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Bridging the Digital Divide via Wireless Technologies in Malaysia:

An Analysis at Central Region

ZAINI AMIR, NORIZAN ABDUL RAZAK, JAMALUDDIN AZIZ

E-Community Research Center Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

43600, Bangi UKM. Selangor MALAYSIA

[email protected]@gmail.com

Abstract: One of the most striking changes in the use of technology is the explosive growth in the use of wirelesstechnology. Wireless networking has become more available, affordable, and easy to use. In Malaysia, theapplications and use of the information communication technology (ICT) and wireless technology have potential tolink Malaysian in all communities and empower them to access information and knowledge digitally no matter where

they are. This paper looks at the impact of wireless technology in selected urban and rural areas in the central regionof the country namely Perak, Selangor and Malacca. Findings from the study will be presented in two parts: firstly,the general review of the wireless technology in terms of its access, applications and technology. Secondly, the impactof wireless technology in terms of education, social, health and productivity. This is in line to supporting theMalaysian government’s aspiration towards building the knowledge society by the year 2020.

Key-Words: wireless technology, digital divide, wireless networking, empowerment, knowledge society,rural and urban areas

1 IntroductionIn recent years, wireless networking has become moreavailable, affordable and easy to use. In Malaysia, thepenetration and adoption of the wireless technologies isexperiencing an outstanding growth. Home users areadopting wireless technology in great numbers. Laptopusers often find free access to wireless connections inplaces like coffee shops, airports and hotel lobbiesbecause the wireless card is already pre-installed whenbuying the laptop. The low rate of subscription fees tothe internet via broadband is also an encouraging factor for the high adoption rate at the urban areas. However there is still a very marked differences of the take up rateof the urban and rural areas on the use of broadband and

mainly this is due to the fact that the infrastructure isstill not available to all the zones in Malaysia and alsothe awareness and needs to use broadband at the ruralareas is still very low.

1.1 Broadband initiatives in MalaysiaThe 8th Malaysia Plan (8MP), which covered the periodof 2001-2005 was primarily aimed at sustainingeconomic growth and competitiveness in the face of growing globalization and liberalization [1]. One of thethrusts was to shift the growth strategy from input-drivento knowledge-driven and productivity-driven. One of

the strategies of MP8 is to provide world class ICTinfrastructure and increase the e-participation of

Malaysian community. For these purposes, about RM1billion has been allocated under the Plan to carry outICT programs and projects to increase the usage of ICT

among communities in rural areas. The diffusion andusage of ICT within and across sectors is further expanded as ICT has a strategic role in acceleratingeconomic growth. The 8th Malaysian Plan has beencompleted and implemented and yet there are still areasneed to be focused in terms of assisting Malaysians tohave higher rate of using ICT in their daily lives.

Under the title “Mainstreaming Communication andInformation Technology in the 9th Malaysian Plan”blueprint, the Government of Malaysia is committed

towards continuous improvement in addressing theneed of creating knowledge society [2]. In fact, the major thrust for Malaysia to become a fully developed countryenvisioned by the year 2020 is the creation of aninformation rich, value added knowledge society

Thus in order to assist the higher take up of ICT, thestrategies adopted to achieve the vision for ubiquitouscomputing within Malaysian society include wired andwireless mode. The implementation of these strategies isnot only being carried out by the federal governmentand the state governments, but also through a tripartite

partnership involving the private sector telecommunication companies. The USP

RECENT ADVANCES in E-ACTIVITIES, INFORMATION SECURITY and PRIVACY

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Communication Tower Project Program is an exampleof this public-private partnership providing cellular coverage in the deprived areas due to their remotenessand uneconomic locations.

The pervasiveness of ICT infrastructural development iscurrently being extended throughout the countrycovering the rural and even the remote areas.Substantial budget has been allocated under the 8th and9th Malaysia Plan for ICT facilities and services. A totalof RM12.9 billion has been allocated for ICT projectsand programs in the 9th Malaysia Plan with 30% goes tothe rural and remote areas under the Bridging the DigitalDivide initiatives [3]. This initiative aimed at providingequal access and opportunity for ICT facilities andservices to the citizens. This would enable wirelesstechnologies in the form of communication towers, very

small aperture satellites (VSAT), Wimax and Wifihotspots and transmitters to be installed in remoteregions within reach by local communities.

In the wireless internet segment, one large scale projectbeing rolled-out is the Kuala Lumpur WirelessMetropolitan project (KLWMP). A joint venturebetween KL and local technology Green Packet theRM60m ($17.9m) KLWMP will develop a network of 2000 free wireless hotspots throughout the capitalwithin two years [4]. Phase one which is already under way calls for 1500 hotspots to be installed around the

golden triangle area of Kuala Lumpur. Green packetsubsidiary Packet One will provide RM50m ($14.9m)for the initial phase, while telecommunicationsregulator Malaysian Communications and MultimediaCommission (MCMC) and Dewan Bandaraya KualaLumpur will each invest in an additional RM5m($1.5m) [5]. A total of 2008 registered hotspots werepresent in the country through September 2008, thelargest concentration of which was located in KualaLumpur with 677, followed by Selangor with 428,Perak with 203 and Penang with 122. At same time,there were 346,000 hotspot subscriptions throughout

the country, nearly double the 180,100 registered in thefirst quarter of 2007[6].

2 A Research on the Impact of Wireless

TechnologyA survey was conducted to gauge the take up rate andadoption of wireless technologies among the users in thecentral region. There were 279 respondents who filledup and responded to the surveys. The research is basedon the quantitative research technique. A set of questionnaire was developed and validated by experts.

The interview protocol was designated to further elicitresponses beyond the scope of quantitative data.

3 SamplingThis study presents the findings of the survey conductedfor the central region. Three states are categorizedwithin this region namely Perak, Selangor and Malacca.In total, ten locations were surveyed. The locations

selected are four in Selangor (two urban, and two rural)and four in Perak (two urban, and two rural), and two inMalacca (two urban, and two rural). The findingsdiscussed is based from 279 responses received. Table 1tabulates the status of the survey.

Table 1Locations and Status of Questionnaires

Returned

Locations Category Distributed Received

Selangor

Bangi,ShahAlam

Urban 75 60

Banting Rural 75 40

Perak

Teluk Intan,Ipoh,TanjungMalim

Urban 75 50

Tronoh Rural 75 29

Malacca

Bandar Melaka, Air

Keroh

Urban 75 60

Serkam,Jeperun

Rural 75 40

TOTAL 279

3.1 Socio-demographicsThe total number of respondents representing thecentral region is 279. The distribution of males andfemales respondents is 53% and 46.9% respectively.Whereas, about 32.2% of the respondents are marriedand 67.8% are still single. Most of the respondents aged

between 19 to 35 years old (49.9%), followed by thoseaged more than 35 years old (46.9%), and less than18 years old (3.2%). The ethnicity of the respondents areMalays (59%); Indians (17%) and Chinese (24%)respectively and majority of the respondents holdBachelor degree (55.5%).

4 Access and adoption of Wireless

TechnologyWhen the respondents were being asked about their pattern of using wireless technology to access internet,more than half of the respondents (65.5%) claimed thatthey used wireless mode to connect to internet. 56%accessed the internet through their computers using


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mobile modem and only 3% through their PDAs. Thedata shows quite high adoption rate and this could bedue to the fact that the Central Region is also a veryhigh populated areas and have high economicopportunities as compared to other parts of Malaysia.The other 34.5% of the respondents who did not usewireless to access internet may not have the need for itor there may not have such facilities where they live for example the semi urban and also urban poor areas.

4.1 Places of accessThe findings suggested that, restaurants are the mostcommon place where wireless technology is accessed(23%). The famous internet access restaurants are thoselike Coffee Bean, Starbucks, and local fast foodrestaurants which we called Restaurant 24 hoursoperated by Indian Muslims. Of these respondents

81.8% indicate that they use this service free of charge,and only 18.2% have to pay for it. The next mostcommon among the respondents are at the hotel lobbies(22%). Most of the access to the internet at the hotellobbies are free but majority of the hotels in Malaysiastill charge for internet access in the rooms or meetingrooms. The rate is usually about RM20 – RM50 per day.Other common places are rest areas (R&R), libraries,airports, e-community centres, and in-campus, schoolsor workplaces. Figure 1 refers to the places wherewireless technology is commonly used.

Figure 1: Places of Access

Hotel

lobbies22%

Restaurants

23%

Airports

12%

Rest Areas

13%

e-

communitycenters

18%

Libraries

6%

Other Public

Places6%

4.2 Wireless Technology ApplicationsThe respondents were asked on the applications of thewireless technology and two hundred and sixty (93.1%)respondents claimed that they use it to transmit databetween communication devices (Table 1). Thecommunication devices include mobile phone (26.1%),digital camera (21.3%), computer (6.9%), and PDAs

(2.5%).

Table 1: Wireless Applications Usage

Application Frequency Percentage

Mobile phone 173 66.5

Digital camera 67 26.0

Computer 16 6.0PDA 4 1.5

4.2.1 The Use of Bluetooth Technology

In the central region, more than half of the respondents(70.8%) have utilized the benefits of wirelessheadphone. Out of these respondents, most of them havebeen using the Bluetooth technology (83.6%) and haveused wireless headphone. Ninety-one respondents(32.6%) agree that they use printer with the support of wireless devices. However, they did not specify the

detail of the wireless devices. Eighty-four respondents(30.1%) confirm that they use mobile phone as a modemto access internet, while 49.6% have used mobile phoneto access and surf the internet.

5 The Impact of Wireless TechnologyIn order to understand the impact of the wirelesstechnology towards the lifestyles of the respondents,several questions were prepared and asked related to theimpact of wireless technology towards education, social,health and productivity.

With regards to content accessed via internet mostrespondents (90.5%) says that wireless technologyallows them to enjoy multimedia content online. Apartfrom that, 81.6% say that they could download dataquicker, and 89.2% agree that they can get access toInternet anytime anywhere at their convenience. Slightlymore than 84.1% respondents agree that they could surf the internet at their convenience without having to worrythe time and duration of surfing. 68.7% said that theycould surf the internet 24 hours a day without having topay extra. In terms of costs, 81.5% agree that wireless

technology allow them to save more compared to normalwired installation. This can help them in saving onphone rentals and calls.

For educational purposes it has also been found thatwireless technology allows the respondents (93.8%) toget access to internet to search for reference materials,88.0% to films and attractive locations and 94.1%respondents agree that they also get to know aboutcurrent news and latest issues.

Slightly more than 84% respondents agree that wirelesstechnology suits their lifestyles. Almost 91.2%respondents say that they can communicate with their


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peers and friends and approximately 84.9% respondentsagree that it helps them in their daily activities such asmaking appointments, schedules and calendars. They(79.7%) felt that now they could manage their schedulesbetter.

The impact of wireless technology within anorganization, 91.8% of the respondents agree that it willhelp organizations to become more efficient, andcompetitive. Roughly 93.0% agree that wirelesstechnology allows a more efficient working space asprinting and transferring files can be done withoutneeding to be wired all the time and they felt moremobile as internet access can be done even at thecorridor and also the meeting rooms. Apart from that,87.7% believe that it allows them to use the internet and92.3% agree that they can also check on information

immediately while working or holding meetings.

5.1 EducationMajority of the respondents, 86.4% agree that thetechnology does motivate them in learning especially inaccessing materials in- campus and also off-campus. For college students the wireless environment in campusdoes help them to download learning materials at timeconvenience for them and not restricted lab hours. For those who are not learning in institutions of higher learning, the wireless environment do help them inaccessing educational materials for the lifelong learning

purposes 90%. Apart from improving the students’learning, wireless technology is also found to improvelearning opportunity of most respondents and 90.3% alsoagree that it facilitates collaborative learning andencourage them to use various technologicalapplications.

5.2 SocialIn order to gauge the social impact of the use of wirelesstechnology several questions were listed in thequestionnaire and Table 2 lists them out accordingly.

Table 2: Impacts on Social Aspects

Social aspects Percentage

Communication & relationship

- interact through Internet- add value to the relationship- socialize with friends

93.693.2

80.8

Information search

- inculcate knowledge society values- maximize Internet usage

- assist search for premises andlocations

92.883.8

85.1

Self-organization

- check calendar - make appointment

84.181.5

Security & Privacy

- aware of privacy issues

- more cautious on security

89.5

86.1

Thus from Table 2 we can conclude the highest impactof wireless technology is to assist communications andalso relationship followed by information search and self organization. Even though the respondents felt that theyare aware of the privacy issues but the way how to havesafe transactions and secured data in wirelessenvironment must be taught more aggressively as their data are exposed to public when they are accessinginternet at the public places.

5.3 HealthThis research also surveys respondents’ perception onhow wireless technology can assist them in the contextof health. Table 3 lists the purposes and ranks them. Thefindings suggest that majority of the respondents felt thatthe wireless technology as a resource to get some healthtips. This is followed by to access health information,get online counseling services, get information on firstaid/emergency case, as medium for questions andanswers, access information on types of medicine, asintermediary between specialists and patients, asmedium for reporting emergency cases, as medium of warning of for epidemics, and as reminder on time for medication.

Table 3: Purpose of Use in Health

Purpose of use Percentage

As a resource for health tips 88.7

Access health information 88.5

Get information on first aid/emergencycase

86.7

Get online counseling services 83.6

Access information on types of medicine

83.1

As medium for questions and answers 81.1

As intermediary between specialists andpatients

78.7

As medium for reporting emergencycases

77.7

As medium of warning of for epidemics 76.2

As reminder on time for medication 72.1

Thus, these findings showed that the as the respondents

are aware what the wireless technology can do for themin health context, real applications of the use is still low.


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The handphone has been widely used to conveymessages of the upcoming epidemics but public at largeare still skeptical whether to trust or not to trustmessages conveyed via phone unless it is from thetrustworthy sources. The communication betweenspecialist and patients usually in the hospitals or duringthe consultation times and not many specialists wouldlike to be called or texted after clinical hours.

5.4 ProductivityThe purposes of using wireless technology in theproductivity sector are ranked as follows: Mostrespondents agree that wireless technology can helpthem in widening their daily activities (81.5%),facilitating discussion matters at any places (81.5%),giving more self mobility (81.0%), and providing latesteconomic information (79.8%). 75.5% of the

respondents mentioned that their production rates haveincreased. However, thepercentage of increased inprofit, varies as the highest is between 61.0% to 80.0%.

They believe that the increase in demand may be due tothe use of wireless technology which facilitates effectivepromotion, online transactions, business management,access to relevant sites, and communication. Wirelesstechnology helps businessmen to promote their productsthrough internet advertisement and mobile phoneapplications. In terms of business management, therespondents believe that they can enhance their business

knowledge because wireless technology is a mediumthat offers varieties of information resources, allowsonline discussions (blog forum), permits the creation of business networking/circle, and provides channel for customers’ feedbacks.

In business activities, the respondents believe that theymanage to use the technology to improve their businessproductivity through quick information dissemination.Internet banking facilitates them in checking their accounts, making and receiving payments, and stock trading. There is a case where one of the respondentsinvolved in the advertisement business has managed toimprove his business circle through the use of wirelesstechnology. The e-mail technology assists him in hisbusiness processes whereby the advertisement designlayout can be deliberated with his customers onlineeffectively. The use of the technology has boosted uptheir business reputation and image as technology savvy.For those who conduct businesses at home, wirelesstechnology facilitates them in promoting their productsand services as well as interacting with their current andpotential customers and clients.

6 ConclusionThe study on the impact of wireless technologiesindicates that there is a positive response in the provisionof broadband technology [7]. This is highlighted withthe high take-up rate and positive adoption patterns on

the use of wireless communications among therespondents in the central region. For home-basedsetting, broadband should be made ready to produce ahigher take-up rate among the respondents. In realizingvalue added knowledge societies, the public must bemade aware that many of the technological devices suchas mobile phones, PDAs, laptops can access internet andinformation in a very efficient way anywhere and anyplace. They need to be educated on the applications andthe security aspects of the use of wireless technologiesso that they could reap the maximum benefits. SincePDAs, mobile phones, Bluetooth technologies are

actually cheaper, compared to owning a computer, thecommunity should be utilizing these gadgets to accessinformation and will be influential tools in bridging thedigital divide [8]. This findings will spearhead the needsto develop more mobile content that can be accessed viathe handphones and as the basis for ensuring that thesubscription fees of mobile broadband is at the rate thatis affordable by the community at large. This will helpthem access information beyond the wired environmentand beyond the locations of existing access points athome, office and other places.

References:[1] Dewan Rakyat 2001. Eighth Malaysia Plan (2001

2005) http://www.ids.org.my/planpolicy/focus.htm .2001.

[2] Ninth Malaysia Plan 2006-2010: MainstreamingInformation and Communications TechnologyEconomic Planning Unit © Malaysia PrimeMinister's Department, 2006, 53 pages.

[3] Economic Planning Unit. Ninth Malaysia Plan(2006-2010), The Economic Planning Unit, PrimeMinister Department, Putrajaya,http://www.epu.jpm.my/rm9/html/english.htm , 2006.

[4] KL the wireless online metropolitan, The Star online, May 13, 2008.

[5] Kementerian Tenaga, Air dan Komunikasi, TheNational Broadband Plan: Enabling High Speed

Under MyICMS 886,Percetakan Nasional MalaysiaBerhad, Putrajaya, 2006.

[6] The Report: Malaysia 2009 by Oxford businessgroup, 2009.

[7] Zaini Amir. Integrating Mobile WirelessTechnology in Higher Education for Life LongLearning: Bridging the Digital Divide at Urban and

Rural Areas. LYICT 2008 Joint Open and Working IFIP Conference: ICT and Learning for the Net


ISSN: 1790-5117 221 ISBN: 978-960-474-143-4



Generation. 2008.[8] Zaini Amir dan Norizan Abdul Razak. Impak

Teknologi Tanpa Wayar terhadap MasyarakatMalaysia. Hari e-Komuniti bersama penyelidik danpenyelia Telecenter, Malaysia, 2008.


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