After tests, Indosat says it is ready for millennium bug<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Publicly listed state-owned telecommunications
\ncompany PT Indosat said on Tuesday it was prepared for the
\nmillennium bug.<\/p>\n
Indosat general manager for planning and engineering Djoko
\nPrajitno said the company announced its readiness for the
\nmillennium bug, also known as the Y2K problem, months ago. He
\nadded that the company had run tests to ensure its systems were
\nY2K compliant.<\/p>\n
The company has also prepared a contingency plan to anticipate
\npossible failures, he said.<\/p>\n
\"We declared 100 percent Y2K compliance in May, after a series
\nof tests conducted in accordance to the standards set by the
\nBritish Standard Institution,\" he said at a seminar on the impact
\nof the Y2K problem on Indosat's operations.<\/p>\n
The company's vital systems and facilities, including gateways
\nin Jakarta, Medan, Batam and Surabaya, and the international
\ntransmission link and interlink services through earth stations
\nand submarine cables, are all Y2K compliant, he said.<\/p>\n
Indosat allocated no less than US$5 million for its Y2K
\ncompliance program.<\/p>\n
Djoko said Indosat placed a high priority on the millennium
\nbug because a failure to anticipate problems would seriously
\naffect the company's business and services, all of which were
\ncomputerized.<\/p>\n
\"Problems that may occur if we fail to deal with the Y2K
\nproblem are interruption in services and faulty billing. The
\nproblems would cause a huge financial loss to Indosat and affect
\nservice to customers,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The millennium bug refers to problems computerized systems
\ncould face at the turn of the century if they fail to distinguish
\nbetween 1900 and 2000 when reading dates.<\/p>\n
The glitch could cause computers to shut down or malfunction.
\nPower supplies may drop, telephones and transportation systems
\nmay stop operating and automated banking transactions may fail.<\/p>\n
The United States-based Gartner Group, a Y2K-compliance
\nmonitoring body, said in a recent report that Indonesia was among
\nsome 30 developing nations most prone to Y2K problems, with some
\n66 percent of businesses in the country at risk of being
\naffected.<\/p>\n
Djoko said the completion of the Y2K tests and conversion
\nprogram was a guarantee Indosat would be able to provide reliable
\ntelephone, Internet and satellite transponder leasing services to
\ncustomers and business partners here and overseas.<\/p>\n
The government recently said it was upbeat the country's
\ntelecommunications sector would soon be Y2K compliant.<\/p>\n
Another state-owned telecommunications company, PT Telkom,
\nwhich controls the country's local fixed lines and domestic long-
\ndistance telephone services, has said it is 90 percent Y2K
\ncompliant.<\/p>\n
Telkom is scheduled to make the most critical components of
\nits system, including billing and satellite transmissions, 100
\npercent Y2K compliant by the end of month.<\/p>\n
Telkom has spent at least Rp 16.3 billion on its Y2K
\ncompliance program in the first quarter of this year. (cst)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/after-tests-indosat-says-it-is-ready-for-millennium-bug-1447893297",
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