Telkom subsidiary to provide VoIP service

Telkom subsidiary to provide VoIP service

JAKARTA (JP): State-owned domestic telephone operator PT
Telkom introduced a new service on Thursday that will enable
voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) providers to use its network.

The Telkom Domestic Clearinghouse (TDC), established jointly
by Telkom and PT Vasindo TeleInternet under a profit-sharing
scheme, will provide Internet Protocol Bandwidth for Internet
Service Providers (ISP) to allow internet users use the VoIP
service, TDC director of operations Bambang Jokoraharjo
explained.

He added that calling card operators and telecommunications
kiosks could also provide the VoIP service to the public through
TDC.

Bambang said that next year TDC would set up operations in
eight major cities in Indonesia and would gradually expand to 26
provincial capitals throughout the country.

The first eight cities to be served were Jakarta, Surabaya in
East Java, Denpasar in Bali, Medan in North Sumatra, Makasar in
South Sulawesi, Bandung in West Java, Semarang in Central Java,
and Yogyakarta, he said.

Denny Hutapea, one of TDC's directors, said that operations in
the first eight cities would involve an investment of
approximately $3 million to $4 million, and over the first three
to four years of operations investment would total between $10
million to $20 million.

"Telkom realizes that in a situation where people are still
recovering from the impact of the economic crisis, they need a
cheaper form of communication, such as that which VoIP will
provide," Bambang said.

He explained that one of the reasons why VoIP was cheaper than
conventional telephone calls was because one telephone line,
connected through Internet protocol, could service up to eight
calls at the same time.

"Of course the quality, then, would not be as good as calls
made via Telkom's conventional lines, but it can be much
cheaper," Bambang said.

Denny Hutapea claimed that with VoIP, a domestic long-distance
call to Surabaya from Jakarta could cost as little as Rp 1,000
(US$1.05) per minute.

"We must admit that right now Indonesia's telephone charges
are some of the most expensive in the world. It's a lot cheaper
to call into the country than out of it," he said.

TDC, however, would not be providing services for VoIP, but
would charge its customers (VoIP providers) a per-minute
commission.

"We are here to provide the backbone, the toll road so to
speak, for others to develop the service," Bambang said, adding
that there were about 100 ISPs currently operating in the
country.

Denny said that for local connections, TDC would use the
Telkom network, while for international connections it would
cooperate with international telecommunications operators like
AT&T, ITXC, and Rapidlink.

"For international connectivity we could use satellites, frame
relay, or international private leased circuits (IPLC)," he said.
(tnt)