Sumbawa, 26 August 2019. PT XL Axiata Tbk (XL Axiata) continues improving customer’s fast internet and data service comfort in West Nusa Tenggara. One of the regions the company is focusing on is Sumbawa Island. Since it was first available in 2017, the XL Axiata 4G LTE network has experienced continuous expansion to other areas in the region located east of Lombok Island. Now, 74% of the 180,000 customers in the region have 4G access.
XL Axiata East Region Group Head Mochamad Imam Mualim said, “XL Axiata’s 4G service has received positive response from locals in Sumbawa. Evident with continued traffic growth of more than 95% within the last year. Besides continued growth from customer usage, significant growth can also be seen from the number of customers. Sumbawa can be considered as an area where data service usage growth is beyond the average of all West Nusa Tenggara.”
Imam Mualim added that Sumbawa citizens’ level of data and digital service knowledge to boost productivity continues to rise. Especially with Sumbawa’s growing popularity as a tourist destination due to social media usage and various digital information channels which continues to increase its tourism potentials. Thus, XL Axiata did not hesitate to continue expanding its 4G service area to ensure the public can improve their productivity in various sectors, including the regional economy through individual businesses and SMEs.
Meanwhile, XL Axiata Technology Strategy & Architecture Group Head I Gede Darmayusa said there are 700 data BTS (3G/4G) installed, and that new BTS will be added by year-end. XL Axiata 4G LTE network is now available for the public in all cities/regencies or five cities/regencies on the island now have access to XL Axiata 3G/4G data network. The five cities/regencies are Bima City and Regency, West Sumbawa, Dompu, and Sumbawa Besar.
Each of the 4G LTE BTS are spread in the center of the city comprising public areas, governmental complexes, local economic centers, city square, and schools. Some of the residential areas in each city have also become a priority. XL Axiata also continues building networks in tourist areas that have now become a leading sector for Sumbawa, including its popular beaches. In the future, XL Axiata will also continue building networks in islands surrounding Sumbawa with high tourism potentials.
In terms of optic fiber backbone network, it has reached 2,000 kilometers in Sumbawa. By end of 2019, XL Axiata is targeting more optic fiber network of 1,200 kilometers in Sumbawa. Besides improving services in Sumbawa, the fiber network will become the base for XL Axiata’s network infrastructure which covers all the eastern provinces of Indonesia, as well as connecting them with islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok, Kalimantan, and Sulawesi.
In line with the Indonesian government, the telecommunication and data infrastructure development by XL Axiata in Indonesia is part of its support for the government’s development acceleration for underdeveloped regions. Thus, XL Axiata also built and operated a telecommunication network via the government-initiated Universal Service Obligation (USO) via the Ministry of Communications and Informatics in Sumbawa.
XL Axiata operates 8 USO BTS in West Nusa Tenggara: two BTS in Lombok and six BTS in Sumbawa. The Sumbawa USO BTS are located in three regencies: Bima, Sumbawa, West Sumbawa. There are more than 3,000 new customers that have utilized the facility in the area. In West Nusa Tenggara, XL Axiata now owns more than 4,900 BTS, including more than 3,000 data BTS (3G/4G).
XL Axiata continues conducting network expansion and capacity increase in various areas in Indonesia. XL Axiata’s network is now strengthened by more than 127,000 BTS including more than 53,000 3G BTS and more than 37,000 4G BTS. XL Axiata 4G LTE network is also continuously expanded, now available in 408 cities/regencies in Indonesia. XL Axiata is also continuing its fiber network, transmission, backhaul, network upgrade investments, as well as for other network upgrades in order to boost stability, network capacity, data service quality, in line with the continuous data service traffic.
High-speed internet access donation
In order to further introduce the benefits of high-speed internet and data services to improve people’s welfare, XL Axiata also donated data quota for several schools in Sumbawa. As many as 50 high schools/vocational high schools were receivers of the donations, spread in five regencies/cities. The data quota service donation is part of the Gerakan Donasi Kuota (GDK) program which has made it easier to access data service in order to improve education quality in thousands of Indonesian schools.
The Gerakan Donasi Kuota program would hopefully increase public awareness in each XL Axiata operation area on the benefits of high-speed internet and data service for productive businesses, including to improve education quality.
In the GDK program, each school will accept aid comprising 20 GB/month data quota for a year. The aid will also consist of mobile broadband or XL Home router device which provides simultaneous access to 32 smartphones or laptops used by students and teachers.
Data quota for the program is allocated by XL Axiata based on customers’ Xtra Combo quota purchase. For each Xtra Combo quota purchased by a customer, XL Axiata will allocate 25 MB data quota for the quota donation program, which is already included in the package price and tax. The collected data quota will be donated through-out this year. Customers could also donate their data quota independently through UMB *123*888#.