INDOSAT POSTS RP1.47 TRILLION NET PROFIT

Jakarta, Oct 21 (ANTARA) - State telecommunications operator PT Indosat Tbk said on Tuesday its net profit in the first nine months of this year rose 1.9 percent to Rp1.47 trillion from Rp1.445 trillion in the same period last year.
Operating income in the January-September 2008 period grew 14.9 percent to Rp1.36 trillion from Rp1.188 trillion in the same period last year, the company said in a press statement.
The operating income consisted of Rp1.026 trillion from cellular phone services, Rp2.12 billion from fixed data income and Rp1.301 billion from fixed telephone services.
Compared to the corresponding period last year, the income from cellular phone services rose 11.8 percent, fixed data income 35.3 percent and fixed telephone services 11.7 percent.
The statement said the company's earning before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBTIDA) in the first nine months of 2008 rose 7.4 percent to Rp6.718 billion from Rp6.258 billion in the same period last year.
As per September 30, 2008, Indosat had 35,473,336 subscribers, up 61 percent in the month ended on September 30, 2007. But its average rate per users (ARPU) fell 25.9 percent to Rp39,574 in the January-September 2008 period from Rp53,421 in the same period last year.
Indosat President Director Johnny Swandi Sjam said during the fasting month of Ramadhan, the call traffic using Indosat networks was very high, leading to a sharp increase in the company's operating income in the third quarter of this year.***2***