News & Reviews:   dual 5G network

As U Mobile continues to build up its Next-Gen 5G network, the company has formalised a strategic partnership with OCK Telco Infra Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of OCK Group Berhad, Malaysia’s largest telecommunications network solutions provider. The collaboration led to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which positions OCK as one of U Mobile’s preferred partners for 5G In-Building Coverage (IBC) infrastructure.

During the recent Asia-Pacific Telecommunity Ministerial Meeting (APT-MM) held in Tokyo from 30 to 31 May 2025, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil highlighted its strategic shift to a dual 5G network and called for enhanced regional cooperation on online safety.

Today, U Mobile has once again made another strategic partnership, this time with Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), to accelerate the nationwide deployment of its 5G network. It will be a 10-year agreement, valued at RM2.4 billion, and was formalised today at a signing ceremony held at Sofitel Kuala Lumpur Damansara.  

Today, U Mobile has established a new strategic partnership with TIME dotCom in anticipation of the accelerated deployment of U Mobile’s 5G network. Under the government’s dual network model, U Mobile will tap into Time's fibre network to prepare for its second 5G network rollout.

It's been a while since we got some updates on the dual 5G network news but in early June, it was reported that the telcos were ready to sign a dual-network 5G share subscription agreement with DNB. This time, our local Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil announced that it's ready to roll out.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil today announced that telco companies involved in the dual-network 5G model are ready to sign an agreement to take up equities in Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB). He added that this is in line with the timeline to complete the share subscription agreement process for the DNB equity acquisition by 21 June.

Last week, we reported news coverage by an international source about the delay of the dual 5G network agreement. Long story short, the next phase seems to be in a status quo as there is a growing mistrust between government officials and telco executives. However, Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) stated that there are several misleading claims.

So at the end of March, our Communications Minister, Fahmi Fadzil told the media that the Dual 5G network meeting was expected to be held in early April. There was no news regarding that until now, as ChannelNewsAsia.com just reported that the next phase is in a status quo. 

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil today announced that the 5G network in Malaysia has exceeded the target of 80% coverage by the end of 2023. Accordingly, a second 5G network will be announced soon as Malaysia moves to a dual 5G network.

The 5G network rollout in our country has been relatively successful, albeit not as straightforward as Malaysians would’ve preferred. Case in point, the government recently announced that it will move from a single 5G network to a dual model after the former’s coverage reaches 80% of populated areas.