Survey says Indonesians mobile phone-crazy
Sari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Indonesians are crazy about mobile phones and many cannot live without them, said a survey conducted by Siemens Mobile Phones and GFK Marketing Services.
The survey, presented on Tuesday, shows that 62 percent of respondents answered that they would return home if they had forgotten it, while 66 percent said they would check their phones frequently if they had not received short messaging service (SMS) or calls for some time.
The survey covered 335 people from two different age groups -- 16 to 29 and 30 to 60 years.
Mobile phones operators in the country have been enjoying strong profits over the past couple of years amid strong demand.
Foreign investors are also keen to enter the sector after Singapore's SingTel purchased a 35 percent stake in PT Telkomsel, the largest cellular phone operator in Indonesia with 10 million subscribers, and Singapore Technologies Telemedia acquired a controlling stake in state-owned telecommunications company PT Indosat, which also provides cellular services.
It has been reported that telecom players from Malaysia and China are competing to acquire PT Exelcomindo Pratama, Indonesia's third largest cellular operator.
"In 2002, the SMS traffic among our subscribers was 3 million messages a day. Now, it is 14 million messages a day," said Wimbo S. Hardjito, a senior Indosat executive.
Wimbo expected SMSs would contribute some 30 to 40 percent of their revenue this year, as compared to 20 percent last year.
Erik Meijer, general manager of marketing at Telkomsel, said 40 percent of Indonesians left their mobile phones on overnight.
The survey also showed that 66 percent of respondents said they would answer their phones no matter where they were and what they were doing.
It is a common sight to see people answering their phones while riding a public transportation vehicle or while walking on the streets, even in noisy places such as bars and clubs. Many also neglect to turn off their cellular phones in movie theaters.
Meanwhile, 22 percent of respondents even said they loved talking on their mobile phones during a bath or massage.
"My friends and I used to send SMSs during class. Even during the final exam, a friend still picked up her ringing phone," said Andien, a teen jazz musician.
The survey says, however, people are becoming ruder and less considerate toward others in using their phones.
"Last year, a similar survey we held showed that young people were more considerate than the older generation, but this year they were all about the same," said Farid Manan, deputy general manager of PT Dian Graha Elektrik, Siemens' sole distributor here.
In regards the developing technology offered by mobile phone manufacturers, 65 percent of respondents said their phones were a "technological extension" of their personalities -- in other words, they used their phones not only for voice communications, but also to listen to music, playing games and sending text or picture messages.
However, in regards integrated digital cameras in the latest mobile products -- or cameraphones -- only 9 percent said they had taken intimate pictures, while 23 percent of male respondents said the multimedia messaging service (MMS) had enhanced their love lives because they could send "for your eyes only" photos to their lovers.
There has been a rising campaign overseas against cameraphones because they could induce negative activities like voyeurism and pornography.
On the use of mobile phones in romance, 42 percent of respondents said they called or SMS-ed their loved ones throughout the day. Only 9 percent of respondents "talked dirty" with their loved ones on their mobiles.