Competition leads to handset affordability

Mobile phone operators are increasing in number. Today, there are eight GSM and three CDMA operators. Rakhmat Junaedi, corporate services director of Bakrie Telecom, reminded operators to be more cautious after the government put into effect in April 2008 the new interconnection rate, which has caused the retail tariff for subscribers to decline by 40 percent. Consumers are the target of bombastic promotion campaigns. Indosat says that you only need Rp 1 to make a phone call, while Excelcomindo offers free calls for 24 hours. Every operator has to be extra creative and innovative to lure new subscribers. Previously there were only three operators that provided this facility, namely Telkomsel, Indosat and XL. Recently, Natrindo with its Axis brand jumped onto the bandwagon. / The Jakarta Post, pg 17