Astro (company)
[13][14] Ahead of its launch, Astro's operator, Measat Broadcast Networks Systems expected that its satellite TV and radio services will gain profit within two-and-a-half to three years with a total of 700,000 subscriber base.[19] Astro signed an agreement with Maybank which allows its subscribers to settle their monthly fees via the autophone and autodebit services as well as via automatic bill settlement facility provided by the bank through Visa and Mastercard.[25] Astro planned to establish its own private telecommunications network as part of its preparation to launch a range of multimedia interactive services as well as to increase its business reach.[27] Astro became the first client of the Canadian telecommunication equipment company, Nortel's Global Account programme for the ASEAN region.[28] In July 1997, the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Faber Group Berhad in which Astro will provide its satellite television services to seven of Faber-owned Sheraton hotels.[50] Astro also spent at least RM350 to subsidized its Digital Multimedia System (DMS) in order to make its service is "affordable for more Malaysian families".[53] In April 2002, Astro signed an agreement with Scripps Networks Interactive for the distribution of six TV series from HGTV in Malaysia and Brunei.[63] Astro partnered with TIME dotCom Berhad in December 2010 to implementated the broadband and IPTV service in Klang Valley and Penang.[73][74][75][76] In 2017, Astro enters a strategic partnership with CJ E&M from South Korea to create and produced contents and events for ASEAN market.[78] Astro alongside Media Prima and DiGi Telecommunications collaborated to launch a digital learning hub, known as JomStudi in January 2019.The initiative, which supported by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), provides educational resources in a single platform which accessible to students.Among artistes who involved in it were Siti Nurhaliza, M. Nasir, Syafinaz Selamat, Alif Satar, Soo Wincci, Sarimah Ibrahim, Aznil Nawawi and Wani Kayrie.[100] The app was renamed to Astro Go on 31 March 2017[101][102] and saw a significant revamp that introduced several new features, such as a more user-friendly interface, improved video playback quality, and better content discovery tools.[119] The Malaysian government's plan to regulate Android-based set-top boxes in 2019 raised concerns that Astro's dominance over the country's television content market would be enhanced.[122] The high royalty fees were criticised by Jeremy Kung, executive vice president of TM New Media, who argued that sports content on free-to-air television channels should be made available to public for free.[122] Former Information, Communications, Arts and Culture minister Rais Yatim urged the media groups who had exclusive rights to major sports events to share their content to free-to-air television channels.[128] Malaysiakini reporter Cheah Kah Seng encouraged customers to protest against the price hikes and provided instructions on how to do so.[129] Due to broadcasting rights it has received from the Malaysian government, Astro raised its fees several more times in the following years, while consumers had fewer competitive alternatives.