This is a roundup of the ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region during the period Monday 19 March to Sunday 25 March 2012.
Monday, 19 March 2012
BTC refutes union’s salary increase claim
Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) non-managerial staff will receive a salary increase of at least nine percent over the length of the new industrial agreement, contrary to recent claims made by the Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union (BCPOU), according to BTC’s management… more
Puerto Rico-India-DR alliance
Dominican Republic – Center for Export and Investment (CEI-RD) director Eddy Martinez has announced that Indian technology company Lanco Global Systems will be operating from the Las Americas Technology Institute (ITLA)… more
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
Union applies for strike vote as BTC negotiations stall
Bahamas – The Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union (BCPOU) will take a strike vote in New Providence and Grand Bahama on Thursday, as negotiations for a new industrial agreement stall on the matter of salary increases for the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) line staff… more
Gov’t to Create Super Regulatory Body for Telecoms Sector
Jamaica – Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining (STEM), Hon. Phillip Paulwell, said that the government is moving to establish a “super regulatory body” to effectively monitor the telecommunications sector… more
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
BEF committed to delivering on promise of 100% free Wi-Fi Access
Barbados – he initiative of the BEF’s business facilitation pillar was to provide free access to Wi-Fi throughout Barbados by November 11th, 2011… more
E-Learning Programme Launched To Assist GSAT, CSEC Students
Jamaica – Edufocal, an e-learning service provider, which was launched last Thursday, is expected to assist students who are preparing for the Grade Six Achievement Test and the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate examinations… more
LIME Takes Aim At The West
Jamaica – Garry Sinclair, managing director of LIME Jamaica and Cayman, has expressed satisfaction with his company’s bid to improve its network infrastructure in the western region… more
More Cells, But Telecoms Earn Less
Jamaica – Jamaicans now own more mobile phones – 3.1 million – than there are people in the country… more
New “super agency” to monitor telecommunication sector
Jamaica – The Jamaica government says it will be establishing a “super regulatory body” to effectively monitor the telecommunications sector… more
Thursday, 22 March 2012
TSTT CEO Hangs Up
Trinidad & Tobago – Chief executive officer of Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT), Roberto Peon, has resigned from the majority State-owned telecoms provider… more
Friday, 23 March 2012
Foulkes: Decision by union members to strike may not be certified
Bahamas – Even though members of the Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union (BCPOU) voted overwhelmingly in favor of a strike vote yesterday, the vote may not be certified, as there is no evidence that the union filed a valid trade dispute, Minister of Labour Dion Foulkes revealed yesterday… more
Fiber Optic lines in Belize
Belize – The Government of Belize is committed to improve the standard of living of the people of Belize. To this end tourism development has been earmarked as one of the most promising avenues of growth thus increasing the demand for safe, fast and reliable telecommunication services… more
News website temporarily down
Belize – Tons of e-mails and messages are being received at this station in respect of our website. For the past two days, our online readers have been experiencing difficulty accessing channel5belize.com. Our website was hacked and has been tagged by Google and Mozilla as malicious… more
GT&T claims unfair competition, hints at “right-sizing”
Guyana – The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) on Friday, lamenting secrecy by its competitor and unfair competition by government, signaled that it could in another two years “right size” if the telecoms industry is not fixed… more
Caribbean prepares for ‘Connect to Americas’ meeting in Panama
Trinidad & Tobago – A Caribbean meeting to prepare for the upcoming Connect to the Americas summit in Panama City, Panama, in July later this year was launched at the Carlton Savannah hotel in Cascade, Port-of-Spain, yesterday… more
TSTT CEO quitting over ailing relative
Trinidad & Tobago – Chief executive at telecoms provider Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT), Roberto Peon, yesterday confirmed he has tendered his resignation with effect from June 30… more
Saturday, 24 March 2012
BTC Grand Bahama to ‘Exceed all Targets’
Bahamas – New products, interactive experiences, an inviting environment and longer hours are paying off for customers and BTC in Grand Bahama, a company spokesman said today, with the store that re-opened last month after a major transformation ‘exceeding all targets.’… more
V.I. Next Generation Network head still hopes to meet federal deadlines
US Virgin Islands – The territory’s first public broadband network is behind schedule but still pushing ahead and hoping to meet the federal deadlines, interim Chief Executive Officer and board member Alfred Boschulte told the V.I. Next Generation Network board Friday… more
Sunday, 25 March 2012
Cyber security and the Caribbean
Caribbean – Most Caribbean Governments and companies have yet to take seriously the threat posed by cyber attack… more
Unfair competition will lead to reduced investments, staff cuts
Guyana – The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) has called for a level-playing field and yesterday criticised government’s move to unfairly introduce another fibre optic cable in yet unclear circumstances… more
Digicel hits one million customer activation with new rate
Jamaica – Just three weeks after announcing its new ‘One Rate’ option of $8.99 for calls to any number on any local network at any time, Digicel is now announcing that it has hit the milestone of one million customer activations… more
Image courtesy of RambergMediaImages, flickr
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