E-tourism in MalaysiaTourism is increasingly important to the development of Malaysianeconomy, it affect the growth of service industries, particularly food andbeverages,

accommodation, transport, entertainment, shopping and othersmall and medium-sized industries. The tourism industry has beenidentified as a key driver of growth in the services sector which itexperienced a rapid growth. Now, the industry is still one of the keyforeign exchange earners, contributing to GDP (gross domestic product)growth, investment and employment as well as strengthening the balancepayments of services account (Johan, 2009).When tourism industry relies more on information andcommunication technology (ICT), it helps enhance the smoothness of tourism business. E-tourism is the digitization of all the processes andvalue chains in the tourism, travel, hospitality and catering industries thatenable organizations to maximize their efficiency and effectiveness(Buhalis, 2003). ICT, especially the Internet, have providing newchallenges and opportunities in promoting and selling their products andservices for tourism stakeholders. It dramatically changed the pattern of how the consumers plan and buy their holidays. It able the process of exchange information about products and services which will raise theawareness of services offered (Johan, 2009).Internet is now becoming the preferred media choice for manytravelers to obtain travel information, therefore Tourism Malaysia (TM) tiedup with Yahoo and MSN as platforms to enhance the Malaysia Truly Asiabrand visibility globally by showcasing Malaysias unique touristdestinations on both websites. Through the online advertising campaign,Tourism Malaysia aims to engage potential travelers to see Malaysia as avalue-for-money destination, and lead them to Tourism Malaysias officialwebsite so that they can sign up for packages to visit Malaysia (Johan, 2009).There is also a great potential for ICTs implementation for tourismSMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) operators and for homestayprogramme operators in remote areas. Tourism SMEs can have acomparative advantage in this sector, offering a wide variety of attractionsto today's increasingly demanding and sophisticated travelers. Until now,a total of 2,808 homestay operators from 142 villages throughout thecountry have been trained and licensed by the Ministry of TourismMalaysia. In 2007, more than 68,000 tourists, both local and foreign, had ataste of the kampung lifestyle at the various homestay programmesoffered in Malaysia. Since ICT enables direct communication with clientsand improves efficiency and effectiveness of customer service therefore,e-tourism enables homestay operators who are in a position to exploit it.Homestay operators can access customers directly, with their websitesoffering authentic flavour, unique insights and specialized local knowledge(Johan, 2009).The introduction of e-marketing is assessing the opportunities andimpact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in themarketing of the tourism sector. Influences of brand image on a tourismdestination are important to define the e-marketing practices that appliedin tourism sector. For example, the Air Asia provide low cost carrier andhas expended its operation. Now, they also offer many more routes withinand outside the country. In the year 2009, the travel and accommodationreservations were performed via the face-to-face or using the telephone.With internet, the retailing remaining very much niches channel. However,the internet booking continues to increase rapidly. Air Asia becomes theleader of the internet sales by minimizing operating costs (EuromonitorInternational, 2010).E-ticketing is used in many airlines to reduce costs of ticket printing.

The travelers do not need to carry the paper ticket which means that thetension of misplacing a ticket is eliminated. They can check in online onthe website and choose the seats on the screen. According to Hopkin,2005, the electronic management of ticket information helps thecompanies to tracking their expenditures and support corporate travelpolicies better.Internet and electronic device become more and more common inMalaysia. But, there are challenges to build e-tourism in the whole country.Dr Supachai said there were still challenges to meet in building e-tourismcapacity at regional and local levels in order for local communities to becompetitive in a globalised economy. (Malaysias website a model of e-tourism, 2007) E-tourism is very popular, but it used only by the majorcity in Malaysia. Many of rural area are still lack of ICT. Promotionalcampaigns are needed lots of financial support, due to a lack of substantial financial, rural area communities are not able to conduct e-tourism product in short period. Government needed to support them withfinancial to promote their tourism. Besides, the advance of eMediaries(e.g.on-line travel agents, portals) has become a threat to the traditionaleMediaries (e.g. GDSs and Viewdata). This will affect the tour operator fortheir traditional way of doing tourism businesses. New eMediaries hastheir cons while traditional eMediaries has its pros. Therefore, a balancebetween the eMediaries and traditional eMediaries needed to be achieved.Etourism was responsible for the Asia-Pacific region becoming oneof the fastest-growing areas for international tourist arrivals and thenumber one destination by 2020. (Malaysias website a model of etourism, 2007) In future, tourists will become more and more familiar tothe ICT world and using echannel to travel to Malaysia. Malaysia willbecome more successful in e-tourism compare by now. Etourism will bringmore convenience to the tourists and brings extra income to the country. We can see that Malaysia is not the leader in technology thereforeMalaysia does not have the most advance technology. The country doestry to catch up with the technology. With the introduction of the internet in1995, Malaysia is also experiencing globalization. The government andprivate sector use internet as an intermediary to spread information, tocommunicate and also to get information for their own benefit. This led tothe development of e-commerce and eventually e-tourism.E-commerce really shaped the etourism in Malaysia. Without e-commerce, only a few of travel agency would use internet as one of theintermediary. By allowing people to do transaction online, more businesseswill be brought to the company through online. In Malaysia, travelagencies also rely on the internet to stay competitive. The larger companywould of course use one of the main global distribution systems. But thesmaller company would use their own system. Some of the travel agencywould conduct businesses using email and use the email provider as theirinformation storage. One of the problems using email is that it isinefficient. The efficiency relies on the staffs who are handling the email.This resulted in small companies will be unable to compete with largercompanies.The good thing about internet is that we can use creativity toattract customer. The design of the website and information playimportant role in e-tourism. These criteria give small company anopportunity to stay competitive as normally the larger companies have astandard website design. In the end, the e-tourism in Malaysia still has alot of room to grow and improve. To achieve a high standard of e-tourism,more effort and learning needed to be done. ReferenceMalaysias website a model of e-tourism. (2007, March 15)The Star Online.Retrieve March 8, 2011, fromhttp://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/5/11/business/3524689&sec=businessBuhali s, D. (2003). eTourism: information technology for strategic tourismmanagement,London: Pearson

(Financial Times/Prentice Hall)Euromonitor International. (July, 2010). Travel and Tourism in Malaysia.Travel and Tourism report Hopkins,R.,Travel Management Faces New Tests, Euromoney,(26:435),2005pp 188-193.Johan, M. (2009, May 11). The merits of e-tourism.The Star Online.Retrieved March8, 2011, from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/3/15/nation/17145093&sec=nationSulaiman. A, Ng. J and Mohezar. S. (2008) E-Ticketing as a New Way of BuyingTickets: Malaysian Perceptions.J. Soc., 17(2):149 - 157 (2008)

1.Policy rules and regulations2.Environmental sustainability3.Safety and security4.Health and hygiene 5.Prioritization of Travel & Tourism6.Air transport infrastructure 7.Ground transport infrastructure 8.Tourism infrastructure 9.ICT infrastructure 10.Price competitiveness in the T&T industry11.Human resources12.Affinity for Travel & Tourism13.Natural resources14.Cultural resources

Malaysiais ranked 7th regionally and 35th overall,down three positions since the 2009 T&TReport.Malaysia benefits from its rich natural resources (ranked22nd) and its cultural resources (ranked 33rd). Thecountry also benefits from excellent price competitive-ness (ranked 3rd), with low comparative hotel and fuelprices, low ticket taxes and airport charges, very com-petitive hotel prices, and a favorable tax regime. Malaysiaspolicy environment is assessed as conducive to thedevelopment of the sector (ranked 21st), and the countryis characterized by a strong affinity for Travel & Tourismmore generally (ranked 17th). With regard to weakness-es, health and hygiene indicators lag behind those of many other countries in the region, with, in particular, alow physician density (placing the country 96th).

The importance of the natural environment for providing an attractive location for tourism cannot beoverstated, and it is clear that policies and factorsenhancingenvironmental sustainabilityare crucial for ensuring that a country will continue to be an attractivedestination going into the future. In this pillar we meas-ure the stringency of the governments environmentalregulations in each country as well as the extent towhich they are actually enforced. Given the environ-mental impacts that tourism itself can sometimes bringabout, we also take into account the extent to whichgovernments prioritize the sustainable development of the T&T industry in their respective economies. Inaddition to policy inputs, this pillar includes some of therelated environmental outputs, including carbon dioxideemissions and the percentage of endangered species inthe country.

Ministry's Policy VISION Developing Malaysia as a world class tourist destination.

MISSION To work with all industry players to put the tourism industry as a facilitator for sustainable economic growth.

NATIONAL TOURISM POLICY Making the National Tourism Industry as a main sector, sustainable, viable and valuable in contributing to national development.

OBJECTIVE To increase the contribution of tourism to the country economy. To empower rural communities through the rural tourism activities. To facilitate 1Malaysia development through tourism.

FUNCTION To formulate a national tourism policy to achieve the vision, mission and objectives of the ministry. To implement policies relating to growth and development of the tourism industry. To coordinate, monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of tourism programs and projects.

QUALITY POLICY Ministry of Tourism is committed to the delivery of excellent tourism services to the customers based on MS ISO 9001:2000.

Ministry of Tourism always makes improvement continuously on the Quality Management System to improve the effectiveness of the implemented system.

Policy, Planning & International Affairs Division FUNCTION Formulating tourism policies and planning development strategy for this country tourism industry. Monitor the implementation of the National Tourism Policy (NDP) associated with aspects of organizational structure, product, marketing, employment, transportation, guided tours, socio-culture and macro economy. To conduct studies and research related to tourism. Planning of new tourism products such as medical tourism, educational tourism, sports tourism, travel scenes, rural tourism, specific tourism and so forth. Develop a database of tourism and Malaysia Tourism Satellite Account. Encourage bilateral, regional and international cooperation in the field of tourism and tourism promotion. Participated in various national and international forums to develop the interests of Malaysia in the field of tourism. Managing applications of foreigners who want to stay in Malaysia under the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) and serves as a one-stop center to allow foreigners to obtain information about the program and advice about life in Malaysia. To provide input and views to the Ministry / Department / Agency on matters associated with the tourism sector, particularly the tourists facilities door to Malaysia

The tourism industry is the seventh largest contributor to the Malaysian economy with a GNI total of RM37.4 billion in 2011 and is poised to enjoy consistent growth. Recognizing that we have a strong global competitive position, the Tourism NKEA intends to enhance the sectors contribution to the national economy.

By 2020, Malaysias tourism industry is projected to provide an incremental contribution of RM66.7 billion to the national GNI. To achieve this target, the Tourism NKEA has identified 12 Entry Point Projects (EPPs) across five themes as demonstrated in Exhibit 6.1. These will generate an increment of

RM28.4 billion in GNI. With an additional RM39 billion in GNI expected from Business Opportunities (BOs), baseline growth and multipliers, the total GNI contribution in 2020 will be RM103.6 billion with a projection of 36 million tourist arrivals.

Since January 2011, the Prime Minister Dato Sri Najib Tun Razak has announced nine initiatives under six EPPs. These initiatives have a cumulative private investment of RM16 billion, providing a GNI contribution of RM6.5 billion and creating 37,900 jobs by the year 2020.

Malaysia's National Tourism Policy was first proclaimed in the Sixth Malaysia Plan (1991-1995), and updated in the subsequent Seventh (1996-2000) and Eighth (2001-2005) Malaysia Plans. The Federal Governments broad policies for sustainable development of tourism in Malaysia include Encouraging the equitable economic and social development throughout the country through the promotion of rural enterprises and accelerating urban-rural integration and cultural exchange, and encouraging the participation by ethnic communities Developing environment-friendly tourism products, promotion of cultural and natural heritage. This includes the establishment of a "tourist village" where local products and handicrafts may be put on display and cultural events may be staged. The Malaysian Government has budgeted more than 309 million Malaysian Ringgits (RM) in support of environment-friendly projects, including the provision of budget hotels, historical site conservation and provision of pedestrian walkways and bicycle trails Provision of soft loans for small- to medium-size tourism related projects. About RM 200 million has been earmarked for tourism small and medium enterprises (SMEs) development Adoption of an integrated approach to planning, continuing human resource development, and preservation and beautification of tourism and historical sites. States that do not have tourism bodies were encouraged to establish a mechanism to plan and coordinate tourism activities as well as formulate tourism master plans. A National Tourism Human Resource Development Council has been established to develop manpower for the traditional tourism sectors, such as hotels, tour operators, and the like.

Visa is of utmost concern while traveling to any foreign country. Regarding Malaysian Visa, here are given certain facts: The citizens of Canada do not need a visa for traveling to Malaysia for up to 3 months for business trips and tourism purposes. Further than the date of entry into Malaysia, passports should be valid for as a minimum of six months. If a national passport is not recognized by the Malaysian Government, the person must have a document instead of passport available at the nearest Malaysian Mission overseas. Each visitor to Malaysia must fill in a Disembarkation Card (IMM. 26). And on arrival, it should be handed be to the Immigration Officer along with the national passport. Even for traveling between Sabah and Sarawak, a passport/travel document is essential. Visitor passes, issued for entry into Peninsular Malaysia, are not applicable for entry into Sarawak. New visit passes must be taken on arrival at entry-point in Sarawak. Permanent residents or citizens of different countries must check the Visa requirements for Malaysia. Malaysia Visa Requirements Malaysian consulate and embassy, handles the task of issuing Visa to the visitors. Other entry procedures and visa requirements are given here: Citizens of Bangladesh, China, Bhutan, Cuba, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, North Korea, Nepal, Myanmar, Taiwan, Vietnam and all Certificate of Identity (CI) holders must get a visa prior to entering into Malaysia. Commonwealth Nationals (apart from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka), British Protected Persons or Nationals of Ireland, Switzerland, Netherlands, San Marino and Liechtenstein, do not require a visa to enter Malaysia. For a Social and Business not beyond three months, the nationals of Norway, Sweden, Italy, United States of America, Albania, Austria, Algeria, Belgium, Kuwait, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Czech Republic, Republic of Slovakia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Bahrain, Jordan, North Yemen, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Tunisia, do not need a visa. For a Social and Business visit not beyond one month, the citizens of ASEAN countries do not need a visa to enter Malaysia. For a Social and Business visit not more than 14 days, the nationals of Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and South Yemen do not need a visa.

For a Social and Business visit not beyond one week, the nationals of Bulgaria, Romania and Russia do not need a visa. For a Social and Business visit not beyond one month, the nationals of countries excluding those stated above (apart from Serbia Montenegro and Israel) are permissible to enter Malaysia without a visa. Any visitor, planning to visit whichever part of Malaysia, requires only one visa to travel straight from one part of the country to another. Types of Visa The Malaysian Government issues three (3) types of visa to foreign nationals, stated below:

Single Entry Visa It is issued to foreign citizens, who need a visa to enter Malaysia primarily for a social or business visit. As the name suggests, it is usually valid for a single entry. From the date of issue, it is valid for a period of 3 months.

Multiple Entry Visa It is issued to foreign citizens, who need a visa to enter Malaysia primarily for business visit or government to government issues. From the date of issue, it is usually valid for a period within 3 to 12 months.

Transit Visa It is issued to foreign citizens, who need a visa to enter Malaysia on transit to other countries. Foreign Nationals on transit, who wouldn't leave the airport precincts and continue their flight to the next destination, do not need a transit visa.