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Indosat, Nokia Siemens ink deal to boost network

Indonesia’s second largest cell phone operator, PT Indosat, has signed a three-year contract with vendor Nokia Siemens Networks to modernize networks spread across three islands — Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan

Mariel Grazella (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Thu, October 25, 2012

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Indosat, Nokia Siemens ink deal to boost network

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ndonesia’s second largest cell phone operator, PT Indosat, has signed a three-year contract with vendor Nokia Siemens Networks to modernize networks spread across three islands — Java, Sumatra and Kalimantan.

Harald Preiss, the head of the customer team at Nokia Siemens, said that the deal involved network upgrades that would enable Indosat to provide third generation (3G) mobile broadband on the 900 megahertz (MHZ) frequency, a frequency known for its ample coverage and capacity.

“The 900 MHZ frequency provides two-and-a-half times the coverage and 130 percent more speed than mobile broadband running on the 2100 MHZ frequency,” he said.

Mobile broadband services traditionally run on higher frequencies, such as the 2100 MHZ frequency. Coverage and capacity decreases as broadband services move up the frequency level, meaning that consumers are left with slower mobile broadband connections.

The Communications and Information Ministry recently granted the first ever license to conduct 3G services over the 900 MHZ frequency to Indosat in August.

Following the granting of the license, Indosat has since upgraded its networks in Bukittinggi and Padang, West Sumatra, to enable 3G broadband services on the 900 MHZ frequency.

Hans C. Moritz, the director and chief technology officer at Indosat, said that the modernization of the networks meant high data speeds for subscribers in West Sumatra.

“The reach of High Speed Packet Access [HSPA] in rural areas as well as indoors in urban centers would receive a significant boost,” he said.

Adrian Prasanto, spokesman for Indosat, added that the company chose West Sumatra to roll out 3G services on the 900 MHZ frequency given that the province was still lacking 3G broadband services.

“We see potential in education and in small and medium enterprises in West Sumatra,” he said.

Toward the middle of the year, Indosat has at least 20,000 base transceiver stations (BTS) spread across Indonesia, and has more than 52 million subscribers in the country.

However, enabling 3G networks has become crucial for cell phone operators as an increasing number of Indonesians consume data.

Broadband subscribers are expected to number 17 million in 2014, more than double the number of subscribers in 2010.

The government itself has incorporated the improvement of broadband services into the Masterplan for the Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesia’s Economic Development (MP3EI) — the country’s development road map toward 2025.

Preiss further said that cities and urban areas in these provinces would receive priority in the roll out of improved 3G broadband services.

He added that Indosat was globally a key client for the company and that Indonesia fell in the top three markets in the Asia Pacific region, following China and Japan.

Asia Pacific is the foremost sales contributor for Nokia Siemens, chipping in ¤1.2 billion (US$1.55 billion) to the ¤3.5 billion in net sales booked in the third quarter of 2012.

“There’s very good growth here,” he said, adding that the fast adoption rates of social networks, such as Facebook, has spurred the demand for broadband services, a healthy.

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