The Reference Interconnection Offer Oral Presentations Get On The Way

Tomorrow a very important consultation will take place. If we were to judge its importance by the lack of coverage provided by the local media,  the  Reference Interconnection Offer Oral Presentation may just be considered one of many routine events which will occur tomorrow in Barbados. For those Barbadians who are interested you should go to the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre tomorrow Friday, June 19th 2009 between 10:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m to support those Intervenors who will be presenting oral presentations. We are pleased to note that once again BU family members Chris Halsall and Roosevelt King (ROK) et al will perform in the role of Intervenor operating in the interest of the PEOPLE.

If we understand the objective of the hearing correctly the outcome of the process should eventually lead to an operationalization of a RIO policy to ensure  local competitive long distance providers – Sunbeach, Blue Communications, and TeleBarabdos who have been trying to purchase the required interconnecting circuits from the Cable & Wireless without success, even through they are clearly defined within the Policy is achieved.

BU would have addressed in an earlier blog some of the issues affecting its non-implementation of key aspects of the RIO as it relates to a standard offer for services which LIME must make available to any and all requesting competitive telephony carriers. Unfortunately, the previous versions lacked a definition for “Outgoing International Call Termination”. This meant that while a carrier could bring calls into Barbados, they were not allowed to take them out.

Are There Barbadians On The C&W Board?

We have followed with keen interest the recent resignations of senior executives at C&W Jamaica, rebranded LIME. Yesterday the Jamaica Gleaner published the most recent resignation of Eduardo Ryan, the CFO of LIME Jamaica which was preceded by Phil Green who was President for just under a year. The usual mundane explanations have been given to explain the resignation but we are sure the BU family agrees that there is more to the two resignations than meets the eye.

Jamaica is the telecommunications market where we have seen Cable and Wireless aka LIME and Digicel duke it out to the full benefit of the consumer post-deregulation. Again we note with interest that a recent request for a 21% increase for landline calls to Digicel mobile phones which was matched by LIME has commanded the immediate attention of Minister of Communications Derrick Smith. The Jamaican press has reported that he has  scheduled a meeting with the two companies to address his concern at the rate hike.

Can the Jamaican telecommunication companies increase rates when they feel like it?

A Case When A LIME Is No Ordinary LIME

It is the Christmas holidays approaching and we were hoping to take a short break from blogging. However the thought of a company which has operated as a monopoly in the Caribbean for so long and has generated unconscionable profits contemplating sending home employees makes a sour taste in our mouths. Cable and Wireless (C&W) aka LIME has been in the Caribbean since the 1880′s. According to C&W 2005 Annual Report the Caribbean was the second most profitable market with a turnover of £550 million which was second only to the United Kingdom’s £1,602 million.

C&W is not you regular company, it is one which has a foundation deeply rooted in the communities of 15 former British colonies.

Any decision to re-brand and downsize by C&W must be viewed not as a simple business transaction. When taken in the context of the collaboration between the respective Caribbean governments leading into the period of deregulation, the region deserves better. One of the key planks of the Barbados economy is its Offshore Sector which is attracted to an efficient telecommunications infrastructure. The current arrogance which is being exhibited by LIME is quickly causing its goodwill accrued over 100 years to dissipate.

We will expand on this blog another time but here is a note from a BU family member who wants to ask LIME a question.

TeleBarbados Upgrades Broadband Solution

The BU family has posted several complaints in recent days to indicate that there has been a drop in broadband service  being delivered by Cable & Wireless aka LIME, and that it has left a sour taste in their mouths. Many Barbadians seem clueless as to what their options are in the circumstances. BU family member Chris Halsall has been like a stuck record in his repeat that Barbadians who are dissatisfied with LIME’s service need to check out the competition. It seems however that one BU family member has achieved some level of success.

Early in the New Year BU proposes to instigate a Boycott LIME Day. At that time we will encourage LIME subscribers in Barbados to protest to LIME in a tangible way i.e. non-payment of bills for one month, transfer  of service where practicable to the competition, send emails and telephone calls to Customer Care/Contact Centres, write to the Public Counsel/Fair Trading Department etc.

In light of the above it was with interest we read a Press Release issued by TeleBarbados today:

…today announced that TeleBarbados, a dominant communication services provider on the island, has deployed the ARRIS WiDOX 700 MHz broadband access solution at multiple locations to deliver high-speed data service to its customers throughout the island…

LIME (Cable & Wireless) Being Squeezed By Scammer: Are Barbadians Being Told The Truth?

Barbadians who read the Nation newspaper yesterday would have learned about a scam where LIME (Cable & Wireless) customers are being targeted by fraudsters. The way the scam works: a LIME customer receives a text or call from a telephone number in the range 00 88213 213505 which could result in the customer being billed up to USD15.00 per minute. LIME (Cable & Wireless) was quick to make it clear that “calls and text messages to these numbers (00 882) will be billed at the applicable international rate.”

In the absence of an investigative media, a Fair Trading Commission (FTC)  which is customer centric and a passive consumer advocacy environment, Barbadians have been left to wonder who are to look after their interest in cases highlighted by this latest scam.

Fortunately some of us have the Internet.

Finally A Company That Makes Cable & Wireless Look Good

Submitted by Adrian Loveridge

I can never understand how a company with the resources (both in terms of capital and human), and that creates such vast profits like Cable and Wireless, or now LIME, can get it so wrong.

I think the facility to pay online using a credit card is wonderful.

It is a pity that certain Government entities and organisations like Barbados Light and Power and the Barbados Water Authority have not yet adopted the practice.

However, I have just paid a selection of Cable and Wireless bills which show the amounts are outstanding in EC$ and thanking me on behalf of Cable and Wireless St. Kitts and Nevis for the payments.

Surely, after such an elaborate launch, with God knows however much of our money spent on it, one of the hundreds of LIME employees or dare I say someone actually in management, checks!

My first instinct was to call the 1 800 quoted on the bills, which I did. But frankly, by the time you enter all the option numbers, wait and then are asked to enter your 12 digit code (or 4 of them in our case),

I just don’t have that amount of time to waste for a fault that is not mine.

Cable & Wireless Woes

Submitted by BU family member RE Engineer

Hey David

RE Engineer here. I am wondering why I am not seeing anything about the extremely poor C&W internet service over the past few weeks and the long outages in some areas. I don’t know if I am extra sensitive to this since my new job requires that I depend heavily on the world wide web but after all the talks about BL&P and the outages etc, I am shocked that no one has come out and spoken about the horribly unreliable service of our very own C&W.

I will be doing certificate by distance education starting next month and I am to start another certification in January, and if this sort of service continues I am not sure how either will work out. I am very understanding when it comes to the limitations of technology etc, but it seems C&W does as it pleases and goes unchecked, and just like BL&P we have no other viable options. Contrary to BL&P is that they blatantly give poor service, without giving any reasons as to why and they constantly rake in millions in profit and continue to downsize as they see fit.

I know of persons all over the island that have been experiencing the same grievances and I read the paper daily and listen to the radio. I am yet to get any explanation as to why.

Regards

RE Engineer

The Fair Trading Commission (FTC) And Access To Information

Posted by Hallam Hope from the Barbados Consumer Watch under Submissions

Gaining access to basic consumer information seems to have more hurdles than one would expect. A few months ago I approached the Fair Trading Commission (FTC) and asked them for a copy of the Terms of Reference (TOR) of the consultants assessing the Price Cap. I also asked for the dates for their work. I wasn’t asking for what they were paying the consultants from taxpayer revenue to tell us some things we could determine for ourselves.

I felt that as a taxpayer I was entitled to know what they were supposed to be doing so I could enhance any submission on the Price Cap, which affects the pockets of the most vulnerable in our society. It seemed quite reasonable. The response was that both items of information requested were “internal” and not available to the public.

Opera Telecom Ltd

I have been following the Opera Telecom phone rigging scandal in the UK and wonder if there is not concern for us here in Barbados. Joanne Nugent, a representative of Opera Interactive (Barbados) Limited has today stated they are separate companies, but when initially asked in July, she replied with a UK fax number and Opera Telecoms UK website address.

According to the CAIPO office in Barbados they are registered under # 27987 dated 28 November 2006. However, the competition ‘ads’ aired on CBC Channel 8, clearly show the name OPERA TELECOM after the conditions section and NOT Opera Interactive (Barbados) Ltd.

If you have seen the ‘ads’ you maybe would agree they are insulting but the point is those that respond are charged BDS$2.30 per call or text and where is the accountability.

Clearly, there was little in the UK.

Best Regards

Adrian Loveridge