SE Asia embracing the future communication technology

SE Asia embracing the future communication technology

Ericsson Southeast Asia held a three-day: Experience 3G with Ericsson, media workshop starting on Sept. 7 in Kuala Lumpur, where four Indonesian journalists, including The Jakarta Post's Hyginus Hardoyo, were invited to participate in. The following is his report.

The Southeast Asian region, where the average mobile phone market is dominated by young people, is projected to have the highest growth in the use of the advanced third generation (3G) mobile telephone network technology within the next few years, an Ericsson executive said.

Jan Signell, president of Ericsson Southeast Asia, said that where 3G is concerned, the technology had taken off in Europe, especially Italy and the United Kingdom, and parts of Asia, especially Japan, and that the momentum would soon begin to increase in Southeast Asia.

The 3G mobile telephone is a generic term covering a range of future wireless network technologies, including Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Code Division Multiple Access 2000 (CDMA 2000), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) and Enhanced Data for Global Evolution (EDGE).

Using 3G technology, mobile phone subscribers will be able to enjoy triple-play services, ranging from video calls, video streaming, video conferencing to video clips through mobile phones, in addition to a much faster data transfer.

Out of an estimated 1,931 million global users of mobile phones, over 28 million have subscribed to 3G, which is dominated by the WCDMA standard -- a technology for wideband digital radio communications of Internet, multimedia, video and other capacity- demanding applications, Signell said.

"Malaysia and Singapore have launched their 3G networks with the Malaysian government announcing that two more 3G licenses may come up for bid in the country," he said .

Malaysia has thus far awarded two 3G licenses. Telekom Malaysia rolled out its 3G mobile service in May, followed by Maxis Communications, which launched its 3G network in July.

Early this year Singapore's SingTel and smaller rival MobileOne also rolled out their 3G mobile services. Signell predicted that increased 3G activities were expected in other Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand later this year or early next year.

In Indonesia, for example, two blocks of International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) 2000 spectrum for 3G services will be auctioned in November, he said.

The auction will apparently be part of the process of realigning telecommunication frequency allocations currently being conducted by Indonesia's Office of the State Minister for Communications and Information for the sake of avoiding inefficiency.

In 2003 the government granted 3G licenses and allocated frequency spectrum to PT Natrindo Telepon Seluler/Lippo Telecom and PT Cyber Access Communications (CAC), an affiliate of Thailand's leading cellular operator Telecom Orange Asia, but the two companies are not yet operational.

Two other cellular operators Telkom Flexi and Indosat Star One -- have not yet obtained the licenses, but have provided WCDMA services using 3G frequencies.

The regulatory body in Thailand, had announced four possible 3G licenses, while its Philippine counterpart had identified a radio frequency band for 3G use to be awarded in the first half of 2006, Signell said.

Ericsson Southeast Asia comprises 13 countries with primary focus on the high-potential markets of Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

It has combined population of over 800 million with a mobile subscriber growth of two million per month and mobile penetration rate ranging between 5 percent to 93 percent.

"The highest mobile penetration of 93 percent is registered in Singapore, which has population of only 4.3 million, followed by Malaysia with 67 percent amid a population of 25.9 million and Thailand with 45 percent in a population of 62.8 million," Signell said.

He further said that the mobile penetration in Indonesia reached a mere 13 percent amid a population of nearly 231 million, while Bangladesh ranks the lowest in mobile penetration with only 5 percent amid a population of 141.3 million.

The total number of mobile subscribers in the Asia Pacific is around 700 million, out of which 20 percent or 137 million are in Southeast Asia, Ericsson's data shows.

Signell emphasized that fashionable mobile data services will be different from one country to the other as is the case in the 2G and 2.5G global system for mobile communications (GSM) and general packet radio service (GPRS) networks, meaning that short messaging services, which are popular in a certain country, might not be essential in another market.

"Our involvement in our customer's 3G networks is not just entirely on the network side, but also on the service layer, hosting, and in many other areas which support our customers' successful launch of new services," he said.

The most important thing is that the subscriber is doing something other than just talking on the phone, he said, stressing the importance of looking beyond voice calls amid the emergence of the digital lifestyle.

Stefan Karlsson, head of business planning of Ericsson Malaysia, said that 3G technology will enable users to experience a wider variety of services and share their emotions with family and friends wherever they are, thanks to mobile broadband.

Karlsson underlined the important role the young mobile users play to boost the growth of 3G applications, as they have the characteristics of easily adjusting to the latest development of communications technology. When young people have a new video phone, he said, they will automatically take a photo or video clip and send it to their friends.

Comfortable communication through video calls or video clip services does bring an emotional dimension to communication.

"Young people don't take a picture merely for documentation purposes, but to share a feeling," he said, adding that the 3G services for them are handy, enabling them to do something while waiting for a ride or doing anything else.

Torbjorn Jonsson, senior solutions manager of Ericsson Malaysia, said the high mobility provided by the technology combined with the capability for the faster data transfer will enable users to have a richer experience, whether to download music, watch mobile TV, make e-commerce transactions, or chat with their friends.

Moreover, it will also allow them to shoot the beach scenery where they are taking a vacation or to help them decide whether they should buy the clothes they're trying out, he added.

In other word, besides enabling users to enjoy the pleasure of using the latest features, 3G mobility also means distance is no longer a problem as they can communicate vividly, thanks to a visual element in a phone conversation.