Consumers needs to adjust to new phone access codes
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
For some people, adjusting to changes is a daunting task, even for the smallest thing.
"I am already 81, I am used to using the 031 code whenever I want to call my daughter in Surabaya," Tengku Siti Absiah, a Jakarta citizen said, adding that having to memorize new codes would take time.
Well, like it or not, within a five-year period, most Indonesians who intend to make long-distance calls will have to memorize different access codes, or at least have a new list of them.
The government has set the deadline to revise the current "0" prefix for area codes, such as 021 for Jakarta or 031 for Surabaya, to accommodate more fixed-line operators.
"We are giving new long-distance operator Indosat the '011' prefix and changing Telkom's code from '0' to '017'," Minister of Information and Communications Sofyan A. Djalil said on Friday, referring to state telecommunication firms PT Indosat and PT Telkom.
He said that the government would give them a five-year period to implement the changes.
The change in code would mean that, in the future, if one makes a call from Jakarta to Surabaya, one would have to first dial '01131' -- using Indosat -- or '01731' -- using Telkom -- instead of the usual '031'.
The '011' access code for Indosat will take effect starting April 1 in Jakarta, Surabaya, Denpasar, Batam and Medan. However, Telkom's '017' would not be immediately available, with the operator asking for a gradual implementation period citing the significant funds it has to aside to make the adjustment.
"The new access codes could not be fully implemented now as there have not been enough announcements of the change made to public, and operators need to change hardware and software to adjust to the changes," Sofyan said.
Indonesia's largest telecommunications company PT Telkom previously reported that it had to allocate Rp 3.5 trillion on gadget changes and campaigns to make the change.
However big the sacrifice the company claimed it had to make, the change should serve as good news for consumers as, with more players expected to come in, they would have more options, better services and eventually better prices, the minister said. (003)