Cellular service provider Sampoerna Telekomunikasi Indonesia has secured government approval to start operating 4G LTE technology in April, moving its service from the CDMA network it has been using until now, to cater to growing demand in the country's remote areas.
Phones that use CDMA, or code-division multiple access, have several limitations, which also make it much more difficult to enable international roaming.
"We are currently preparing the infrastructure and products to market and introduce our 4G LTE network with the same brand name, Ceria," Sampoerna Telekomunikasi Indonesia chief executive Larry Ridwan said in a statement received by the Jakarta Globe on Thursday (23/02).
He said the LTE network will operate on the 450-megahertz band, which is often used by global operators, and that it has a significant cost benefit in that it can cover large areas with dispersed populations.
Larry said radio signals on the Ceria network will be accessible over more than 100 kilometers and this is ideal for regions that are difficult to reach and therefore underserviced, but which have high demand for connectivity.
Beside retail consumers, the company is also targeting corporate clients in remote areas, such as companies operating in the logistic, mining and agricultural sectors.
The company sees the 4G LTE network as a good way to expand its coverage in remote areas, which can improve living conditions and economic opportunities of people in those regions.
Sampoerna Telekomunikasi Indonesia is part of conglomerate Sampoerna Strategic Group. The company was relaunched as Ceria after Sampoerna acquired mobile service provider Mandara Selular Indonesia in 2005.
The company said it is the only operator in the country that operates on the 450-MHz frequency CDMA network. It provides a range of services, including voice and wireless broadband, in Sumatra, Java, Bali and Lombok.
Source: http://jakartaglobe.id/business/sampoerna-telekomunikasi-to-move-from-cdma-to-4g-in-april/
