Jakarta, August 18th, 2020. PT XL Axiata Tbk (XL Axiata) continues its strong commitment to supporting national development in all fields through the provision of reliable telecommunication and data networks. XL Axiata management reiterated this commitment in welcoming the 75th Independence Day of Indonesia, by showing a number of real support programs that the company has achieved so far. One of them is the construction of a massive data network that has now been able to provide access to the public in various areas, including remote areas that previously had no access to the internet at all.
Acting Chief Technology Officer of XL Axiata, I Gede Darmayusa said, “XL Axiata's 4G data network has currently reached more than 450 cities/regencies in almost all provinces of Indonesia. The total length of the fiber-optic backbone network reaches more than 45 thousand kilometers. Every year, our network coverage greatly expands and will increasingly reach people in remote areas. In running this business, we also always strive to do our best to support the government's vision of accelerating national development. We will continue to expand the network development, including reaching more difficult and remote areas in Eastern Indonesia."
The capacity of XL Axiata’s data network gradually increases in line with the increase in data service traffic every year. Until the first 6 months of 2020, data traffic has increased by more than 40% compared to the same period last year. The network capacity that has been increased by 2x will be able to serve an increase in data traffic since people undergo work and study activities from home to avoid the spread of Covid-19.
The total number of BTS that now support services to all customers are over 133,000 BTS, 43,000 of them registered as 4G / LTE BTS. In addition, the number of BTS increases every year in line with the implementation of programs to improve network quality and expand service areas. Some of these BTS are in very remote locations in border areas with other countries or in the outer islands of Indonesia. In collaboration with the Ministry of Communications and Informatics, XL Axiata has also built BTS, facilitating disadvantaged areas through the universal service obligation (USO) scheme. Until this year, more than 350 USO BTS areas have been built.
Gede adds, as a telecommunication and data service operator, XL Axiata plays a strategic role in supporting the transformation of Indonesian society into the digital era. In addition to building a data network, XL Axiata adapts a variety of the latest and most advanced network technologies that will add to the benefits of network existence as well as answer the needs of the community. One of XL Axiata’s current focuses is preparing for 5G services. With 5G, there will be even greater benefits of digital technology that can be offered to the Indonesian people, which at the same time will also be able to support development programs.
One of the preparations made by XL Axiata towards 5G is network fiberization. This fiberization simultaneously supports the improvement of the quality of the data network in each area, as one of the benefits of this process is that the transport network capacity becomes larger. Through several Digirace events in several cities, fiberization has been able to improve network quality to support a number of data services with large capacities, such as live video streaming.
VoLTE Services
Complementing digital services with the latest technology, XL Axiata's network is also ready to serve Voice over LTE (VoLTE) services. For the initial stage, XL Axiata network is ready to support VOLTE services in Jakarta and Medan. Furthermore, XL Axiata will continue to expand to other areas in line with the preparation of its supporting infrastructure network. For network readiness to support this VoLTE service, XL Axiata is working with Ericsson and Huawei as technology partners for radio and core networks.
VoLTE or Voice Over LTE is a voice or telephone service over the LTE (Long Term Evolution) data network. With VoLTE voice services get better where the voice quality is crystal clear. Apart from that, the connection speed is very short. Therefore, XL Axiata is optimistic that VoLTE service will be a feature of the voice service of choice for customers.
Gede said, “Gradually, XL Axiata VoLTE services will be in thirteen cities, in which we will continue to expand until the end of 2020. XL Axiata has ensured that its network has met the quality criteria set for deploying VoLTE services, both in terms of radio, transport, and also the core. VoLTE network optimization has also been carried out to ensure all key features can be run, such as VoLTE to VoLTE, VoLTE to non-VoLTE (2G and 3G voice services), and vice versa, including Video over LTE (ViLTE) services.”
In this early stage, VoLTE service is supported by more than 3,000 XL Axiata 4G BTS spread across Central Jakarta, South Jakarta, East Jakarta, West Jakarta, North Jakarta, and Medan. Currently, XL Axiata is preparing BTS in other cities to support VoLTE services at a later stage. In order for customers to enjoy excellent voice service quality, XL Axiata needs to perform a thorough network optimization so that it is truly ready for VoLTE service. In the future, all 4G / LTE BTS are prepared to support VoLTE services.
The Record Of The 17 Hours Live Stream For Independence Day
To prove the readiness of XL Axiata’s data network to accommodate various types of digital data services, XL Axiata held a special event in the form of celebrating Independence Day by breaking the record for the longest live Youtube broadcast, lasting for 17 hours. Number 17 refers to August 17 as the anniversary of the proclamation of the Indonesian Independence Day. This will then be in Museum Rekor Indonesia’s records.
This event is XL Axiata’s way of proving the quality of its internet data network. With 17 hours of non-stop live video streaming, XL Axiata proves the quality of the network that is able to support heavy services such as video streaming for a very long duration. Not only is it uninterrupted, but the resolution and sound quality are crystal clear. Apart from that, within the 17 hours duration, there was also a live stream conducted by associates in some remote areas covering the August 17 celebration ceremony, to prove that our 4G network also has a very wide coverage.
During those 17 hours, a number of agendas were carried out by live streaming. Starting from talk shows, music performances, e-sports matches, standup comedy, to culinary shows, including the submission of a MURI record certificate for XL Axiata.
In addition to this record, XL Axiata will also set a new record for the Most Nuanced Photo Competition through Instagram, totaling 4,880 twibbons, as a form of XL Axiata’s support for the theme of the 75th Independence Celebration, namely Advanced Indonesia.