With the implementation of the 6% Goods and Services Tax (GST) yesterday, all Telecommunication/mobile services, in general, will now be subjected to GST.
Yesterday, a number of Telcos (including Maxis, Celcom, DiGi, Tune Talk & U Mobile) have taken the advantage of GST to increase the pricing of the prepaid reload. Below are some of the pricing of prepaid reload coupons with GST:
- RM5 top up + 6% = RM5.30
- RM10 top up + 6% = RM10.60
- RM30 top up + 6% = RM31.80
- RM50 top up + 6% = RM53
- RM100 top up + 6% = RM106
Many Malaysians were angry and confused yesterday after the prepaid reloads they purchased were subjected to GST and sold at a higher price. There were thousands of complaints on Twitter and Facebook.
Despite this, a number of Tune Talk prepaid customers don’t seem affected by the higher reload prices, thanks to the free airtime from Tune Talk since January 2014. Below is a screenshot of what some Tune Talk subscribers said on Twitter yesterday:
MalaysianWireless reached out to Tune Talk for a comment and the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) said “Despite the commotion surrounding the implementation of GST, Tune Talk has always taken a strong stand of putting the customers first. Focusing on giving the best to the underserved market in the country, the customers’ needs are always a priority. The implementation of GST is something that everyone needs to embrace but it does not mean that subscribers need to agonize over it.”
Since 10 January 2014, every time a customer reloads, Tune Talk will give them additional airtime and the mobile operator said that this is not going to change even with the GST implementation. With every RM30 reload, users will get RM10 and with every RM50 reload, users will get additional RM20 airtime. Details below:
| Denomination* | FREE | Validity |
| RM 5 | – | 5 Days |
| RM 10 | – | 11 Days |
| RM 15 | – | 20 Days |
| RM 30 | RM10 | 30 Days |
| RM 50 | RM20 | 50 Days |
| RM 100 | RM20 | 150 Days |
| RM 200 | RM20 | 270 Days |
| RM 300 | RM20 | 365 Days |
| RM 500 | RM20 | 548 Days |
| RM 1000 | RM20 | 730 Days |
*All the denomination amount stated are subject to GST 6%
Tune Talk Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Jalluddin Hassan commented: “In this early stages of the implementation of GST, maintaining the current promotions that we provide may soften the blow for our customers so that they are not burdened by the change. We hope with this effort, our loyal subscribers will stay with us and attract new potential users.”
A huge number of Telecommunication product and services are now subjected to GST, this include price of the prepaid starter pack, prepaid reload coupons, postpaid service, IDD calls, telephony services over IP networks, calling card and even mobile contents. However there are some services such as International roaming service which has been classified as zero-rated supply (not subjected GST).
