Competition in cell phone services gets fiercer

JAKARTA (JP): The competition in cellular telephone services is getting fiercer, with almost all of the country's Global System for Mobile (GSM) operators promising not only better services but more advanced technology.

Julius S. Djohan, the president of PT Excelcomindo Pratama, said over the weekend that GSM operators had no choice but to improve services and facilities because tariff competition was not yet possible.

The country's telephone tariffs are set by the government.

"Fewer out of range spots, good coverage, clear voice, quick connection and qualified customer care executives are the major factors to winning the cellular competition in Indonesia," Julius told The Jakarta Post.

Excelcomindo is the youngest of the three GSM operators in Indonesia. GSM, the most recent system introduced in the country, is also operated by PT Telkomsel and PT Satelindo.

Djohan said the recent drop in the prices of cellular handsets had encouraged more people to subscribe to GSM services.

"Cellular users are now not limited to businessmen, but also youngsters including students," he said. "But we have to offer better services to enable us to tap the growing market," he added.

Excelcomindo, which at present has some 9,000 subscribers, has introduced a number of features to attract more subscribers. It, for example, became the first operator to introduce monthly subscribing fees on all of its offered features.

There are currently some 550,000 cellular phone users in Indonesia. Around 380,000 of them are GSM subscribers, while the remainder are users of the Advanced Mobile Phone System run by three operators and the Nordic Mobile Telephone run by one provider.

According to Djohan, Excelcomindo, which procures equipment from Swedish giant LM Ericsson AB and Siemens of Germany, runs 24-hour customer care centers and point of sales to attract customers.

The company is a joint-venture firm owned by Nynex Corp. of the United States and PT Telekomindo Prima Bhakti, the major Indonesian shareholder. Other shareholders of Excelcomindo include Japanese trading firm Mitsui, the Asian Infrastructure Fund and several local investors, including PT Santana Telekomindo, Yayasan Kartika Eka Paksi and Yayasan Tridaya.

Djohan said Excelcomindo, which currently operates in Jakarta, Bandung in West Java and Surabaya in East Java, will enter several new areas in 1997.

"We will enter Bali and Lombok, Semarang, Surakarta, Yogya, Kudus, Tegal, Pekalongan (Central Java) in early 1997. In the mid half of 1997 we will be in Kediri, Jombang and Jember (East Java), and in Medan (North Sumatra) in the third quarter," he said.

Excelcomindo has signed roaming agreements with operators in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Belgium, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands, allowing its subscribers to use their cellular phones when visiting the nations. (icn)