U Mobile hits 83% 5G coverage, ahead of schedule and above target, while lobbying for additional spectrum

• Spectrum asymmetry vs DNB remains unaddressed; CTO says it is lobbying MCMC for parity
• 83% coverage achieved in nine months, three months ahead of 12-month commitment

U Mobile’s CTO stood before the media on April 7 during its launch of priority access feature and enterprise-grade traffic prioritisation and revealed his company is “lobbying” regulators for more 5G spectrum. Not negotiating a roadmap. Not executing a framework. Lobbying.

When DNA asked whether the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has provided assurances U Mobile can request additional spectrum as traffic scales, Woon Ooi Yuen, its CTO, said: “Spectrum is always scarce, so our objective is to ensure that we keep lobbying MCMC to ensure they give us more 5G spectrum.” As at publishing time, MCMC has not reverted to a question from DNA seeking clarity on this.

U Mobile’s track record of achieving 82.9% population coverage in March 2026, hitting its 12-month target of June 2026 ahead of schedule, gives it added weight in seeking additional spectrum when it eventually faces capacity pressures, which DNB cited to make its case for the additional 100MHz spectrum it received recently.

For context, U Mobile achieved 82.9% populated area coverage in nine months, as of March 2026, deploying 100MHz of mid-band 5G spectrum. DNB meanwhile, built its network from scratch over 24 months, reaching 80% populated coverage in December 2023 with 200MHz of mid-band spectrum plus 40MHz (2x20MHz) of 700MHz low-band.

A telecom infra executive estimated that both companies would need approximately 7,500 sites each to hit their coverage targets. Indeed, a DNB exec confirmed to DNA that it has 7,447 sites as of end March, consisting of telco towers and base stations with the sites a mixture of those owned by DNB and those leased from either existing mobile network operators or telco tower companies. U Mobile confirmed it deployed 6,737 sites as of end March across West and East Malaysia, though it declined to share the breakdown of in-house versus leased infrastructure.

 

Coverage success, expansion metrics disclosed

U Mobile achieved 82.9% population coverage (CoPA) by end-March 2026, surpassing its 80% target three months ahead of the 12-month commitment of June 2026. The operator was recognized by Ookla, a global network intelligence firm, as Malaysia’s Fastest 5G Network in the second half of 2025, based on speed test data.

Along with the external recognition, Navin Manian, U Mobile’s chief consumer business officer said U Mobile has been expanding its 5G footprint while strengthening its retail presence and digital touchpoints. This includes deploying 136 in-building coverage (IBC) sites as of end-March 2026, and expanded retail presence from 22 stores (Sept 2025) to 32 (March 2026).

The operator also gained 300,000 new app users over that same period. However, U Mobile did not disclose the Sept 2025 IBC baseline, making the growth rate over the six-month period difficult to assess.

One of the key points it stressed during the launch was its “100x faster speed with no speed cap” claim. U Mobile clarified that the comparison references prepaid plans ( U Prepaid 50) that previously offered speeds starting from 12Mbps with caps and which it has now discontinued, versus the new ULTRA5G plans with no speed restrictions. The operator confirmed achieving speeds of 1,200Mbps in testing.

[Ed: Speeds achieved during testing are no guarantee subscribers will experience them when the service goes live.] 

U Mobile had been offering a 1,000Mbps plan since May 2025, but with a speed cap, before removing all speed caps with the April 2026 launch.

 

The spectrum reality: 100MHz vs 200MHz + 700MHz

U Mobile currently operates with 100MHz of mid-band spectrum (3.5-3.6GHz) plus low-band 700MHz spectrum. DNB holds 200MHz mid-band (3.3-3.5GHz) plus 40MHz of 700MHz low-band spectrum (703-723MHz paired with 758-778MHz), for a total of 240MHz awarded in 2022.

DNB’s additional 100MHz allocation in Q1 2026 was justified by demonstrated capacity needs. 5G subscriptions surged from 4.6 million (Nov 2023) to 28.7 million (Nov 2025), a six-fold increase. In response, the Malaysian Communications Minister issued Ministerial Direction No. 7 on Oct 29, 2025, directing MCMC to allocate the additional spectrum to accommodate this traffic growth.

Significantly, MCMC was directed to allocate 100 MHz spectrum in the 3300 MHz to 3400 MHz frequency band. This new block will sit next to DNB’s existing 3400 MHz to 3500 MHz holding, giving it a contiguous 200 MHz block from 3300 MHz to 3500 MHz once completed.

Building networks based on adjoining spectrum bands is coveted by telcos as it allows them to build quicker and cheaper while offering subscribers a better experience as well.

Another key decision within the Ministerial Direction is to have MCMC convert DNB’s existing assignments from apparatus assignments into spectrum assignments. This translates into DNB’s spectrum rights becoming longer-term, broader, and more secure.

 

Priority access: Innovation or acknowledgement of constraints?

Back to the product launch, a new product introduced is the ULTRA5G Priority Pass, available as 1-hour (RM2) or 3-hour (RM5) on-demand purchases, with free monthly allocations for higher-tier plans. It uses network slicing to prioritize user traffic during congestion.

Navin said the feature is ideal for high-density venues like concerts, stadiums, and major sporting events where network congestion is common.

For enterprises, the ULTRA5G Reserve tier promises up to 4x better performance, with devices displaying “ULTRA5G Reserve” instead of standard “ULTRA5G” network identifiers.

But the existence of a congestion-management product, however technically sophisticated, raises questions about capacity planning.

The operator’s indoor coverage strategy appears central to its deployment model. According to data presented at the launch event, U Mobile users consume 59% of data via mobile (versus 41% Wi-Fi) as of March 2026, compared to other Malaysian operators at 24% mobile/75% Wi-Fi.

This indoor-first approach maximizes spectral efficiency within mid-band-only constraints. Telco infra experts note that 100MHz of 3.5GHz mid-band spectrum is sufficient to operate large-scale 5G networks, citing examples from India’s Jio, US operators, and Chinese carriers.

However, whether U Mobile can sustain equivalent performance to DNB, which holds twice the mid-band spectrum, 200MHz versus 100MHz, as traffic scales remains uncertain without regulatory assurance on spectrum expansion.

 

Beyond consumer offerings, an enterprise push

The launch included an enterprise suite: ULTRA Business Mobile (up to 2,000GB data with ULTRA5G Reserve prioritization), Business WiFi, Business Fiber (100Mbps-10Gbps), Dedicated Internet Access, and IoT solutions.

How Lih Ren, U Mobile’s chief business officer, announced a fiber partnership scaling U Mobile’s enterprise connectivity to approximately 350,000 business premises nationwide, expanding from the operator’s initial own-build fiber footprint in select locations.

On the TM wholesale contract announced in February, under which U Mobile will provide 5G network access to TM’s customers after TM terminated its DNB arrangement, Woon said the first kickoff meeting occurred April 6. “We are on track to deliver 5G to Telekom Malaysia.”

U Mobile can terminate its own DNB access agreement with one month’s notice but continues using DNB’s network to fill coverage gaps.

 

The sustainability question

U Mobile’s technical execution is demonstrable: 82.9% coverage in nine months, three months ahead of schedule, indoor data consumption patterns validating network design, Ookla recognition as fastest 5G network in Malaysia, 390 million scam attempts blocked via network-level firewalls.

The Priority Access and ULTRA5G Reserve features showcase network slicing innovation, building on the YTL Communications owned mobile operator YES 5G’s earlier introduction of traffic prioritization with U Mobile’s own implementation focused on consumer on-demand passes and enterprise-grade performance tiers.

But innovation in network management cannot substitute for spectrum parity when traffic scales.

Malaysia committed to a dual network model in November 2024. Success requires regulatory frameworks ensuring both networks can compete at equivalent scale, not just at today’s traffic levels, but as U Mobile’s subscriber base and capacity needs grow.

When asked by DNA, Woon said U Mobile is “lobbying” MCMC for additional spectrum, “doing our best to obtain” parity, revealing no such framework exists.

The question Malaysia’s regulators must answer: Does the dual network policy include a spectrum roadmap for the second 5G network, or did it merely license U Mobile to compete with half the toolkit?

Without regulatory certainty, the second 5G network’s long-term viability, regardless of technical sophistication, remains an open question.