DiGi becomes first telco in Malaysia to offer Gmail SMS

Strategic partnership with Google to deliver Internet For All promise

Shah Alam, 18 November 2011 – DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd (“DiGi”) is announcing a strategic partnership with Google to offer Gmail SMS effective today. This partnership is one of many innovative ways DiGi is leveraging on to deliver its Internet For All promise of making it easier for Malaysians to access the power of the Internet.

Gmail SMS joins an expanding stable of SMS-based Internet applications and services that offer DiGi customers an alternative yet convenient means to access their favourite online apps. This strategic partnership with Google also positions DiGi as the first mobile operator to offer the Gmail SMS service in Malaysia.“A recent Nielsen survey reported that Malaysians are spending an average weekly of over 5 hours accessing the Internet via mobile devices. The partnership with Google empowers us at DiGi to offer the SMS option to millions of Gmail users in Malaysia to significantly extend their chat community through real-time chat via SMS, regardless of any mobile device type,” says Praveen Rajan, Head of Mobile Internet & ADS for DiGi.

Sajith Sivanandan, Country Head of Google Malaysia comments: "One of the most important aspects of Google's overall mission is to make information accessible and useful to people. SMS has long been a common means of mobile communications in Malaysia and many Malaysians still rely on their non-smartphones. Gmail SMS makes instant communication between Gmail and a mobile phone possible via SMS.”

Gmail SMS brings the popular Gmail Service to a non-smartphone easily. With Google’s Gmail SMS, people can send free text messages to their friends directly from their Gmail account. Replies and responses to the text message will appear as a reply in Chat.

For DiGi customers, the service is free of charge and requires no subscription; chat messages sent via SMS from their mobile phones are billed at RM0.10 per SMS.

This strategic partnership announcement is made on the back of a global agreement between Google and Telenor announced recently. Its intention is to roll out a global Android Market initiative in stages to stimulate further growth of the Android™ ecosystem in all 11 international markets of Telenor, including Malaysia.

For more information about Gmail SMS, powered by DiGi, please visit www.digi.com.my/gmailsms or http://m.digilive.my/gmailsms