Roger Strukhoff

Datuk Badlisham Ghazali is the CEO of Malaysia’s Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC).  (“Datuk” is an honorific term in Malaysian society that can be used as a rough approximation of “Sir” in the UK.)

MdeC is responsible for the country’s MSC, or Multimedia Super Corridor, as it was known when it was conceived in 1996.

The MSC covers an area of about 175,000 acres, stretching approximately 30 miles from the famed Petronas Towers in the center of Kuala Lumpur, through a planned “Silicon Valley” region that encompasses the district of Sepang (and the palnned cities of Cyberjaya and Putrajaya), to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

This is Part 2 of our interview. Part 1 can be found here.

NOW: What, if any, momentum do you see with social networking ideas and technologies as drivers of new innovation within the MSC?

Badlisham Ghazali: We certainly see social networking ideas and technologies as an innovative way for MSC to move forward. Recently, MOL Global, a local MSC Malaysia Status Company, acquired Friendster, which is a leading social networking site in Asia.  This shows the capabilities on an MSC Malaysia Status company in going global in business ventures and diversifying its markets.

NOW: How do you rate the MSC against other high-tech regions in the world? Or, do you prefer to discuss the MSC on its own terms?

Badlisham Ghazali: MSC Malaysia’s pulling factor has always been attributed to the core competencies of Malaysia, such as a well-educated and multi-lingual workforce, a world-class infrastructure at lower cost, as well as a conducive business environment. 

Malaysia`s attractiveness as a regional/global SSO hub is evident by the many world-class companies like ACS, BMW, DHL, HSBC, IBM, Intel, Motorola, Nokia, Shell, Unisys and many others that have set up their base of regional and global operations here.

To date, there are over 130 Shared Services & Outsourcing companies in MSC Malaysia, ranging from major local players to multinationals.

Malaysia is also home to 250 call centres. It remains competitive in terms of people who are multilingual, the cost of doing business, and a stable environment. This is a total package that these companies could not refuse!

NOW: Are you emphasizing yourself as a creative center as well?

Badlisham Ghazali: Yes MSC Malaysia is also putting a strong emphasis on the creative multimedia industry. The Malaysian creative content industry comprises about 200 companies, which are involved in various areas like post-production, animation, game development, e-learning, mobile and interactive content.

The sector generates more than 7,000 high value-added creative jobs with annual revenues of over US$200 million in 2008. The Malaysian Government has also identified the creative content sector as the next engine of growth for the nation given its huge potential economic contribution.

NOW: Has the MSC drawn ancillary interest to Malaysia, for example, conferences and other major events?

Badlisham Ghazali: Malaysia hosted the World Congress on IT, dubbed as the Olympics of the IT industry,  in May 2008, which drew over 3,000 delegates from 92 countries.

It was like the “coming out party” for Malaysia in terms of positioning Malaysia as an ICT hub. Next up, Malaysia will be hosting the 10^th Anniversary of the Asia Pacific ICT Alliance Awards--www.apicta.com—in 2010.

NOW: The recent INSEAD GITR report ranked Malaysia 28th overall, ahead of most Asian countries and many European countries as well. Malaysia was #6 in the world in high-tech exports, #13 in burden of government regulation, and #18 in venture capital availability.

Yet it lagged a bit in metrics such as installed phone lines and access to high-bandwidth connections. What do you make of this report?

Badlisham Ghazali: The Malaysian Government is continuously improving its infra- and info-structure. However, we can’t wait for all the infrastructure to be 100% ready in order to carry out our efforts and programs, as it would only set us back.

For example, MDeC introduced various programmes to build local online content  to encourage more people to get online with broadband to create more demand for the service.

NOW: What do the upcoming two to three years hold for the MSC and its prospects for continued development?

Badlisham Ghazali: Part of MSC Malaysia’s master plan is to encourage local companies across all industries to use ICT solutions. Although MSC Malaysia Status companies are not fully dependent on the domestic market, one of our main priorities is to equip local businesses with ICT solutions.

We encourage SMEs in all industries to use ICT solutions provided by MSC Malaysia status companies with the aim of bringing benefit to both parties.

Using these world-class ICT solutions will help companies strengthen their business. More than 2,000 firms with MSC Malaysia status companies make a full range of business software that can help companies reduce costs and boost profits.  Strong collaboration between ICT solution providers and SMEs will further strengthen Malaysia’s position as prominent global ICT player.

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