Malaysia is to switch to all-digital transmission by 31 October 2019.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) stated that the nation’s transition from analogue TV to its digital service (myFreeview Digital TV) will start in the central and southern regions on September 30th, northern and eastern regions on 14 October 2019 while Sabah and Sarawak will make the switch on 31 October 2019. There are 15 TV and six radio channels on myFreeview Digital TV.
In a statement, the MCMC stated that several new TV channels will be aired via myFreeview Digital TV soon. The myFreeview Digital TV service is among the efforts to close the digital gap between the people in urban, suburban and rural areas.
It is also in line with the government’s Shared Prosperity Vision to enable the people enjoy free quality digital TV without monthly subscription.
Putrajaya’s Shared Prosperity Vision
The government’s new Shared Prosperity Vision will see the recalibration of current its current frameworks that focuses on new industries to achieve prosperous living standards by 2030, the Economic Affairs Ministry stated.
Following a special Cabinet meeting in Putrajaya, the ministry said to achieve this goal, Malaysia’s economy needs to be restructured to be more progressive and centred on the usage of advanced technologies, innovation, and research and development.
Priority will be given to sources of new growth that includes digital economy, the aerospace industry, smart agriculture, and support services for the Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0.
At the same time, existing industries that have been contributing to the economic growth will be given new injections.
The statement said a White Paper explaining the vision was presented during the Cabinet meeting, which conceded the need to recalibrate the existing policies to deal with the global challenges.
The vision that covers the period of 2021 to 2030 represents the commitment to make Malaysia an economy that is keeps expanding vibrantly and sustainably.
The beauty of Shared Prosperity will stand out when the economic gap between income groups, ethnic groups, the region, and supply chains are reduced maintaining the context of an ever-expanding economy.
The result is by ensuring the people are taken care of and no one is left behind during the country’s expansion flow, the statement read.
Following a three-hour meeting, the ministry said the Cabinet had considered and agreed to accept the new policy that will drive sustainable growth and advance technologies.
It said the policy would also be inclusive and ensure an even and fair distribution to reduce the socio-economic gaps.
According to another report, Putrajaya’s economic policies will emphasise raising the skills of low-income earners to help the group catch up with more affluent Malaysians in its Shared Prosperity Vision.
The Prime Minister said such efforts were necessary to ensure higher income is accompanied by increased productivity for the country. In addition, there is a need to address disparities between urban and rural Malaysians as well as a widening wealth gap in the country.
To remedy this, the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) will take a leading role.
Recipients of government contracts and approved permits (AP) would also be upskilled to ensure they could directly benefit from these instead of selling them off as is usual.
In August 2019, OpenGov Asia reported that Malaysia’s broadcasting following it began the gradual transition from the analogue television broadcast to the myFreeview digital broadcast service.
Malaysia is the third country in the ASEAN region to progress from analogue broadcasting after Brunei Darussalam in 2017 and Singapore in January this year.