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elecommunication service providers are racing to expand their market share by introducing high-speed 4G internet access to customers in a bid to capitalize on the growing number of smartphone users in the country.

Largest telecommunications operator Telkomsel plans to increase the number of its subscribers using smartphones to 75 million by the end of this year to generate more revenue from the high-speed internet service.

Telkomsel general manager for device bundling and customization strategy Basuki Ebtayani said in order to meet the target, Telkomsel would encourage subscribers to upgrade their non-4G SIM cards to 4G capable ones at customer care offices and promotion events or order the SIM cards through its website.

Telkomsel has 72 million smartphone subscribers as of September, accounting for 45 percent of its total 159.7 million subscribers.

Telkomsel runs 4G LTE services in 100 cities of Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Bali, Nusa Tenggara and Papua since December 2014.

More than half of Indonesia’s 250 million population are internet users. According to a 2016 survey by the Indonesian Internet Service Providers Association (APJII), there are 132.7 million internet users in Indonesia, and almost 50 percent of them access the internet from their smartphones.

Indonesia is projected to be home to the fourth-largest online population in the world with 215 million people connected by 2020, according to a joint study by Google and Singaporean investment company Temasek.

“We want to focus on 4G by migrating existing [non-4G] SIM cards to 4G,” Basuki said following the signing of a partnership agreement with Chinese phone maker Huawei recently.

Under the cooperation agreement, Telkomsel will provide a free 4G 12 gigabytes (GB) data plan for six months, along with 3,000 text messages and 3,000 minutes to all buyers of Huawei’s new 4G/LTE smartphones priced at less than of Rp 3 million (US$224.72).

Huawei Devices Indonesia sales director Lo Khing Seng said that collaboration was expected to expand its market share and increase its sales.

“We both have similar intentions to reach a bigger market. Our business volume [will increase], which is in line with Telkomsel’s target to switch from 3G to 4G,” Seng said.

Telkomsel also formed a partnership with South Korean technology giant Samsung in August and Chinese smartphone vendor Oppo in September to provide various 4G-capable smartphones at a certain price.

Telkomsel, a subsidiary of stated-owned telecommunications and internet provider Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), is the biggest contributor to Telkom’s revenue.

Telkom’s revenue amounted to Rp 86.19 trillion in the first nine months of the year, 73 percent of which came from Telkomsel. The rest came from IndiHome and WiFi.id.

Telkomsel reaped net profit of Rp 21.03 trillion in the January to September period, an increase of 27.3 percent from the same period in 2015.

Meanwhile, 4G LTE internet provider BOLT! Is upbeat that it will reach its target of 2.6 million subscribers by the end of the year, as most smartphone users are turning to 4G services.

BOLT! chief product officer Billy Abe said that its expansion would focus on the Greater Jakarta area first, even though the company had a license to provide internet services in Medan, North Sumatra, as well.

As of October, the number of BOLT! customers stands at 2.4 million. (wnd)