Maxis denies slowing down Hotlink Internet speed during MCO as part of new FUP

Maxis said there was a ‘miscommunication’ on the Hotlink Unlimited FUP policy which only applies to certain situations. — LOW LAY PHON/The Star

PETALING JAYA: Maxis has denied claims that it reduced the speed of its Hotlink Unlimited prepaid service to 512Kbps (kilobits per second) during the movement control order (MCO).

The company issued a statement following reports that alleged it was throttling the speed from 8pm to 12am daily, purportedly because of MCO.

Subscribers claimed that the telco had informed them through its social media channels that the Fair Usage Policy (FUP) is being implemented during these hours.

However, Maxis said there was a “miscommunication” on the Hotlink Unlimited FUP which only applies to certain situations.

“Maxis would also like to clarify that we do not manage speeds to 512kbps during the MCO period,” it said.

“This network traffic management for Hotlink users during limited busy hours at night from 8pm to 12 midnight is not to be confused with Fair Usage Policy.

“Instead, it is an interim measure to ensure less data congestion to ensure a good user experience. We continue to monitor traffic and quality levels, and optimise network capacity while accelerating upgrades to retain a good mobile data speed experience.”

The current FAQ states that upon reaching the FUP limit, users will be informed that they will be surfing at a reduced speed until the pass expires.

The FUP limit varies for each Internet pass – 5GB for the daily pass, 15GB for the weekly pass and 50GB for the monthly pass and there’s no quota for surfing on the reduced speed.

“The reduced speed is capped at 512Kbps which allows fairly good user experience for video streaming on standard definition, social media apps, Internet browsing, etc,” it stated.

In a report by website SoyaCincau, users claimed that they were not informed about the reduced speed, and that the reduced speed limit would be applicable even when a person purchases an Internet pass.

It also said users of both the 3Mbps (megabits per second) and 6Mbps plans were affected.