Malaysia: Implemented Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588) including operational licence requirement regulation

On 1 April 1999, the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588) entered into force. The Act is applicable to any licensee under the Act and any person who provides relevant facilities or services under the Act. The Act mandates individuals or classes of individuals to obtain a licence if they conduct a specified activity under the Act. Specifically, the owning or provision of network facilities, network services or applications services requires a licence as defined in section 126 of the Act. This is in line with the objective of the Act, namely the establishment of a licensing and regulatory framework for the communications and multimedia industry. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is tasked with maintaining a register of all individual and class licences granted.