Nanyang 16/3/00 - Telekom was given government contract to set up internal portals or intranet for government's departments.

The Star 7/3/00 - International rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has affirmed its triple B long-term foreign currency corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on Telekom Malaysia Bhd. The outlook on hte corporate credit rating remains stable. S&P siad in a statement yesterday that the ratings on Telekom reflected the company's still-dominant position in the fixed-line and long-distance segments of Malaysia's telecommunications market, its aboe-average financial profile and the potential for growth in demand for telecommunication services in the country over the long term. Offsetting these positive factors however were Telekom's struggling cellular business and uncertainty over tariff re-balancing in the country. Telekom controls more than 90% market share of the overall fixed-line market in Malaysia and more than 60% share of international long-distance traffic. Competing carriers which previously sought to expand their fixed-line operations are either hampered by funds contraint (the parents of two competing carriers had recently experienced financial difficultites) or focused more on profitable cellular operations. The pressure to reduce long-distance tariffs in the near to medium term was increasing the urgency for further tariff re-balancing. Until the regulatory stance on tariff re-balancing becomes more certain, Telekom's operating income margins will continue to face downward pressure. However, the Malaysian market for telecommunication services will remain attractive over the medium term as the country's relatively low teledensity rises to match the levels of its regional peers, and as the increase in Internet usage stimulates more fised-line demand. With some cometing cellular operators aggressively expanding their market share, and analogue networks mandated to be phased out by 2005, the company must quickly implement a more aggressive strategy for its still-modest digital cellular operations.