SK Planet Co., an affiliate of South Korea’s top mobile carrier SK Telecom Co., is seeking to launch mobile and online services in Indonesia as part of an effort to tap into the country’s growing number of mobile and Internet users, industry sources said Tuesday.
SK Planet has recently agreed with Indonesian mobile carrier PT XL Axiata Tbk to set up a joint venture for mobile and online services there, according to the sources.
SK Planet and the Indonesian mobile operator each will invest $9.15 million in the joint venture, the sources said. PT XL Axiata Tbk provides mobile phone services and offers various types of telecommunication services.
The sources said the joint venture’s business has not yet been decided, but it is expected to be engaged in offering navigation services, online shopping, online auction and other online services.
Indonesia is the world’s fourth-largest mobile phone market with 210 million subscribers in 2011.
In December last year, SK Planet also launched a joint venture in Indonesia to provide music and video streaming and unlimited download services via the Internet.
A joint venture with Telkom Indonesia, called PT MelOn Indonesia, provides special digital music services for Telkom subscribers with unlimited song selection.
SK Telecom has provided a mobile music portal service called MelOn in South Korea since 2004. MelOn is a wired and wireless music service that allows users to enjoy music virtually anytime and anywhere using a portable MP3 player, a PC or a mobile phone. (Yonhap News)
