Telkomsel’s Investment in Gojek Is Key to Stay Competitive in Global Stage: Economist

Jakarta. Recently, there have been a lot of discussions regarding Telkomsel's investment in Indonesia's ride-hailing decacorn Gojek, now known as GoTo Gojek Indonesia, after a record-breaking merger with local e-commerce giant Tokopedia.
It is interesting to see this from an economic and investment perspective, as the global telecommunication sector is facing many challenges with voice and message revenue continuing to decline.
On the other hand, Indonesia's internet economy continues to swell, reaching $70 billion and signifying an optimistic projection of $146 billion, according to the economy SEA 2021 report by Google, Temasek, and Bain.
Harris Turisno, an economist and member of the House of Representatives Commission VI, overseeing trade, industrial, investment, cooperatives, small and medium scale enterprises, and state-owned enterprises affairs, weighed in on the discussion.
Harris, who is also a working committee member in Indonesia's Stated Owned Enterprise investment in sharing economy company, said Telkomsel's investment in Gojek is necessary to overcome the decline in the voice and message business.
Telkomsel needs to find a new revenue stream to support its sustainable business growth as a telco company. The investment in Gojek, the largest base ride-hailing in Indonesia, brought synergy more than business profit.
Harris stated that the collaboration between these two giant companies could bring social and economic value to the more extensive base. For instance, they could collaborate on a synergy program where Gojek drivers or SMEs use Telkomsel as their provider and provide special packages.
"Telkomsel invested in Gojek at a lower price than [the company's] IPO price," referring to GoTo Gojek Indonesia's Rp 13.7 trillion ($913.9 million) initial public offerings last April.
"It showed that there's a lot of potential growth in the future and unrealized gain or loss in the capital market is part of the business activities," Harris said.
He said many Telkomsel peers in the global market executed this type of investment to stay competitive.
"A sharing economy company like Gojek is not for a short-term but long-term business plan as it's not only considering gain or loss but sustainable growth that will support company fundamentally and continue to contribute to the Indonesian economy," Harris said.
Tags: Keywords:POPULAR READS
Tripar Multivision to Acquire 30% Stake in B-Universe
The acquisition would be preceded by rigorous legal and financial due diligence.Indonesia, Korea Bolster E-Government Partnership
This year also marks the golden anniversary of Indonesia-Korea's ties.Spat over Visas for Indian Asian Games Athletes Sparks Diplomatic Row
Three women wushu athletes from India's eastern Arunachal Pradesh were given visas instead of Asian Games badges.Indonesia Builds Cutting-Edge Football Training Camp in Nusantara, Partly Funded by FIFA
The ultimate design will encompass five football fields, a futsal court, an indoor training facility, and even a beach football field.KB Bukopin’s KBstar Makes It Easier for Customers to Make Transactions
KB Bukopin has recently launched its mobile banking platform KBstar, which integrates the bank’s mobile banking, SMS banking, and Wokee.Popular Tag
Most Popular

