Cellular phone operators bank on robust market

JAKARTA (JP): Cellular phone operators Telkomsel and Excelcomindo Pratama predicted the country's improving economy would pave the way to a sharp increase in cellular phone sales.

Telkomsel general manager Krish Pribadi said here on Friday cellular phone sales had begun to pick up over the last several months and would continue to grow over the next year along with the economy.

He said the number of Telkomsel customers would increase by at least 100 percent from the current 900,000 thanks to predicted sharp growth in the cellular phone market.

The recent strengthening of the rupiah against the U.S. dollar to around 7,000 from over 8,000 earlier in the year has proved of great benefit to the market.

"The stronger rupiah will make cell phones more affordable to more Indonesians, and this will not only benefit producers but also cellular network operators," he told The Jakarta Post during the launch of the company's HALOinfo service.

Telkomsel has seen the number of its customers increase by 80 percent this year to 900,000. Some 45 percent of these customers use Telkomsel's prepaid Simpati card, while the other 55 percent use the postpaid Halo card.

Telkomsel, one of the country's five cellular phone operators, controls at least 44 percent of the country's cellular phone market.

Excelcomindo Pratama also expects the coming year to bring robust growth in the number of its customers, the company's director Ridiantara said here on Friday.

Company predicted subscribers would increase by about 40 percent to 500,000 next year, from some 320,000 in 1999.

Cellular phone sales in the country surged to 1.81 million units as of September, from 1.07 million units in 1998. The rise was partly due to a fall in the prices of cellular phones.

Ridiantara said next year his company would expand its coverage to North Sumatra and Riau, and increase its capacity in Jakarta, Bandung and Sumbawa. (06)