M1 Limited secures triple victory at Asian Telecom Awards
The company has been able to enrich its 5G offerings under the leadership of CEO Manjot Singh Mann.
Singapore’s first digital network operator, M1 Limited garnered three title wins at the recent Asian Telecom Awards for its outstanding 5G performance, its 5G-powered telemedicine services, and the guidance of its CEO Manjot Singh Mann.
The company embarked on an ambitious five-year programme to completely overhaul its back-end technology in 2020, with 90% of its operational and business support system assets moved to the cloud, enabling it to perform analytics and generate actionable insights quickly.
Its new cloud-based platform enables the creation of personalised services for its consumers. M1 is also the only telco in Singapore to offer this degree of hyperpersonalisation to customers, with some six million permutations possible with its Bespoke Flexi service plan.
Besides being the first to embark on 5G trials, M1 is also one of the first to roll out 5G Standalone connectivity and offer commercial solutions that can be easily adopted by businesses. It has also launched Daily Passport – Singapore’s most affordable and flexible daily roaming data plan, offering one of the largest data packages at the lowest price amongst all providers.
Its success in being one of the best-performing telecoms in 5G speed in Singapore has been recognised, with M1 winning the Mobile Operator of the Year - Singapore category.
Meanwhile, with its expertise in 5G connectivity, M1 has also introduced 5G-enabled telemedicine services for the maritime sector, powered by its 5G SMARTSafe solution. Under this, M1 will work with a healthcare provider to offer 5G-powered telemedicine services to seafarers working onboard vessels at sea.
These include live teleconsultations with shore-based healthcare professionals, and 5G-enabled drones that deliver medicine to ship crews. The telemedicine service is for all seafarers or employees from shipping companies in Singapore, both on land and in the anchorage, as long as they are connected to M1’s 5G network.
With this offering, the vessel owners can obtain medical consultations and supplies for their crew through telemedicine and drone delivery, which is more efficient and cost-effective than the usual method of sending the sick or injured to shore.
This plug-and-play approach enables easier integration and deployment of 5G-powered solutions for companies in the maritime industry, with more industries to follow in the future.
M1 received the Technology Innovation of the Year - Singapore for this remarkable innovation that not only benefits the maritime industry but also provides similar opportunities to other industries.
Overhauling legacy telcos
Over the past decade, legacy telcos have been under continuous pressure to not just evolve but reinvent themselves as digital and agile to keep up with customers’ demands for digital experiences, amongst other challenges.
M1 acknowledged this need and has undergone a successful digital and people transformation, beginning in 2018, under the leadership of Mann. Through his guidance, M1 overhauled its legacy technology stack and shifted to a completely new cloud-native digital platform, whilst also updating how M1 employees work.
The company’s ongoing strategic efforts have enabled them to secure 1.61 million postpaid customers since 2018.
Keppel Corp’s annual report notes also show that revenue from M1’s enterprise business grew 50% YoY to S$222m in H1 2023, making up about 37% of M1’s revenue for this period, whilst its mobile customer in the consumer business grew 12.5% YoY.
Under Mann’s leadership, M1 has embedded innovation and digital strategies successfully in their operations and is poised to be what he calls ‘the telco of the future.’ M1 plans to stay committed to providing made-to-measure services and hyper-personalised offerings to both consumers and enterprises for a more intelligent and connected society.
His visionary leadership that enabled more technology-forward solutions and initiatives for M1 brings him the recognition of being the CEO of the Year in the prestigious awards programme.
Asian Telecom Awards honours businesses and initiatives that have not only driven progress in the telecom industry but have also ignited transformative shifts that have reshaped the digital landscape.
The Asian Telecom Awards is presented by Asian Telecom Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2025 awards programme and be acclaimed for delivering cutting-edge, award-winning telco products and services to customers, please contact Julie Anne Nuñez at [email protected].
