Tech, Digital Media, and Start-ups in Indonesia [INTERVIEW]

When we talk about tech, digital media, and start-ups in Southeast Asia, we cannot pass over Indonesia, the country with a population of 240 million as well as 35 million Facebook users.

This year’s IDBYTE, coined as the largest tech conference in the country, will showcase Indonesia’s tech prowess. One of the brains behind this conference is the media-shy, Yansen Kamto.

Kamto first started his career at advertising agency McCann Erickson where he handled brands like Coca Cola, Unilever, Nestle, HSBC, Telkomsel, and XL Axiata. In June of last year, he resigned from his position as digital account director at Arc Worldwide, a digital arm of Leo Burnett.

He then co-founded a football marketing agency in July 2010 and a social gaming company a month after that. To take on an even more challenging role, he decided to set up IDBYTE together with Shinta W. Dhanuwardoyo from Bubu.com early this year.

We asked him some questions about the tech industry in Indonesia. Here are his answers:

1. How would you describe the digital media and tech scene in Indonesia?

The opportunity is here, the time is now. More people are embracing digital as part of their daily routine now in Indonesia. Obviously, this is a great opportunity for marketers, developers, and business owners. The country is now ready to enter the digital industry.

2. We have seen a lot of start-ups rising in Indonesia. Do you have any thoughts on this?

We have seen several acquisitions of local companies by some global names, like Yahoo! with Koprol, Groupon with Disdus, and most recently Livingsocial with Dealkeren. More and more foreign VCs are watching. Local conglomerates are getting ready too. This is definitely an exciting time for local start-ups. The question now is whether these start-ups are ready to take it to the next level. I personally believe the industry needs a more organized ecosystem to empower the start-ups. A proven business model and a strong marketing plan are essential foundations to stand out.

3. What will be the next tech wave in Indonesia? Is there any specific industry we should watch out for?

I think e-commerce has huge potential given the market size here. If social and local are blended well in the mixture, perhaps it might create the next big thing in Indonesia’s digital industry.