Infolient Broadband Sdn Bhd is a relatively new player in the broadband space that is dominated by a handful of Internet service providers (ISPs). However, any new player with good and reliable offerings will certainly be a relief to subscribers who, judging by their complaints to the dailies, are often disappointed with the bad service provided by the incumbents.

However, it is by no means an easy task to take on the big ISPs, which have invested millions of ringgit building the infrastructure in the country. But Infolient is not going head-on with the existing ISPs; rather it hopes to bring broadband services to the underserved community.

“We want to bring broadband to the underserved community by providing good services… giving them more value for money,” Infolient’s director of strategic marketing and branding Affendy Arshad tells netv@lue2.0.

Early this year, Infolient chose Kelantan as the first state to roll out its wireless and wired broadband services in a big way by partnering a state-backed company there. “We want to localise our broadband based on the community,” Affendy explains.
He says the company’s strategy is to work with state governments so that it can promote its products and services more effectively.

“We started working with a state-backed company, Infra Quest Sdn Bhd, which is 100%-owned by Perbadanan Kemajuan Iktisad Negeri Kelantan. We positioned our brand as originating from the Kelantan people. This creates a sense of belonging and confidence in the brand,” he adds.
Infolient picked Kelantan mainly because the state has the lowest broadband penetration rate of 6% as of 4Q2009, says Affendy.

Besides, Affendy believes it is important to prove that its technology works well in Kelantan. “For WiFi, which works on radio signals, we face a lot of challenges mainly due to the weather there. We want to prove that our own access points can work in Kelantan in terms of technology and stability.”

Indeed, Infolient may enjoy cost savings when it comes to putting up access points, which are self-configured and self-programmed, thanks to its chief technology officer Nik Mohamad Hanif, who has worked in US-based Cable & Wireless as well as Comcast Corporation previously. His expertise is in the design and implementation of Internet protocol network, with emphasis on new media delivery.

“We developed our own access points. We buy the chips and motherboards, but we assemble, configure and programme the way we want it. It costs us between RM5,000 and RM10,000 to put them together. In terms of signal strength, our access points can go up to 5km radius each,” says Affendy.

So far, it has put up more than 100 access points in Kelantan.

Affendy says with the software and programming, Infolient will be able to put in local content, which will provide an additional source of income.
“We aim to put the content into the WiFi captive portal. For Kelantan, we are going to launch things like e-learning. We want to get more people on board and reduce the cost of Internet.

“So, we need to cut down the 80% content that we take from international sites, and use more local content,” says Affendy.
He adds that another reason Kelantan was selected was its purchasing power. “People in Kelantan have money to buy. If we bring the right technology at the right price, I believe people will start using broadband.”

Infolient is also targeting Perak to roll out its services. “In Perak, we are working with another state-backed company, KPerak Implementation and Coordination Corp, to provide WiFi services to small towns there,” says Affendy.
Recently, it has also expanded to Kuantan, Pahang, via a strategic alliance with the municipal council there on wireless venture.
Affendy says the company is also looking at expanding its services to selected parts in the Klang Valley, Johor and Negri Sembilan.

Where it all began
While Kelantan serves as a base to grow its business, it is Subang Jaya where Infolient began its operations.
It started off as an information, communications and technology (ICT) solutions provider, mainly reselling Telekom Malaysia Bhd’s products and services. However, its big break came when Infolient was issued an application service provider licence in 2006.

In that year, Infolient began a pilot wireless project to provide Internet services to residents in SS15, Subang Jaya. It gave 2,500 students access to a wireless Internet via a prepaid credit service for RM30.
The success of its pioneer project opened doors to bigger ventures. Telekom Malaysia then offered Infolient a partnership deal whereby the company could piggyback on Telekom’s landline network and expand to provide wired broadband Internet.

Using Telekom’s physical last-mile network,  Infolient was able to ride on the Streamyx platform without sharing its bandwidth with the telecommunication provider.

But Infolient is not in the business to compete with the big boys. “Although our services are available nationwide, we don’t do mass marketing... We go for pockets where we can see demand,” says Affendy.

This is because being a small company, it does not have a huge advertising and promotion budget. “We believe in giving customers the best services. Most of our customers came to know us by word of mouth,” he adds.

Infolient has certainly come a long way since its tiny home-office days some four years ago. However, the jury is still out on whether the company has the staying power to serve the underserved markets.

This article appeared in netv@lue2.0, the technology section of The Edge Malaysia Issue 788 Jan 11 - 17 2010