After latest services disruption:
Digicel urges full freeing up of telecommunications market
Guyana Chronicle
May 9, 2007
DIGICEL, the fastest-growing mobile telecommunications operator in the Caribbean and new entrant to South and Central America, has called for the liberalisation of the mobile communications market and the granting of an international licence to route international calls into and out of Guyana to interested operators.
Since Sunday, the disruption to the Americas II cable has meant that the people of Guyana are experiencing difficulties in making and receiving international calls and all communications providers in Guyana, including Digicel, are forced to route international calls through the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company Limited (GT&T).
Digicel, in a statement yesterday, said this places a huge reliance on the Americas II cable that GT&T uses.
“By fully liberalising the telecommunications market, it offers Digicel and other operators the opportunity to invest in alternative infrastructure that will ensure that Guyana and its people are not so reliant on the Americas II cable for international services,” Digicel said.
Digicel Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Tim Bahrani, noted that over the last few months, Guyana has successfully hosted the Rio Group summit and Cricket World Cup 2007 matches which has “really put Guyana on the map in terms of a country to do business with”.
“It is imperative, however, that Guyana builds on these successes and liberalises the Guyana telecommunications market and end all existing monopolies in this sector,” he posited.
“Digicel is ready to make a considerable investment in developing an alternative solution to connect Guyana to the world so that, if another fault develops with the Americas II cable, disruption in service does not isolate Guyana and its people from the international community,” Bharani said.
Digicel launched operations in Guyana on February 14 this year with a state-of-the art network, 24/7 Customer Care and a wide range of innovative products and services.
The firm yesterday also reiterated its commitment to becoming “the people’s choice of mobile operator in Guyana”.
GT&T on Monday said it was making a significant investment to bring some relief to customers affected by the disruption from Sunday of the Americas 11 cable, which affected Internet, international data and voice services.
The company, in a statement, said it is acquiring, at a cost, additional redundant satellite facilities from Intelsat and had begun installing equipment at Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara to prepare the physical network to accommodate these facilities.
The company said its Internet, international data and voice services were affected when the cable developed a fault at 05:45h Sunday in the ocean off French Guiana.
This is the third time in four years that damage off Cayenne has affected Guyanese customers, GT&T said, adding that customers in Suriname have been similarly affected.
The company said the French authorities confirmed Monday morning that the damaged part of the cable had been located. It had been squashed 15 kilometres off the eastern shore of that country.
“Their engineers have further advised that with the power supply in the cable affected, and with a ship to be mobilised, it might take up to twenty one days for repairs to be completed,” GT&T said.
The company said its officials have been impressing upon their French counterparts the inconvenience being experienced by Guyanese customers and the need for urgency in having the repairs and restoration of service.
“Out of concern for its customers, though, the company has proceeded with the alternative arrangements, and placed the order with Intelsat for the facilities,” GT&T said.
“The turn up of additional redundant satellite capacity will ensure zero disruption to outbound and inbound international voice services, zero disruption to selected Internet and data services, and some degradation in some Internet services,” the company said, adding that these customers can expect to experience a 50 per cent reduction in bandwidth.
GT&T said it regrets the inconvenience being experienced and assured its commitment to working with the authorities in Cayenne to have service restored as soon as practicable.