ATSI asks govt to regulate new Telkom service

ATSI asks govt to regulate new Telkom service

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia's (Telkom) new fixed-wireless
service, TelkomFlexi, which has features similar to those offered
on mobile phones, has sparked protests from cellular phone
providers who fear that TelkomFlexi will cut into their share of
the market.

Indonesian Cellular Phone Provider Association (ATSI) chairman
Rudiantara told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday that the government
should keep the TelkomFlexi service fixed, so that it would not
interfere with the mobile phone market share.

"If it is a fixed service, it should not offer mobile
services," he said.

In May, Telkom introduced TelkomFlexi, which is actually a
fixed-wireless service using the latest technology, Code Division
Multiple Access (CDMA).

However, by using the service, customers can carry their
fixed-line phones outside their homes as long as they are still
within reach of a base transreceiver station (BTS). One station
has a radius of more or less five kilometers.

To sign up for the service, customers pay Rp 150,000.
TelkomFlexi offers the same rates as those for fixed-line calls,
which are cheaper than calls made on a cell phone.

For an extra Rp 50 per minute, customers can move to an area
covered by another BTS, so that they can communicate within a
wider area.

Telkom vice president for corporate communication Eddy
Praptono said for Jakarta customers TelkomFlexi service could
reach the whole city for the time being.

"We plan to widen the reach to greater Jakarta," he told the
Post.

Besides the mobility feature, TelkomFlexi also has other
features like short messaging services (SMS) and a relatively
fast Internet access of 144 kilobytes per second.

These mobile features offering fixed costs provided by
TelkomFlexi have raised concerns from mobile phone providers, as
they fear it will cut into their share of the market.

Rudiantara said that fixed-wireless services, such as
TelkomFlexi could offer cheaper rates because its provider pays
for a cheaper license from the government.

"For example, a mobile service provider like us, members of
ATSI, has to pay about Rp 18 million (about US$2,195) for
installing a relay station," he said. "That is 20 times higher
than the cost for installing a fixed service station."

He added that if the government implemented a clear regulation
on the new service, mobile phone providers would not feel
threatened.

He said that ATSI had voiced its concerns to government
officials last week.

"It's OK for us if the government restricts the TelkomFlexi
service to those of fixed lines, as we will have our own market
share," he said. "But if the regulator lets the service go beyond
a fixed service, we will object, as TelkomFlexi might take a
portion of the mobile market share."

I Ketut Prihadi, the spokesperson for the Directorate General
for Post and Telecommunications at the Ministry of Communications
said that his ministry was currently discussing a regulation that
would be acceptable to every player in the telecommunications
business.

Rudiantara said that mobile market shares grow by four million
to five million a year.

Meanwhile, TelkomFlexi management has reportedly projected its
market share to grow by one million a year.

"If a fair regulation is not implemented, TelkomFlexi's market
shares will fully intersect with the mobile service's," he added.