Foreign operators question Indonesia's telecoms policy<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Foreign giant telephone firms France Telecom and
\nSingapore Telecom questioned on Thursday the Indonesian
\ngovernment's planned reform of the country's telecommunications
\nsector, calling it \"ambiguous\".<\/p>\n
Executive director of France Telecom Indonesia Philippe Eurin
\nsaid the government must translate its reform plan into a much
\nmore definite, detailed format in order to give foreign investors
\na clearer picture of what Indonesia's telecommunications sector
\nhas to offer for the future.<\/p>\n
\"It's very important for us to know the rules of the game,\" he
\ntold The Jakarta Post at the Indonesian International
\nTelecommunications, Media & Information Technology (IITELMIT)
\n2000's showgrounds at the Jakarta Convention Center.<\/p>\n
Separately, chief executive officer of Singapore Telecom Ltd.
\nBrig. Gen Lee Hsien Yang voiced a similar view.<\/p>\n
Lee said his company was interested in expanding its existing
\ninvestment in Indonesia's telecommunications sector in PT
\nTelkom's KSO partner, PT Bukaka SingTel International, but would
\nnot make any moves until it got a clearer picture of the
\ngovernment's plan for the future of the country's
\ntelecommunications sector.<\/p>\n
\"I'm sure if there's an opportunity for us to make more of an
\ninvestment here, we'll be open to looking into it. But I think
\nwe'll wait to see the actual policy and decision of the
\ngovernment before we decide what to do,\" he said on the sidelines
\nof an IITELMIT conference.<\/p>\n
Eurin said foreign investors wanted to know how, when and what
\nthe government would do exactly in its reformation of the
\ncountry's telecommunications sector so that they could develop a
\nsuitable business strategy for their future involvement here.<\/p>\n
He said investors, however, had no idea about many issues --
\nsuch as the possibility of more licenses in the fixed or wireless
\ntelephone sector for new operators, the telephone rate policy,
\nprivatization of Telkom and Indosat and the settlement of the
\ndispute between Telkom and its KSO partners -- all of which are
\nvery critical for business calculations.<\/p>\n
Minister of Communications Agum Gumelar told participants at
\nIITELMIT on Thursday that the government was committed to
\nreforming its policy in the telecommunications sector by
\neliminating the monopoly currently exercised by state-owned
\noperators Telkom and Indosat, and by allowing local private and
\nforeign companies to have a much greater access to the
\ntelecommunications business.<\/p>\n
He said the government would immediately lift Telkom and
\nIndosat's monopoly and allow both companies to operate not only
\nin the fixed line but also the wireless, Internet and multimedia
\nsectors.<\/p>\n
Telkom currently holds the monopoly to provide domestic fixed
\nline telecommunications services nationwide until 2010 and
\ndomestic long distance services until 2005, while Indosat and its
\nsubsidiary PT Satelindo hold the exclusive rights to provide
\ninternational direct dialing services until 2004.<\/p>\n
The government earlier said it considered lifting the monopoly
\nby 2002 or 2003 to speed up the liberalization of the country's
\ntelecommunications sector.<\/p>\n
Agum, however, made it clear that the government intended to
\ngive first priority to Telkom and Indosat and to make the two the
\nlargest telecommunications operators in the country.<\/p>\n
\"Clearly, we're heading to a duopoly, not free market,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He said private local and foreign companies would be free to
\ndo business in the country's telecommunications sector, but not
\nas fixed line telephone operators. (cst)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/foreign-operators-question-indonesias-telecoms-policy-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}