KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 7): Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said on Thursday that blocking access to social media platforms and messaging services that fail to obtain a regulatory licence by January next year would be a "last resort".
Fahmi said there are several provisions under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 that allow the regulator to take action against social media platforms that fail to obtain the regulatory licence.
"At the moment, the government does not intend to block access to these social media platforms. We view this as the last, last, last resort, and we do not want to go in that direction," Fahmi told the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday.
In July, the government announced the requirement for social media platforms and messaging services with more than eight million users to obtain a licence, citing efforts to curb financial scams, cyberbullying, and sexual crimes online. Companies that fail to do so by Jan 1, 2025 could face legal action.
However, the plan has faced pushback from industry groups, including Meta, the parent company of popular platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
Meta's director of public policy for Southeast Asia, Rafael Frankel, reportedly said the company had not yet decided whether it will apply for the licence before the January deadline, due to a lack of clarity regarding the new regulations.
To this, Fahmi said the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is finalising a code of conduct to publish before the new licensing framework comes into force. This code will set best practices for licensed service providers.
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