A recently signed partnership agreement between connectivity provider Dwi Tunggal Putra (DTP) and SES Networks is likely to boost access to telecommunications for residents of 158 villages in remote parts of Indonesia’s West Java Province.
Thanks to this initiative, says SES, these residents will be able to access crucial online resources such as educational content, as well as unlocking the potential of the region’s digital economy.
Under the multi-year agreement, DTP, whose telecommunications services include internet, data centres and VSAT networks, will be using high-throughput capacity on the SES-12 satellite to support the ministry of communication and information technology’s Smart Village project and fulfil the government’s universal service obligation (USO).
The Smart Village project, spearheaded by Indonesia’s telecommunication and information accessibility agency, Badan Aksesibilitas Telekomunikasi dan Informasi (BAKTI), aims to bridge the digital divide and bring e-government and other essential services to underserved rural communities of Indonesia.
SES Networks is already serving the BAKTI Leased Capacity Project using the SES-12 ground station in Indonesia.
Unequal access to the internet remains an issue in Indonesia, with 4G still not having reached over 12,000 villages across the country. That said, Indonesia’s digital economy is already the largest in Southeast Asia and is expected to almost triple by 2025. Bridging the urban-rural digital divide will, says SES, help to further accelerate this trend, while bringing more equitable economic growth to rural communities across Indonesia.
In this vast country with its 17,000-island archipelago, SES suggests that satellites are likely to be the most cost-effective way to bridge that gap.
DTP has contracted substantial capacity on SES-12, a powerful high throughput satellite in a geostationary orbit. SES-12 covers the Middle East and Asia Pacific region with 72 high throughput user spot beams, as well as six regional beams.
Tailored for data-heavy applications, SES-12 provides cost-effective solutions for broadcasters, content operators, mobile network operators, internet service providers, enterprise, maritime, aeronautical and government customers.