GEORGE TOWN: The Penang government will hold a new request for proposal (RFP) to upgrade its disused free Wi-Fi service statewide, after an earlier RFP was seen by five interested telco companies as “too stringent”.
State Executive Councillor Zairil Khir Johari said the February RFP would be rescinded and a newer RFP would be called after Hari Raya Puasa, with new terms of reference which would be “less stringent”.
In 2009, the “Penang Free Wi-Fi” service was introduced with 1,560 access points in the state, with an initial budget of RM8.5 million for five years, to be funded in part by the Penang Development Corporation Telecommunication Services Sdn Bhd and the state government.
It was discontinued from Feb 13 this year after numerous complaints of poor speed and connectivity issues were received. An RFP was called earlier this year for a new free Wi-Fi project through a “co-branding” model.
Speaking at a press conference today, Zairil said the new RFP would also give more time for telcos to deliberate and decide on a model best fit for them, as the state government did not want to spend too much on the free Wi-Fi.
Zairil said it would be difficult for telco companies to give out free Wi-Fi outright, but a balance would be struck with them in the RFP process. He said the Wi-Fi service would likely be online again by the end of the year.
A previous report stated the Penang government had paid RM154,000 to service provider REDtone since 2011. Nearly 700,000 users have used the service since 2009. - FMT
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