SE Asia embracing the future communication technology<\/p>\n
Ericsson Southeast Asia held a three-day: Experience 3G with
\nEricsson, media workshop starting on Sept. 7 in Kuala Lumpur,
\nwhere four Indonesian journalists, including The Jakarta Post's
\nHyginus Hardoyo, were invited to participate in. The following is
\nhis report.<\/p>\n
The Southeast Asian region, where the average mobile phone
\nmarket is dominated by young people, is projected to have the
\nhighest growth in the use of the advanced third generation (3G)
\nmobile telephone network technology within the next few years, an
\nEricsson executive said.<\/p>\n
Jan Signell, president of Ericsson Southeast Asia, said that
\nwhere 3G is concerned, the technology had taken off in Europe,
\nespecially Italy and the United Kingdom, and parts of Asia,
\nespecially Japan, and that the momentum would soon begin to
\nincrease in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n
The 3G mobile telephone is a generic term covering a range of
\nfuture wireless network technologies, including Wideband Code
\nDivision Multiple Access (WCDMA), Code Division Multiple Access
\n2000 (CDMA 2000), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
\n(UMTS) and Enhanced Data for Global Evolution (EDGE).<\/p>\n
Using 3G technology, mobile phone subscribers will be able to
\nenjoy triple-play services, ranging from video calls, video
\nstreaming, video conferencing to video clips through mobile
\nphones, in addition to a much faster data transfer.<\/p>\n
Out of an estimated 1,931 million global users of mobile
\nphones, over 28 million have subscribed to 3G, which is dominated
\nby the WCDMA standard -- a technology for wideband digital radio
\ncommunications of Internet, multimedia, video and other capacity-
\ndemanding applications, Signell said.<\/p>\n
\"Malaysia and Singapore have launched their 3G networks with
\nthe Malaysian government announcing that two more 3G licenses may
\ncome up for bid in the country,\" he said .<\/p>\n
Malaysia has thus far awarded two 3G licenses. Telekom
\nMalaysia rolled out its 3G mobile service in May, followed by
\nMaxis Communications, which launched its 3G network in July.<\/p>\n
Early this year Singapore's SingTel and smaller rival
\nMobileOne also rolled out their 3G mobile services.
\nSignell predicted that increased 3G activities were expected in
\nother Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, the
\nPhilippines and Thailand later this year or early next year.<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, for example, two blocks of International Mobile
\nTelecommunications (IMT) 2000 spectrum for 3G services will be
\nauctioned in November, he said.<\/p>\n
The auction will apparently be part of the process of
\nrealigning telecommunication frequency allocations currently
\nbeing conducted by Indonesia's Office of the State Minister for
\nCommunications and Information for the sake of avoiding
\ninefficiency.<\/p>\n
In 2003 the government granted 3G licenses and allocated
\nfrequency spectrum to PT Natrindo Telepon Seluler\/Lippo Telecom
\nand PT Cyber Access Communications (CAC), an affiliate of
\nThailand's leading cellular operator Telecom Orange Asia, but the
\ntwo companies are not yet operational.<\/p>\n
Two other cellular operators Telkom Flexi and Indosat Star One
\n-- have not yet obtained the licenses, but have provided WCDMA
\nservices using 3G frequencies.<\/p>\n
The regulatory body in Thailand, had announced four possible
\n3G licenses, while its Philippine counterpart had identified a
\nradio frequency band for 3G use to be awarded in the first half
\nof 2006, Signell said.<\/p>\n
Ericsson Southeast Asia comprises 13 countries with primary
\nfocus on the high-potential markets of Bangladesh, Indonesia,
\nMalaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and
\nVietnam.<\/p>\n
It has combined population of over 800 million with a mobile
\nsubscriber growth of two million per month and mobile penetration
\nrate ranging between 5 percent to 93 percent.<\/p>\n
\"The highest mobile penetration of 93 percent is registered in
\nSingapore, which has population of only 4.3 million, followed by
\nMalaysia with 67 percent amid a population of 25.9 million and
\nThailand with 45 percent in a population of 62.8 million,\"
\nSignell said.<\/p>\n
He further said that the mobile penetration in Indonesia
\nreached a mere 13 percent amid a population of nearly 231
\nmillion, while Bangladesh ranks the lowest in mobile penetration
\nwith only 5 percent amid a population of 141.3 million.<\/p>\n
The total number of mobile subscribers in the Asia Pacific is
\naround 700 million, out of which 20 percent or 137 million are in
\nSoutheast Asia, Ericsson's data shows.<\/p>\n
Signell emphasized that fashionable mobile data services will
\nbe different from one country to the other as is the case in the
\n2G and 2.5G global system for mobile communications (GSM) and
\ngeneral packet radio service (GPRS) networks, meaning that short
\nmessaging services, which are popular in a certain country, might
\nnot be essential in another market.<\/p>\n
\"Our involvement in our customer's 3G networks is not just
\nentirely on the network side, but also on the service layer,
\nhosting, and in many other areas which support our customers'
\nsuccessful launch of new services,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The most important thing is that the subscriber is doing
\nsomething other than just talking on the phone, he said,
\nstressing the importance of looking beyond voice calls amid the
\nemergence of the digital lifestyle.<\/p>\n
Stefan Karlsson, head of business planning of Ericsson
\nMalaysia, said that 3G technology will enable users to experience
\na wider variety of services and share their emotions with family
\nand friends wherever they are, thanks to mobile broadband.<\/p>\n
Karlsson underlined the important role the young mobile users
\nplay to boost the growth of 3G applications, as they have the
\ncharacteristics of easily adjusting to the latest development of
\ncommunications technology. When young people have a new video
\nphone, he said, they will automatically take a photo or video
\nclip and send it to their friends.<\/p>\n
Comfortable communication through video calls or video clip
\nservices does bring an emotional dimension to communication.<\/p>\n
\"Young people don't take a picture merely for documentation
\npurposes, but to share a feeling,\" he said, adding that the 3G
\nservices for them are handy, enabling them to do something while
\nwaiting for a ride or doing anything else.<\/p>\n
Torbjorn Jonsson, senior solutions manager of Ericsson
\nMalaysia, said the high mobility provided by the technology
\ncombined with the capability for the faster data transfer will
\nenable users to have a richer experience, whether to download
\nmusic, watch mobile TV, make e-commerce transactions, or chat
\nwith their friends.<\/p>\n
Moreover, it will also allow them to shoot the beach scenery
\nwhere they are taking a vacation or to help them decide whether
\nthey should buy the clothes they're trying out, he added.<\/p>\n
In other word, besides enabling users to enjoy the pleasure of
\nusing the latest features, 3G mobility also means distance is no
\nlonger a problem as they can communicate vividly, thanks to a
\nvisual element in a phone conversation.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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