Cellular firms join forces to improve services

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's three Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) operators, PT Komselindo, PT Metrosel Nusantara and PT Telesera, have joined forces to compete with operators in other systems.

Komselindo director for marketing and business development Zen Smith said on Thursday that under an agreement signed early last month, the three companies, which operate in different locations, would share transmission facilities to enable them to expand their coverage area.

Under the cooperation, the three AMPS operators will be better equipped to compete with operators in other systems which offer wider coverage, he said.

"We can now offer more value-added services to our subscribers because this cooperation will enable us to improve our coverage nationwide without massive investment," he said.

The three AMPS operators operate in separate locations. Komselindo serves Greater Jakarta, West Java, West and North Sumatra, Aceh and Sulawesi. Metrosel serves Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, Maluku and Irian Jaya. Telesera covers South Sumatra, Riau, Jambi, Bengkulu, Lampung, Kalimantan, Bali, East and West Nusa Tenggara and East Timor.

Previously, AMPS subscribers could only use their cellular phones in the areas covered by their operator. They had to change to other operators if they went to other regions.

Under the cooperation agreement, AMPS subscribers will be able to use their mobile phones in all areas served by the three companies.

"For example, if you are a Komselindo's subscriber you do not have too change operators if you go to Central Java or Bali or other places," he said.

"When you are in Semarang, in Metrosel's coverage area, you will be connected by Metrosel. And when you are in Bali, which is in Telesera's coverage area, you will be served by Telesera," he said.

Indonesia has seven cellular phone providers operating three systems: AMPS, the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) and the Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT).

GSM is run by Satelindo and Telkomsel, or GSM-XL, while NMT is run by Mobisel.

Metrosel vice president Lukas Heryanto said the cooperation agreement signed by the three AMPS operators would allow them to increase their service coverage without a large investment.

Zen said AMPS currently had some 101,000 subscribers, accounting for 12 percent of the country's 900,000 cellular subscribers.

Over 80 percent of mobile phone users in Indonesia are GSM subscribers, he said.

Zen said most people preferred GSM operators to AMPS because the GSM system enabled them to use prepaid subscriber identity module (SIM) cards.

"The prepaid SIM card has become increasingly popular because it allows users to control their bills. AMPS operators still cannot offer prepaid SIM cards," he said.

Zen said the economic crisis which began in July 1997, resulted in a sharp decline in the number of cellular subscribers. There were over 1.1 million cellular subscribers before the crisis hit.

The number of Komselindo subscribers has dropped to 65,000 from over 70,000 subscribers at the end of 1998.

Telesera president Nyoman Sudipa said Telesera currently had 6,400 subscribers, down from its 6,550 subscribers at the end of 1997.

Metrosel has lost at least 8,000 subscribers since December last year. The company now has some 30,800 subscribers.

However, all three companies are optimistic about the future of AMPS in Indonesia, saying the system is the most appropriate system for a large archipelagic country like Indonesia.

"First, with an analog system like AMPS the phone connection is more tolerant to weak signals. We may hear a lot of crackling noise, but the connection is maintained. The voice is also more natural and clearer than with digital systems like GSM.

"Second, AMPS signals are better able to penetrate buildings or mountains. People in the basements of high-rise buildings or in a village on the top of a mountain can usually maintain a good connection if they use an AMPS mobile phone," Zen said. (gis)