TM Net
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
TM Net is a
Malaysian ISP which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the government linked
TM Bhd. The company holds a near monopoly for Internet service in Malaysia, largely because almost all the
last mile connections in the country are owned by TM Bhd.
Products and services
TM Net offers internet DSL broadband access under the brandname Streamyx. For the Streamyx Internet ADSL service, subscribers are offered internet speeds between 384kbit/s to 4 Mbit/s.
Criticism of TM Net
TM Net has been criticised locally on a range of issues. This section outlines some of the criticisms faced by TM Net.
Slower speed and reliability
TM Net subscribers have complained about slow speeds and the general lack of reliability of connections provided. However TM Net’s terms states, like those of other ISPs around the world, that "the service they provide is based on a best effort basis",[1] meaning that connections are not guaranteed to perform at their advertised theoretical speeds. Lower than advertised performance could be due to ageing copper lines, insufficient bandwidth, high contention ratios , or simple apathy due to a lack of competition. In light of this, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has outlined mandatory standards for quality of service[2], it is however unclear if the standards are being enforced or whether TM Net currently meets these standards. Common complaints about connection stability and data transfer issues appear related to poorly-maintained last-mile copper connections and gateway bandwidth limitations respectively. The standard reply provided by customer service operators is that TM are unable to do anything about the complaints as issues due to loss of data packets traveling through overseas internet pipelines are beyond TM Net's domain.
Last mile monopoly and lack of competition
Unlike the EU, Malaysia has passed little legislation for the unbundling of last mile connections[3]. This gives little chance for other companies to compete with TM Net. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has made a limited concession toward unbundling through its Access List Determination[4], although industry players remain sceptical[5]. The result of a lack of competition is clearly seen in the fact that broadband packages offered by TM Net, when measured by bandwidth-to-cost ratios, have basically stood still since service inception, while competitive markets have seen a manyfold increase in bandwidth and a drop in subscription costs during the corresponding period.[citation needed]
Peer-to-peer connection throttling
TM Net's view on P2P usage is that it is 'unfair'[6], and implements traffic shaping, in line with its Fair Usage Policy[7]. Throttling P2P usage is at odds with TM Net's marketing of 'unlimited' broadband.
