Mixed reactions to new cyber guidelines

PETALING JAYA: New guidelines for cyber cafes, which will soon be enforced, have received mixed reactions from operators and customers.
A cyber cafe operation manager, Rizal Rahman, 22, said that the close-by-midnight rule would affect business, as there were more users at night.
“Many of my customers come after 7pm, so we operate until 2am, depending on the crowd.
“If I close by midnight, I will suffer a loss and will not be able to cover operational costs like rent, game licences, maintenance and salaries,” he said.
Rizal also said cyber cafes were not only used for online chatting or to play online games but had become places to hang out and relax with friends.
“Nowadays, cyber cafes are like mamak stalls where friends get together to chat and surf the net,” he added.
However, Azahar, a cyber cafe supervisor, does not mind the new guidelines because his peak hours are between 5pm and 10pm and most patrons would have left by midnight.
Student Suhaila Sulaiman, 22, welcomed the new guidelines as she said those who visited cyber cafes late at night just played games.
Moreover, she felt it was dangerous for cyber cafes to operate so late, citing a recent robbery at a cyber cafe in her neighbourhood, which was open till dawn.
However, she suggested that cyber cafes on campuses be kept open longer so that students could use these facilities to complete their assignments. Gerard Christopher Noel, 22, a radio station road cruiser who works late, said, however, that going to the cyber cafe was a large part of his social life.
“I meet friends just to play games because it is fun,” he said.
“If they limit opening hours to midnight and ban computer games, then we’ll have to find alternative ways to spend the night, like playing snooker or clubbing,” he said.