DPM Muhyiddin welcomes the launch of YTL's ''YES'' - A historical day as the world's first fully converged 4G Mobile Internet Service with Voice is launched

Kuala Lumpur, November 20, 2010
After a lot of hard work and meticulous planning - history was made. YES, the world’s first fully converged 4G Mobile Internet service with voice, was launched to the world, making Malaysia its home to the world’s first.

The ‘Yes World’ website which went live onto the world wide web just hours before, received a staggering response– having one thousand hits per second. Over at the Mayang Sari Ballroom of the JW Marriot Hotel Kuala Lumpur, it was a sight to behold as invited guests, business partners, local and foreign media, as well as staff from YTL Communications, came in full support for this historic launch, filling the ballroom to the brim.

Guest-of-Honour, the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Yassin, was welcomed with a thunderous applause as he arrived accompanied by Dato Seri Utama Dr. Rais Yatim, Malaysian Information, Communications, and Culture Minister; Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Yeoh Tiong Lay, Executive Chairman, YTL Corporation Berhad and Tan Sri Dato’ (Dr) Francis Yeoh, Managing Director, YTL Corporation Berhad.

Joining in the celebrations were Tun Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, former Minister of Energy, Water and Communications; Tan Sri Khalid Ramli, MCMC Chairman; Datuk Seri Ahmad Ismail, the Mayor of KL, and Datuk Seri Dr. Chua Soi Lek.

“Today Malaysians are able for the first time to experience the real power of 4G, and to have the worlds of voice and internet come together in one seamless and meaningful service,” said YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Yassin.

“I would like to again congratulate YTL for its initiative to rollout its 4G network and help Malaysians benefit for a more connected digital age,” he said. 

The Deputy Prime Minister is also chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Broadband Expansion in Malaysia.

Tan Sri Dato’ (Dr) Francis Yeoh in his speech said that with the creation of their 4G ecosystem in this country, it will create further innovation and investment in the production of devices, content, and software applications that will help nurture human capital to help drive growth in the economy.

“Let us make the internet available to every Malaysian. We will be giving 300MB of data or 100 minutes of voice calls a month free to every student registered under our Education Partner Programme,” he said.

The Yes portal (www.yes.my) which went live on November 4th has seen thousands register for Yes IDs with 018 mobile numbers to date, exceeding initially expected figures by three fold, said Yeoh.

“YES will offer the cheapest mobile communications rates in the country with one simple integrated plan that combines voice, SMS and mobile date. The internet will be affordable to all.

“This afternoon heralds in an entirely new 4G chapter. Welcome to the YES chapter. I pray and thank my Lord Jesus Christ for His blessing on this glorious day, thank you and God Bless all of you,” said Yeoh in his speech.

The launch gambit saw YES as a virtual globe lifted up into the air, before launching itself to countries around the world in a digital map, signifying the capability of YES, which can be used all around the world.

CEO of YTL Communications, Mr. Wing K Lee, took center stage when he gave the crowd a YES presentation. “Today’s launch marks the starting point of Malaysia’s progress towards entering a truly connected digital age and we’re excited to be in the driving seat of this revolution. Today we say yes to all possibilities and to continue to bring amazing experiences to everyone using the YES service,” he said.  

Wing also announced four devices during the launch including the ‘Yes Buzz’ 4G smartphone developed with Samsung, a USB dongle, a MiFi device and a desktop WiFi router which is made available at its flagship store in Lot 10.

Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Yassin then showcased the potential of YES by linking up with students in the UK through a video call using YES Life.

The celebration then headed over to Lot 10, to witness the launch of the YES flagship store. This state-of-the-art flagship store features an interactive video wall, coffee bar, and a variety of devices for visitors to test.

A large crowd had already gathered at Lot 10 in anticipation of the launch and to witness YouTube singing sensation, Jimmy Lin Yu Chun.

Opening with the song ‘Amazing Grace’, Jimmy delivered an unforgettable and amazing performance. The beauty of his voice immediately captured the hearts of the guests and shoppers stopped to watch and listen in awe. He then followed up with the song that propelled him to stardom; by singing Whitney Houston’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ much to the delight of the crowd and his screaming fans.
 

The atmosphere at Lot 10 was simply phenomenal as people were lining up by the dozens just to get into the flagship store, while others were lining up to sign up for the products and services offered by YES. Many in the flagship store were busy exploring the devices and were captivated and amazed by the capabilities of YES. A buzz of activities was happening from the outside of Lot 10, right up to the inside. The mixFM and SinarFM cruisers were giving out goodies at the entrance of Lot 10 while the gorgeous guest DJ Hiloco from Japan added on to the excitement with pumping beats.

In a truly unforgettable evening, the YES launch which was an overwhelming success, started and ended on a high. But the end also signifies another new beginning in the history books of Malaysia. A time when YTL will forever be remembered as pioneers of the 4G mobile internet service with voice, by delivering and bringing this converged technology to Malaysia, and to the world as promised. The face of technology is moving to a new era, and that era has been brought to you by YTL.

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Speech by
YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Yassin

First and foremost, I would like to extend my thanks to Tan Sri Yeoh Tiong Lay and Tan Sri Francis together with the YTL team for inviting me to witness this historic event.

Tan Sri Francis mentioned in his speech earlier that the opportunity to do something ground-breaking doesn’t come often to any man, and I cannot but wholeheartedly agree with him. But when that day comes we must not let the opportunity pass. In this case, Francis, you have not shied away from the risks of a new venture but have instead embraced the challenge.

Please allow me to be amongst the first to congratulate YTL on the launch of Yes – the world’s first converged 4G mobile internet service with voice, right here in Malaysia. Today Malaysians are able, for the first time, to experience the real power of 4G and have the worlds of Internet and Voice come together in one, seamless and meaningful service.

As you all know, Malaysia is striving towards the Government’s New Economic Model and our aspirations are to transform Malaysia into a high-income economy nation by 2015. The National Economic Model and the National Broadband initiative both have made ubiquitous and quality broadband one of the key engines of growth for this country.

If electricity was the critical enabler for the industrial economy, then digital infrastructure and the digital superhighway are critical enablers during this age of a knowledge-based and innovation-led economy. YTL’s 4G network and the whole new 4G ecosystem built up around it will provide the country with part of this critical infrastructure  I hope that this new ecosystem will also attract the world’s best companies like Samsung and Cisco, to invest alongside YTL to support and grow this ecosystem. 

The Government recently announced that the nation has exceeded its household broadband penetration target of 50% this year. With the launch of the Yes service today, I am confident that we will reach even more households. The MCMC under the leadership of the Minister of Information, Communications and Culture, Dato’ Seri Utama Dr. Rais Yatim justly deserves the accolade of driving this programme. This is certainly an important milestone but we cannot and will not stop until every Malaysian has equal access to the Internet.

In this respect I am heartened to note YTL’s emphasis on bringing internet to all. This is something that I am passionate about and I would like Malaysians to share this passion with me. For only when every Malaysian from every walk of life finds relevance in the Internet are we able to harness the full potential of the Internet.

How can we expect our students to be among the best in the world if they do not have access to the vast resources in the Internet? As we know, Malaysia is blessed with a young population that has an average age of 26. We need to engage these young and inquiring minds who in turn will act as change agents for the nation.

How can we be globally competitive if we cannot benefit from the efficiency that the Internet provides? But we know that given a powerful tool like the Internet the inherent innovation and creativity of Malaysians can truly transform us as a nation.

I am also very pleased to learn about YTL’s Education Partner Program that is being offered to public universities in the country. As I have said, these young people are our future and it is they who will drive transformation. I thank YTL for this initiative and for the announcement by Tan Sri Francis that this programme will be extended to our scholars overseas.

Once again, I would like to congratulate YTL for your commitment to bring Internet to all Malaysians so that as a nation we will be able to enjoy the benefits of a truly connected digital age.

Thank you everyone and salam 1Malaysia.
 

Speech by DPM YAB Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Yassin
At the Launch of YTL’s YES!
On Friday, November 19 2010
JW Marriott, Kuala Lumpur

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Speech by
Tan Sri (Dr.) Francis Yeoh

The opportunity to do something ground-breaking does not come every day. That combination of being at the right place, at the right time and having the courage of conviction comes rarely. 

We were awarded a 4G spectrum by the Government, one of the 4 successful applicants for the spectrum. It was a bold move by the Government as none of the 4 was a telco. The Government’s objective was simple – increase broadband penetration and reduce prices – and the best way of doing this was to bring in new players.

Therefore, we had to look at things with a different perspective, to innovate and create solutions that would drive broadband penetration. While broadband penetration at the time was only 26%, voice had achieved 100% penetration. It soon became obvious to us that providing wireless broadband alone would be insufficient. Malaysians required voice as well as broadband in a single converged service.

At the same time, technological advances had brought the 2 distinct worlds of voice and data closer together. The Blackberry had brought data into mobile phones and Skype had enabled voice communication through the internet. When the iPhone was launched it looked like convergence had finally arrived; until the voice networks almost collapsed from the voracious consumption of data by iPhone users.

The technology that enabled mobile internet was ready but the highways over which it was run were not made for it.  So we sought the best brains in the world to help us build a new 4G highway and brought people like Wing Lee, our CEO and Ali Tabassi, our COO, here. We partnered with best-in-breed technology partners like Samsung and Cisco who shared our vision. They all came because they saw the opportunity to do something ground-breaking. We had no legacy networks to slow us down, a Government with vision and a business environment that encouraged investment.

Ladies and gentlemen, today we are making history.  Today we launch Yes – the world’s first, fully converged 4G mobile internet service with voice. And Yes, Malaysia is home to this world’s first.

Every Yes account comes with high speed internet access and a phone number, making the convergence of data and voice seamless. Our subscribers will not only have high speed mobile data access but will also enjoy voice, online chat and SMS services that can be accessed from anywhere in the world through the internet.  Malaysians travelling abroad can keep in touch with friends and family at home through Yes at local rates without worrying about roaming charges.

Of course, this would never have been possible without the wisdom and foresight of the Malaysian Government in encouraging private investment and allowing new entrants into the communications industry.

That is why our heartfelt gratitude goes to our Deputy Prime Minister, Yang Amat Berhormat Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyuddin Yassin. We thank you for joining us in witnessing this historic occasion and we are indebted to Tan Sri and the Malaysian Government for the support and belief in YTL.

We would not otherwise be here today, committing to making a real and positive change in Malaysia.

I have said many times that the World Bank estimates that a 10% increase in high-speed broadband penetration will lead to a 1.3% increase in GDP. A recent report by the Boston Consulting Group estimates that the internet contributed £100 billion to the British economy, or 7.2% of GDP in 2009. It is not mere conjecture. The benefits to the economy of having high speed internet widely available are real and tangible. Whether businesses are driving international expansion, improving interaction with their customers or enhancing efficiency, the internet provides the most effective and lowest cost means of doing so.

Further, the 4G ecosystem we have created in this country will, on its own, spawn further innovation and investment in the production of devices, content and software applications as well as nurture human capital, helping to drive growth in the economy.

But first, let us make the internet available to every Malaysian.
 

As our students are the future of our country, we have as a priority, launched our Education Partner Programme with the public universities. We will be giving 300MB of data or 100 minutes of voice calls a month free to every student registered under the programme. To-date UTM, UPM, UTAR, UM KTAR, USM and UiTM have signed with us to deliver this programme.

Deputy Prime Minister, I am also pleased to announce that we will be extending the Education Partner Programme to all Government sponsored scholars abroad, keeping them connected to home during the tenure of their scholarship and allowing them to transition seamlessly to a full 4G mobile internet service with voice when they return home on holiday.

Yes will also offer the cheapest mobile communications rates in the country with one simple integrated plan that combines voice, SMS and mobile data. The internet will be affordable to all.

In a few moments, YTL Communications CEO, Mr. Wing K. Lee will share with you the many innovations that our Yes service brings to Malaysia. He will offer you a clear insight on why today is a historic day for Malaysia, why today marks the beginning of our progress as a nation into a truly connected digital age.

With that I would like to once again express our sincere gratitude to our Deputy Prime Minister, Yang Amat Berhormat Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Yassin. May I also take this opportunity to thank our Minister of Information, Communications and Culture, Yang Berhormat Dato’ Seri Utama Dr. Rais Yatim, whose Ministry has been a constant mainstay to us.

Finally, a special thank you to our partners, our staff and our shareholders for believing in Yes!

This afternoon heralds in an entirely new 4G Chapter. Welcome to the Yes Chapter.

I pray and thank my Lord Jesus Christ for His blessing on this glorious day, thank you and God Bless all of you!

Speech by Tan Sri (Dr.) Francis Yeoh
At the Launch of YTL's YES!
On Friday, November 19 2010
JW Marriott, Kuala Lumpur

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