Many moons ago, I had expressed my frustration over poor quality services from Telekom Malaysia (TM), the largest internet service provider (ISP) in Boleh Land. That lengthy post eventually become among the popular stuffs in this non-tech blog.Positively, many angry customers also agreed with me. There is no conspiracy between me and them, I must say. On the funny side, some angry readers got angry with both me and the angry customers for expressing our anger towards TM.
Today, the Utusan Malaysia briefly reported that the CEO of TM, Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa, told eagerly the fact that Streamyx (some people call it Snailmyx) has roughly 1.3 million subscribers and this figure keeps climbing at the rate of 30,000/month. Unlike political news, this is a kind of story that we must believe religiously there.
This CEO of TM also told us further:
"TM dalam perancangan mempelbagaikan perkhidmatan jalur lebar yang kini dilihat menjadi pilihan utama orang ramai."
Wait, before you diversify the broadband service, why don't you do some reality check first? TM has no real competition from other ISPs and this make TM to be less innovative and creative. If TM is a ninja, then other ISPs are just commoners that can be easily defeated. This bad environment makes the broadband price in our MSC country remains expensive even 8 years after the peak of dot-com bubble in year 2000. The average rakyat of Boleh Land still see broadband as a luxury and not as a commodity.
People choose you simply because you are the cheapest and has more coverage. TM is clearly in a delusional state by not listening to their frustrating customers. Diversification of your broadband service is the last thing we need.
What we desperately need now is for TM to greatly improve both the customer and technical aspects of your business. Do not spread yourself too thin by launching new things unless you can confidently handle the existing services very, very well.
Otherwise, you are at the risk of "Yang dikejar tak dapat, yang dikendong berciciran" because many attempts of companies to diversify led to failure. However, that idiom probably may not apply to you as TM has controlled the market strongly. No matter how bad you do, the customers will suck it all because they don't have a choice.
What I really hate about you, my dear TM, despite having the largest market share in broadband, dial-up and landline phone services, your technical and customer services are still pretty bad. If you can't make the broadband price cheaper, at least give us a 'real broadband'. What I mean is, when we pay RM88/month for the promised speed at 1.0 mbps, then don't give us the speed of dial-up!
I think when it comes to anti-competitive practices, TM and Microsoft are comparably evil. American had once dragged Bill Gates to the court. However in the Boleh Land, a simple non-malignant complaint from the frustrated customers to the government-linked companies (or any other Malaysian companies), sometimes can be perceived as "pengkhianat" and "tak suka bangsa sendiri maju".
I understand the government has 36% of shares in TM, however don't forget that by default, human beings always choose quality over nationality or races of the maker. That is why, I strongly believe that it is quite unwise, for example, to associate Makcik PC and the Malaysian sentiment. Plus, it seems so pathetic, especially when you (MIMOS) ambitiously want your product to put a ding in the universe.
Don't persuade people to buy Makcik PC because a Malaysian company make it. Instead, make them proudly buy it because of the quality. It is the only way to make our products to be recognized locally and globally. Not to be just recognized in a majlis pelancaran and one or two tech festivals, and then to be forgotten once and for all.
Google says a business can still make money without being evil. To do evil or not to do evil to the customers; that is the question that must be answered by Telekom Malaysia. Improve Streamyx and everybody will happy, and they will no longer chanting this notorious mantra, ever. ¶ Teruskan membaca entri ini »