Govt allows cell phone operators to set their rates<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government will allow local mobile phone
\noperators to set their own rates as part of its program to
\ngradually liberalize the country's telecommunications sector, a
\nsenior telecom official said here on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Sasmito Dirdjo, director general of post and
\ntelecommunications at the Ministry of Communications, said,
\nhowever, the government would continue to set a ceiling for
\nmobile telephone rates in a bid to protect the public.<\/p>\n
\"The existing uniform call charge will be replaced with a
\nceiling tariff,\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The government and mobile phone operators will soon meet to
\ndiscuss the details of the planned change in the policy of fixing
\ncellular phone rates, he said.<\/p>\n
All of the country's seven mobile phone operators charge their
\ncustomers with the uniform call charge set by the government. The
\ncurrent call charge is Rp 325 (about 4.5 US cents) per minute.<\/p>\n
The government currently determines the call charge for the
\ncountry's regular mobile phone service based on proposals from
\nthe mobile telephone operators. Changes in the rate, however, are
\nsubject to approval by the House of Representatives.<\/p>\n
The House signaled its compliance early last week to demands
\nby mobile phone operators for greater freedom in setting call
\ncharges according to the terms of their services and market
\nconditions.<\/p>\n
The operators said the self-adjustment tariff system would
\npositively impact customers, because it would push operators to
\ncompete with each other in providing the best service at the most
\nreasonable price.<\/p>\n
At present, mobile phone operators are free to set their own
\nprices only for particular prepaid services.<\/p>\n
Sasmito said the government previously could not allow
\noperators to set their own rates because some of the mobile phone
\noperators were not ready to face open competition.<\/p>\n
According to the Association of Indonesian Cellular
\nTelecommunications Operators (ATSI), the ideal call tariff for
\nIndonesia's mobile phone industry is around 11 US cents per
\nminute.<\/p>\n
The country's seven mobile phone operators -- PT Satelindo, PT
\nTelkomsel and PT Excelcomindo, which use the Global System for
\nMobile Communications; PT Telesera, PT Metrosel and PT
\nKomselindo, which operate the Advanced Mobile Phone System; and
\nPT Mobisel, which runs the Nordic Mobile Telephones System --
\ncurrently serve around 2.4 million subscribers.<\/p>\n
ATSI projects the number of mobile phone subscribers will rise
\nto over three million by the end of this year, up from around
\n2.05 million registered at the end of 1999 and 1.1 million at the
\nend of 1998.<\/p>\n
ATSI also predicts the price of mobile phone usage per
\nsubscriber will climb to an average of Rp 400,000 per month this
\nyear, up from an average of Rp 300,000 per month in 1999. (cst)<\/p>",
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