Mobile Internet rises from ashes of dot.com implosion<\/p>\n
Vishnu K. Mahmud, Contributor, Jakarta<\/p>\n
With the end of the Indonesian Internet boom, it may seem that
\nthe business of making money online is no more. The fun is gone,
\nand there is nothing to impel users to return to late-breaking
\nnews, no more large community, no more contests with free
\ngiveaways! Plus, the costs of computer hardware and rising
\ntelephone charges are also a hindrance for going back online.<\/p>\n
But what about the mobile (cellular) community? Many of the
\nIndonesian portals of yesteryear are gone, yet the community is
\nstill out there, looking for a replacement site to hang out and
\nexchange ideas. Mobile phones are more ubiquitous in Indonesia
\ncompared to computers. Perhaps we may have another boom?<\/p>\n
Take a look at the websites for some of the major cellular
\nproviders in Indonesia. Satelindo (www.satelindogsm.com), IM3
\n(www.m3-access.com) and Telkomsel (www.telkomsel.com) all have
\nwebsites that offer their users additional services. From
\naccessing billing information online to games to news and message
\nboards, these "mini-portals" offer users features that were once
\nonly available to the high-flying internet portals.<\/p>\n
Some of these features can be accessed via your mobile phone
\nwith a WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) browser and GPRS
\n(General Packet Radio Service) wireless connection, such as the
\ncase with IM3. You can check out traffic updates, review e-mail
\nand play games with your cell phone. There are even services
\nusing SMS, such as m-banking and news updates.<\/p>\n
Of course, none of this is free. You would have to pay the SMS
\ncharges or the amount of bandwidth used on the GPRS. But it's
\npeanuts compared to the constantly rising electricity and
\ntelephone charges that come with using a computer.<\/p>\n
For cellular providers, this is an excellent way to develop
\ntheir user base and garner additional profits. To obtain revenue,
\nhaving a verified user base is vital. This is not for spamming or
\ntelesales purposes (because it would ultimately backfire!), but
\nto offer additional personal services to users who may find it
\nuseful.<\/p>\n
Signing up is verified online by the service that
\nautomatically sends an SMS to authenticate the user ID and
\nPassword. So there is no way that one user can have multiple log
\nin names, which can be a drain on the provider's resources. Once
\nregistered, the user can be offered a number of services provided
\nby the cellular services either via the internet or their mobile
\nphone.<\/p>\n
These services are offered in partnership by third party
\noperators, who can provide content such as ring tones, news,
\ngames, and others for a nominal fee that is collected by the
\ncellular operator. A mobile service that offers the most content
\nand features would also be able to entice more users to switch
\nover to their company. Not a bad win-win situation.<\/p>\n
NTT DoCoMo has always been considered the leader in the mobile
\nmultimedia telecommunications field. While they provide the
\ninfrastructure, hundreds of small operators offer the services
\nand content to entice users to download or visit. A once small
\nlimited operation slowly became a large mobile internet
\ncommunity.<\/p>\n
Perhaps Indonesia's cellular providers, with their in-built
\ncommunity, can succeed where others failed. The most important
\naspect for a successful website or service is not the features,
\nnumber of hits per day or amount of users it has. It's revenue,
\nwhich the old dot cons failed to focus on. Revenue is the key to
\nservicing, expanding and surviving in this dog-eat-dog world.<\/p>\n
Indonesian operators offering content for mobile phones are
\nalso on the rise. Gila Bola (www.gilabola.com) offers the latest
\nglobal football scores via SMS, while Boleh's mobile services
\n(mobile.boleh.com) provides fun ringtones, pictures and logos.
\nSurely, there are plenty more services that can be offered by new
\nstart-ups.<\/p>\n
Considering that cell phones are becoming more and more
\ncheaper while offering additional features, it would not be too
\nlong before Indonesia has a large number of people accessing the
\ninternet via their mobile phone. Cell phones with large color
\nscreens and built-in digital cameras are now infiltrating the
\nmarket, allowing users to not only take pictures but also share
\nit with friends and family. And while the land-based telephone
\nrates are going up, cellular rates may soon be lowered as more
\nand more people get connected. Who said the internet is dead? It
\ncontinues to evolve.<\/p>",
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