Telkom sets up 2 new cellular operators
Telkom sets up 2 new cellular operators
JAKARTA (JP): PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (PT Telkom) has set
up two new joint venture companies with private firms to operate
the Digital Cordless System (DCS-1800) nationwide.
The company said here yesterday the new companies were PT
Selnet Nasional Indonesia (Selnas) and PT Indomedia Telephone
Cellular National (Indophone).
Selnas is 10 percent owned by Telkom and 90 percent owned by
PT Cellnet Nusantara, a private firm controlled by businessman
Sudwikatmono, one of President Soeharto's close relatives and
Siti Hutami Endang Adiningsih, the President's youngest daughter.
Telkom has 35 percent shares in Indophone which is 65 percent
controlled by PT Nusantara Ampera Bakti (Nusamba). Nusamba's
shareholders include timber tycoon Bob Hasan, who is also the
company's president commissioner; businessman Sigit
Hardjojudanto, Soeharto's eldest son; and the Supersemar, Dakap
and Dharmais foundations, chaired by Soeharto.
Telkom said yesterday that with PT Prima Tangara Citra and
Bank BNI's Swadharma Cooperative, it had also set up PT Tangara
Mitrakom which will provide very small aperture terminal (VSAT)
services. The new company is 25 percent owned by Telkom.
Sources said Selnas was incorporated with an authorized
capital of Rp 200 billion, while Indophone and Tangara had an
authorized capital of Rp 20 billion and Rp 4 billion,
respectively.
It is not yet known when the new companies will start
operations.
Licenses
The government awarded in June five licenses -- without any
tender -- to several companies to run the DCS-1800 and Personal
Handyphone Service (PHS), two digital cellular telecommunications
systems. The DCS-1800 was developed from the Global System for
Mobile communications (GSM) originally from Europe, while PHS was
developed by Japan.
Two of the five licenses go to Telkom and Cellnet which are
allowed to operate the DCS-1800 system nationwide.
One of the licenses was presented to PT Indoprima Mikroselindo
(Primasel), partly owned by state-owned PT Indosat and PT Inti,
to run PHS only in East Java.
Two other free-of-bid licenses go to a consortium of Telkom,
Indosat and Inti to operate DCS-1800 in the greater Jakarta area
only and PHS only in East Java. The consortium of three state-
owned firms is allowed to invite private firms to cooperate.
The government is still evaluating tender participants for 11
regional cellular licenses. The licenses include six regional
licenses to operate DCS-1800 in Sumatra, West Java, Central Java,
East Java, Kalimantan and the eastern areas and five regional
licenses to operate PHS in Sumatra, West Java, Central Java,
Kalimantan and the eastern islands.
In the next few years, at least five cellular systems will be
adopted in Indonesia. Three existing systems are currently run by
seven operators. The three existing systems are the global system
for mobile communications (GSM), the advanced mobile phone
service (AMPS) and the Nordic mobile telephone (NMT).
GSM is run by three operators PT Telkomsel, PT Satelindo and
PT Excelcomindo of PT Telekomindo Primabhakti; AMPS is also run
by three firms PT Komselindo, PT Metrosel and PT Telesera of
Telekomindo. PT Mobisel is the operator of NMT.
As regulated by the country's telecommunications law, any
basic telecommunications service operations have to involve
state-owned providers. Hence, Telkom has stakes in each of the
existing cellular operators.
Telkom has 42.72 percent shares in Telkomsel, 22.5 percent in
Satelindo, 20.17 percent in Metrosel, 35 percent in Komselindo,
25 percent in Mobisel and 10 percent in Telekomindo. (icn)