Komselindo improving services

JAKARTA (JP): PT Komunikasi Selular Indonesia (Komselindo), a private cellular telecommunications operator, announced here yesterday a free-of-charge administration service for its subscribers.

The company's commerce director, Zen Smith, said that to provide better services, his company, which uses the advanced mobile phone service (AMPS) system, has abolished administration fees because it needs valid data on its subscribers.

He said that subscribers who have bought second-hand telephones can now re-register their phone numbers with their own names for free.

Subscribers wishing to get the free administration service should enclose copies of the last cellular phone bills, identity cards and the bills for their fixed telephones or electricity, he said.

The company previously charged an administration fee of Rp 200,000 (about US$88) for name and address registration.

Smith said that the demand for AMPS cellular phones in the key Jakarta and West Java markets is still high, while the capacity is still limited.

He admitted that due to the limited capacity and high demand, many people are selling their AMPS telephones to others for a profit.

It is also widely known that counterfeit AMPS telephones are easily found in the city, even though the company has already installed an automatic fraud system (AFS) to avoid the cloning of cellular handsets.

City police officers recently confiscated 12 handphones and an electronic serial reader which had been used to detect the serial numbers of on-air handsets. A number of suspects have also been questioned for duplicating cellular phones, using counterfeit cellular terminals and stealing telephone pulses.

Komselindo currently has some 50,000 subscribers and expects to increase the number to 90,000 in 1996. The company, whose system can be applied in 19 cities, has allocated an investment of Rp 90 billion ($39 million) for the expansion of its operation, capacity and coverage. (icn)