Dear Editor,
I noted with interest the Clovis cartoon in Jamaica Observer of Thursday, December 11, 2014, and I wish to make perfectly clear that I never said "Digicel could scale back Caribbean investment" as portrayed. What I did say as reported by Sunday Observer: "We want to ensure that there's an appropriate, level playing field put in place, as there was in mobile, to encourage investment and make sure that we're not going to be blindsided by monopolistic behaviour."
Both of these comments referred to future investment by Digicel in the cable TV/broadband sectors and did not refer to the mobile sector, where we continue and will continue to invest vast amounts of money and, to date, we have invested over US$1 billion building out our networks and facilities.
When the mobile sector was opened up to competition in 2001, Minister Phillip Paulwell ensured that the appropriate legislation and regulatory framework was put in place to ensure that there was a healthy and vibrant competitive market, the benefits of which included the introduction of cutting-edge technology, affordable handsets and a 40-50 per cent reduction in calling rates.
Prior to the announcement of the proposed acquisition of Flow by Cable & Wireless, Digicel entered the fixed broadband and cable TV markets in Jamaica through our acquisition of the Telstar Cable Company, which has 5,000 customers in Kingston and Portmore. This compares to Flow's 125,000 customers across Jamaica.
We need to invest a lot of money in this new business to upgrade the fibre that's already there. Our plan is to expand Telstar's network to more areas in Jamaica and introduce fibre-to-the-home, which will provide ultra-fast home broadband and world-class entertainment services.
We firmly believe that we can bring an outstanding cable TV and fixed broadband experience to the people of Jamaica and provide real choice.
However, it is difficult for us to push ahead with investment in fibre-to-the-home and other service areas new to us without knowing that the appropriate safeguards and regulations will be put in place to ensure competition will be maintained if the proposed Flow/Columbus acquisition goes ahead.
The proposed merger of our two competitors would mean that a single company will control all four submarine cables that carry all international calls, Internet and content from the United States to Jamaica. Therefore, we are very concerned about what will happen to the prices and the quality of service when international fibre is once again controlled by a monopoly.
Without proper regulations, pushing ahead with investments in areas in which the proposed merger would result in virtual monopolies would be like buying a supermarket which is supplied by a single farmer who controls all the food. We wouldn't be able to determine what prices we will get from that single farmer, what the quality of those goods will be, or when we will get those goods.
To be clear, Digicel, like the other Internet service providers in Jamaica, has always rented these fibre services from our competitors. It used to be very expensive to do so, but when Flow brought competition to the market the prices of these services fell significantly. This is why so many more Jamaicans are now able to afford and get Internet services.
Now, we want to ensure that there's an appropriate, level playing field put in place, as there was in mobile, to encourage investment and to ensure that neither we, nor the people of Jamaica, are blindsided by monopolistic behaviour.
We know that the Office of Utilities Regulations and the Fair Trading Commission are currently reviewing the potential impact of the monopolies that will be created in landline, fixed broadband, and cable TV services, where the merged entity would have market shares of 99, 99 and 83 per cent, respectively. We are encouraged by this, and we are hopeful that appropriate measures will be taken to facilitate a vibrant competitive market in landline, fixed broadband and cable TV services.
Colm Delves
CEO, Digicel Group
Digicel: An appropriate, level playing field...that's what we said
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I noted with interest the Clovis cartoon in Jamaica Observer of Thursday, December 11, 2014, and I wish to make perfectly clear that I never said "Digicel could scale back Caribbean investment" as portrayed. What I did say as reported by Sunday Observer: "We want to ensure that there's an appropriate, level playing field put in place, as there was in mobile, to encourage investment and make sure that we're not going to be blindsided by monopolistic behaviour."
Both of these comments referred to future investment by Digicel in the cable TV/broadband sectors and did not refer to the mobile sector, where we continue and will continue to invest vast amounts of money and, to date, we have invested over US$1 billion building out our networks and facilities.
When the mobile sector was opened up to competition in 2001, Minister Phillip Paulwell ensured that the appropriate legislation and regulatory framework was put in place to ensure that there was a healthy and vibrant competitive market, the benefits of which included the introduction of cutting-edge technology, affordable handsets and a 40-50 per cent reduction in calling rates.
Prior to the announcement of the proposed acquisition of Flow by Cable & Wireless, Digicel entered the fixed broadband and cable TV markets in Jamaica through our acquisition of the Telstar Cable Company, which has 5,000 customers in Kingston and Portmore. This compares to Flow's 125,000 customers across Jamaica.
We need to invest a lot of money in this new business to upgrade the fibre that's already there. Our plan is to expand Telstar's network to more areas in Jamaica and introduce fibre-to-the-home, which will provide ultra-fast home broadband and world-class entertainment services.
We firmly believe that we can bring an outstanding cable TV and fixed broadband experience to the people of Jamaica and provide real choice.
However, it is difficult for us to push ahead with investment in fibre-to-the-home and other service areas new to us without knowing that the appropriate safeguards and regulations will be put in place to ensure competition will be maintained if the proposed Flow/Columbus acquisition goes ahead.
The proposed merger of our two competitors would mean that a single company will control all four submarine cables that carry all international calls, Internet and content from the United States to Jamaica. Therefore, we are very concerned about what will happen to the prices and the quality of service when international fibre is once again controlled by a monopoly.
Without proper regulations, pushing ahead with investments in areas in which the proposed merger would result in virtual monopolies would be like buying a supermarket which is supplied by a single farmer who controls all the food. We wouldn't be able to determine what prices we will get from that single farmer, what the quality of those goods will be, or when we will get those goods.
To be clear, Digicel, like the other Internet service providers in Jamaica, has always rented these fibre services from our competitors. It used to be very expensive to do so, but when Flow brought competition to the market the prices of these services fell significantly. This is why so many more Jamaicans are now able to afford and get Internet services.
Now, we want to ensure that there's an appropriate, level playing field put in place, as there was in mobile, to encourage investment and to ensure that neither we, nor the people of Jamaica, are blindsided by monopolistic behaviour.
We know that the Office of Utilities Regulations and the Fair Trading Commission are currently reviewing the potential impact of the monopolies that will be created in landline, fixed broadband, and cable TV services, where the merged entity would have market shares of 99, 99 and 83 per cent, respectively. We are encouraged by this, and we are hopeful that appropriate measures will be taken to facilitate a vibrant competitive market in landline, fixed broadband and cable TV services.
Colm Delves
CEO, Digicel Group
Digicel: An appropriate, level playing field...that's what we said
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