Astro’s commercial customers increase in Sabah

KOTA KINABALU: Astro has increased its commercial customers in Sabah, said its Head of Enterprise Business, Kevin Ng. “We have seen a 20 per cent increase in our commercial customers in Sabah compared to last year and we are honoured to be powering possibilities for SMEs in Sabah through, AstroBIZ, the enterprise arm of Astro as enterprises look to bolster their operations and local reputation through our new premium commercial flexi packs bundled with BIZfibre at special introductory prices,” he said at the launch of Astro's nextgeneration broadband service here on Monday.

Kevin encouraged commercial enterprises such as F&B outlets and hotels to only access content that are legal. “Astro has invested substantially in high quality live sports and entertainment for our customers over the years because we know how much they value it. We take a serious view of illegal streaming of content as it is important to ensure our legitimate commercial subscribers are not short changed,” he said.

Under the Copyright (Amendment) Act 2022, anyone caught streaming unauthorised content is liable to fines up to RM200,000, be imprisoned up to 20 years, or both for piracy, said Ng.

The all-new BIZfibre provides high-speed broadband at greater stability to SMEs in Sabah.

BIZfibre, powered by Astro Fibre, is the perfect complement to its commercial TV Packs, offering live sports, the biggest TV shows, blockbuster movies and breaking news.

Euan Smith, Astro's Group Chief Executive Officer – Designate said, “As businesses become more global and competitive, it is critical that everyone, from entrepreneurs to large companies, has better access to faster and more reliable connectivity.

“SMEs are the backbone of the Malaysian economy, accounting for 97 per cent of total business establishments. They generate 38 per cent of GDP and provide half of the nation's employment.

“We aspire to partner with SMEs, offering one-stop connectivity and entertainment solutions with world-class WiFi, plus engaging content that is 100 per cent legal.

“Through this service, SMEs will have peace of mind knowing that they are subscribed to a legal TV commercial package, one that provides their customers with better service.”

He added, “listening to feedback from our commercial customers and prospects, we have designed our BIZfibre plans to enhance business performance through faster, more reliable, and stable connectivity.

“We have curated a range of value-added packages that meet all commercial needs, regardless of size or industry. Our BIZfibre and commercial TV Packs offer a unique value proposition, building on Astro's rich content heritage; great service. We are confident BIZfibre will be an important contribution to the growth of our broadband and commercial customer base.”

The special launch at Le Méridian Kota Kinabalu on Monday was attended by industry leaders in Sabah including Yong Chee Yun, president of Sabah United Federation of Coffee Shops & Restaurants Association, Mahadi Bin Santa and Syahimah Abdul Rasa, directors of Thai Siam Cuisine, Dayang Rahmah, owner of Puteri Kitchen 2, Arthur Mojugah, manager of Mai Yai Thai and The Vikings and Adrian Abah, manager of Cock & Bull.

These business owners are amongst the enterprenurs supported by Astro's Business Solutions to recover strongly when the economy reopened so that they can continue serving customers, now using BIZfibre's broadband connectivity alongside Astro TV's exciting content offerings.

In conjunction with the launch of BIZfibre, Astro is offering a VIP Pack with 59 channels and a VIP Plus Pack with 70 channels. The VIP Pack comes with all VIP sports passes such as the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and other exciting live sports such as the Premier League, La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A, Formula 1, UFC, NBA and many more including signature Astro Originals, One Cent Thief; premium international shows, Star Trek: Short Treks S1 and The Roundup (coming soon 26 November); local favourites, Gegar Vaganza S9, I Love Hua Hee and season 2 of Kuri; as well as breaking news to keep customers up to date on current events.

Customers can show five different sports content concurrently at only RM1,959 per month. The VIP Plus Pack includes a VIP Sports Pass and the Rugby Pass with eight different screens of sports concurrently, which comes with a choice of broadband speeds of either 500Mbps or 800Mbps for free for up to 24 months.

The free broadband up to 24 months comes bundled with the new VIP commercial TV subscription.

BIZfibre is also available on a standalone basis, delivering unlimited fixed internet with speeds of 500Mbps to 800Mbps at RM239 and RM299 per month respectively, and comes with the latest WiFi 6 router to guarantee the growing network needs of today's commercial customers plus one free mesh WiFi unit to overcome common connectivity issues such as weak and limited coverage, internet dead spots and inconsistent speeds.

Customers can add on Mesh WiFi subscriptions for as little as RM10 per month.

Please visit business.astro.com.my to sign up or contact our Customer Service at 03-9544 7566 for more enquiries.