Even though we have only entered week three of the year, there’s been no lack of excitement in Indonesia’s Internet scene. From companies who have announced funding rounds to collaborations and partnerships to expand business reach. In short, 2013 will certainly be a very interesting year for the Indonesian Internet industry.
Between 2010 and 2011 it would be fair to say that the industry was booming in that a large number of people built Internet companies, create cool products and sought investors who would fund their projects. 2012 however was a sobering slap in the face of companies that failed to sustain themselves financially.
Reality hits.
What then of 2013? What kinds of businesses would be of interest this year? We spoke to Danny Wirianto, co-founder of MindTalk, who shared with us seven areas that he thinks worth paying attention to this year.
Logistics
E-commerce can be considered the most inviting business proposition for investors this year especially in Indonesia, but Danny sees an opportunity in a different side of that industry, logistics. He’s observed a trend that is showing up in major cities across the country that are cash rich but suffer from time crisis. Time crisis because while the people have become busier and more productive, they’re suffering from traffic congestions in major cities which puts a strain on their already busy schedule.
Supported by the relatively rapid economic growth, many Indonesian consumers are becoming cash rich, especially the middle class. Some of the indications include the growth of sales of private vehicles and financial products (insurance, investment, deposits, etc) in the country’s major cities.
These middle class consumers are the ones that will drive demand for logistical services because they will be willing to spend a little extra to save time. E-commerce sites will also be able to take advantage of these services to maximize online shopping experience in terms of delivery of goods.
Mobile commerce
The trend in mobile in Indonesia has been very clear in the last few years. Dozens of foreign companies have set up shop to acquire access to Indonesia’s massive mobile market which grows rapidly every year. Wirianto sees mobile as one of the trends that will remain positive this year. According to him, growth numbers are already high but it is also supported by the ingrained mobile culture among Indonesian consumers.
The trend will shift from simply consuming mobile content to other types of habits such as shopping. Anyone who can execute a great mobile shipping experience will be able to achieve an incredible traction.
Online video
Another trend that Wirianto sees is the demand and appetite from Indonesian consumers for content based on entertainment and information. These kinds of contents cannot simply be presented through text, which is where video will achieve its success.
“Content distribution such as educational information can be very useful in Indonesia,” Wirianto said. Several local companies have made attempts to execute this idea but they have yet to achieve the potential traction.
Digital music
Apple didn’t simply enter the market and introduce iTunes Store to Indonesia without any reason, and the primary cause is clearly the market demand for local legal music content which is still impractical to obtain. Wirianto believes that local companies such as Kincir, Importmusik, Langit Musik, Melon, and others, have strong foundations and a large market. However, it all comes back to how they execute.
Wirianto also sees a highly competitive market with International players like Apple and Spotify going head to head with local companies.
Digital customer service
The increasing strength of the local digital culture and social media among Indonesian consumers, Wirianto sees a large opportunity for the customer service segment which focuses on the digital service and social media. The trend going forward reveals that consumers enjoy interacting with companies through online service such as Twitter and Facebook rather than calling the consumer hotline.
“A number of companies such as mobile carriers and e-commerce will receive a great value out of something like this,” he added.
Real time
Back to the issue of traffic congestion and Internet culture among Indonesian consumers, undoubtedly real time information has had a great demand. Services such as Waze, Lewatmana, and Infoll, which focus on delivering real-time traffic data are considered valuable for consumers.
Similar services such as train and flight schedules, even banking information must be executed in real time. Wirianto again said that Indonesian consumers suffer from a crisis of time as they value their time and always want to have the most up to date information at hand.
Interest-based
Looking at the companies growing rapidly across Indonesia, Wirianto says that Indonesian content right now is full of information which are mostly locally irrelevant. This is why services which will filter content based on relevance or interest groups will be popular in Indonesia.
MindTalk, which is head by Wirianto focuses on the demand in this particular segment. Other services such as Path, KakaoTalk, WhatsApp and BlackBerry Messenger also started out from the demand for filtered and grouped information.
Disclaimer: MindTalk, Kincir, and DailySocial are part of the same group of companies.
