the executive council meeting on Dec 12 last year, has decided to end the current Penang Free WiFi service on Feb 13,” Zairil told a press conference at Solaria Square in Bayan Lepas on Jan 19.
Zairil said the state received high amount of complaints from the public pertaining to the WiFi service.
“The WiFi service, quality and total usage provided did not match the cost imposed.
“The Penang government has appointed PDC Telecommunication and Services Sdn Bhd to be the implementing agency for the Request for Proposal (RFP) exercise for the project.
“We invite companies to take part in the RFP process, which is scheduled to start in the first quarter of this year. Many big companies have shown interest so far,” he said.
Zairil said the state would announce the Penang Free WiFi new activation date once the RFP process is completed.
Penang State Secretary Office (Local Council Division) principal assistant secretary Nur ‘Aishah Md Norodin said the current Penang Free WiFi provider’s contract had expired in June last year.
“It is a monthly contract since July last year,” she said.
Also present was PDC Telecommunication and Services Sdn Bhd chief technology officer and acting chief executive officer P. Ayappan.
Story by Christopher Tan
Pix by Tan Kean Ming