W

hen still living in Jakarta, every year I got the new books at the post office (including yellow pages, but not the Niaga book - my last edition is from 1995!).

When moving to BSD in 2005, I got one thin phone book titled Banten with a new phone number. Each consecutive year asking at the Telkom Graha Building, BSD, I was told I was only entitled to the Banten directory, but that it was out of stock.

Asking by phone for information at Infomedia, on Jl. Fatmawati in Jakarta, I was told I could get the books in person but would have to pay for them.

My gosh! BSD-Jl. Fatmawati, what a tour! So, recently I went anyway. (It is near ITC on Jl. Fatmawati, and the house numbers are hopelessly scrambled).

The receptionist asked for my previously paid phone receipts of which had brought all, and then asked what I wanted (all books for the (021) Jakarta area) and she started putting books on the counter.

She stamped my receipts back to the month of June, and I had a stack of phone books.

I hurriedly made my exit because I feared she would ask for money. No, she did not.

At home I scrutinized the books, and here we go:

I had four books on Jakarta (North, West, East and Central Jakarta) the book for South Jakarta was missing. Also the Banten book was not included. Then there was the Yellow Pages and the Niaga book.

I called Infomedia again and asked about the two books not given. I was told these were out of stock and may be still at a warehouse on Jl. Gatot Subroto, Jakarta. I was asked to contact the warehouse manager and ask, so I did. He told me as a-matter-of-fact that he had the books and that I could come and get them. From BSD?

Why? Do you want to have them sent? OK. Here are the details, write them down: bank acc, Bank, which books, name, address and then "what about the delivery costs?"

I said I would pay and asked to tell me the details. Well, the price was Rp 17,000 (US$1.70) per kilogram and assuming the two books were 2 kilograms each I would have to pay Rp 34,000 to the bank and then send him the receipt via fax and he would send the books.

A very competent, clear handling of the case, no? The other side of the coin is that I, as a customer, pay more than Rp. 400.000 per year in fees alone, and feel entitled to get the basics from this business, and the information required for this service (aka the phone book) brought to my doorstep, free of charge, or at least easily available near my domicile.

Some serious rethinking at Infomedia should start together with Telkom!

In other countries, if you ask you can get the whole set for your local area delivered to your door by postal, at no cost. Otherwise they are provided at all post offices and they take your old books back to be recycled.