A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 1 April to Sunday 7 April 2019.
Monday, 1 April 2019
Haiti Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband Market Size, Growth, Analysis, Trends, and Opportunities – 2019
Haiti – Haiti again turns attention to digital broadcasting. Haiti’s economic and social indicators remain far lower than the average for Latin America and the Caribbean… more
App Corner: Quick And Easy Delivery With Pekkish
Jamaica – Consumers are often forced to settle because of immobility, lack of food options in their immediate surroundings or wait upwards of three hours for something simple (like pizza) delivered… more
Blow to Caricel
Jamaica – Symbiote Investment Limited last Friday received a heavy blow in its battle with the Government when the Court of Appeal ruled that it is not authorised to own or operate a facility, the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) stated yesterday… more
iCreate to train 40 KSAMC youngsters in digital video production
Jamaica – Training institute iCreate Limited and the Kingston & St Andrew Municipal Corporation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for 40 young people from the KSAMC to be trained in digital video production… more
OUR reminds callers that mandatory 10 digit dialling is now in effect
Jamaica – Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) is reminding callers that mandatory 10-digit dialling for all local calls become effective today (Mar 31)…more
Digicel Launches New Service
Saint Lucia– Fresh off its Long-Term Evolution (LTE) network launch last November, telecommunications company Digicel is continuing to expand its product offerings… more
Tuesday, 2 April 2019
Bahamas Telecommunications Market 2019, Strategic Analysis and Outlook to 2025-Analysis of Bahamas Mobile, Fixed Telephone and Broadband Markets
Bahamas – Bahamas Telecom outlook report is a comprehensive analytical research on the Bahamas’s cellular, fixed telephone and fixed broadband segments… more
More layoffs at GIBC Digital
Bahamas – GIBC Digital has let go another seven people, sources close to the company told Guardian Business yesterday, making this the second round of layoffs in a little more than a month… more
Digi Belize Opens new store in San Pedro Town
Belize – Digi Belize held a ceremony to officially open their new store in San Pedro Town on Saturday, March 30th… more
Government, TechCayman make big promises in agreement
Cayman Islands – The new venture Tech City Cayman Islands Ltd. has promised to create hundreds of Caymanian tech-related jobs in exchange for infrastructure investments, fast-tracked permitting and licensing processes, and other concessions from government, according to a contract signed by the two parties last August, but kept from the public until a partially redacted version was obtained by the Cayman Compass on Monday… more
Dominica among Caribbean countries in online safety campaign
Dominica – Dominica is among several Caribbean countries to engage in an online safety campaign… more
Caricel To Keep Fighting
Jamaica – A shutdown is looming for telecommunications company Caricel, potentially affecting its reported 15,000-client base, following a ruling by Jamaica’s second highest court but the company said it will continue the fight to have the licences restored… more
Wednesday, 3 April 2019
Cryptocurrency regulation is about creating future economic growth, says DPM
Bahamas – Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest suggested yesterday that The Bahamas’ move to regulate cryptocurrency is a nod at creating future economic growth vehicles, as countries across the world seek to guard against certain products provided by international financial centers like The Bahamas… more
Dare On Crypto To ‘Stay Relevant’
Bahamas – The Bahamas has no choice but to embrace fintech and crypto assets if it wants “to remain relevant” in the global economy, a former attorney general warned yesterday… more
Zeno Media and BTC Bahamas Announce Exclusive Streaming Radio Partnership
Bahamas – Zeno Media and BTC Bahamas today announced its first mobile carrier supported audio streaming service for the Bahamas to include exclusive Bahamian, Haitian, and Jamaican radio content from around the globe… more
Jamaica Stock Exchange signs deal to host crypto trading
Jamaica – The Jamaica Stock Exchange, JSE for short, has inked a deal with Blockstation, allowing the exchange to host crypto and security token trading… more
Technology In Focus | Moving The Needle On Net Neutrality
Jamaica– Information and communications technology (ICT) experts are advocating for a levy on the different tiers of commercial Internet users to swing the pendulum against net neutrality… more
Telemedicine: Ready or not, here it comes!
Jamaica – One could argue that telemedicine has been around informally since the telephone and electronic mail became popular in the 90s, given that privileged patients since then had their doctor or pharmacy on speed dial for support, therefore not having to move a muscle… more
tTech conference targets business growth via leveraging IT
Jamaica – Locally managed information technology services provider tTech Limited plans to reshape the way people think of IT and business by hosting “Tech Con by tTech” on Friday, April 12, 2019… more
Thursday, 4 April 2019
BTC closes franchise locations, master distributors
Bahamas – Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) revealed yesterday that it has closed several of its franchise locations and master distributors in order to “manage our customer support more effectively”… more
Web Shops Split Over Tax ‘Solution’
Bahamas – Not all web shop operators have signed up to the tax settlement with the government, a prominent QC revealed yesterday, suggesting legal challenges remain a possibility… more
Internet Registry to host ARIN Caribbean Forum in Barbados
Barbados– Internet stakeholders from across the Caribbean and North America will next week convene at the Hilton Hotel in Bridgetown, Barbados for the second regional gathering of the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN) Caribbean Forum, on April 8 to 9… more
HBO and Cable Operators’ Association Sign 5 Licensing Agreements
Belize – Cable operators in Belize will now be able to legally provide thirty programming channels such as HBO, MAX, Lifetime and SyFy… more
Ministry of Public Telecommunications’ ICT pilot project off to positive start
Guyana– The Ministry of Public Telecommunications’ ICT (Information and Communications Technology) pilot project, to selected secondary schools to intern with local ICT companies commenced on March 25th at the Carmel and Charlestown Secondary Schools in Georgetown… more
Caricel Cites Conspiracy In Licence Revocation
Jamaica – Principals of embattled firm Caricel Jamaica have labelled the Government’s revocation of operations licences as tantamount to a conspiracy aimed at preventing the start-up company from providing direct competition to “incumbent foreign-owned telecommunications companies operating in Jamaica… more
Caricel continues legal battle to keep telecom licences
Jamaica – Attorney for Symbiote Investments Limited, Lord Gifford, informed the media yesterday that the company intends to continue the legal battle for the right to operate its Caricel brand telecommunications service… more
Caricel to serve customers under new agreement after court ruling
Jamaica – Symbiote Investments, operators of Caricel Jamaica says it will continue working for customers under a new agreement with a local wireless company, following a recent Court of Appeal ruling… more
CAL signs up for ticket payment online with WiPay
Regional – Trinidadian company WiPay, which was launched in Guyana last December, is now collaborating with Caribbean Airlines and Bill Express to make it easier for persons to purchase airline tickets online… more
Internet experts to present at CaribNOG conference in Barbados
Regional – Representatives of the technical community and other Internet stakeholders from across the Caribbean and North America will this month convene in Bridgetown, Barbados for the seventeenth regional meeting of the Caribbean Network Operators Group, called CaribNOG 17… more
Friday, 5 April 2019
Unions Wary On BTC Franchise Downsize
Bahamas – THE Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) line-staff union yesterday said it remains in a “wait and see situation” over further potential downsizing at the carrier… more
Belize Cable Television Operators’ and HBO Latin America Group sign licensing agreements
Belize – The Belize Cable Television Operators’ Association BCTVOA and HBO Latin America Group have signed an agreement which enables cable providers in Belize to legally provide content for over 30 channels from the HBO brand without any copyright violations… more
UPDATE: FLOW ‘changes the game’ with more data for lower cost
Dominica– FLOW has launched what the telecommunications company has dubbed an ‘Always on’ plan as part of its efforts to allow customers to connect faster and easier… more
An open letter to the management of GTT
Guyana – DEAR EDITOR, It is now twenty-eight years since the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) has attained the responsibility of providing telecommunication services in Guyana… more
Greater effort needed for businesses to protect against cybercrime
Jamaica – In the digital hurricane that is today’s Internet, many local businesses may imagine themselves of such low consequence that they would not be the target of a cyberattack… more
JSE signs agreement with Blockstation
Jamaica – THE Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) has announced the execution of a historic Master Agreement with Blockstation, a leading Canadian FinTech company, becoming one of the first stock exchanges in the world to sign an agreement to enable live trading of digital assets and security tokens in a regulated and secured environment… more
Local Investors To Test Bitcoin Trading On The JSE
Jamaica – JAMAICANS will, in a few weeks, be able to buy cryptocurrencies through their local brokers in the second trial of the Blockstation platform by the Jamaica Stock Exchange, JSE, which comes amid a 25 per cent rise in the value of Bitcoin since April… more
Productive Business Solutions selected to provide supplies for NIDS
Jamaica – A local group has been selected to provide crucial supplies for the National Identification System (NIDS)… more
Launch of streaming app with Bahamian, Jamaican and Haitian content
Regional – Zeno Media and BTC Bahamas yesterday announced the creation of The Bahamas’ first mobile carrier supported audio streaming service which will broadcast, over the Internet, exclusive Bahamian, Haitian, and Jamaican radio content from around the globe… more
Future Of St. Lucia Telecommunications Market-Trends, Outlook 2019-2025 and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets
Saint Lucia – With Long Term Evolution (LTE) rapid expansion and slowdown in 2G and 3G services, the St. Lucia telecom market is evolving rapidly… more
Saturday, 6 April 2019
HBO LEGALLY ENTERS BELIZEAN BROADCASTING
Belize– After years of having limited and unauthorized access to the popular television network HBO, Belizeans may now enjoy a more legitimate viewers’ experience with this network via their local cable providers… more
Artificial intelligence, robotics and women: a new revolution
Dominican Republic – Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could empower the women’s revolution with the technological revolution and begin writing a new work reality for women? … more
Cybersecurity is a driver for economic growth and we must take full advantage of it
Guyana – Dear Editor,The global economy is dependent on technology. More so, it is driven by technology… more
Sunday, 7 April 2019
FCJ to spend $550M on BPO space in Kingston and St Catherine this year
Jamaica – The Factories Corporation of Jamaica (FCJ) will this year start construction of 100,000 square feet of additional business process outsourcing (BPO) space in Kingston and St Catherine at a cost of $550 million… more
Heath + Tech | Complementary Technology In Health
Jamaica – TECHNOLOGY IMPROVES overall management of healthcare. This is why we have seen an increase in digitisation efforts with respect to healthcare management… more
Cedric Stephens | Cybercrime A US$1.5t Industry. Insurance Can’t Cover It All
Regional – Cyber scammers, says Philadelphia journalist Jared Shelly, tricked leading US tech companies, Facebook and Google, into “wiring away millions by simply asking for the money via email”… more
Cyber Eye Offers Value for Money
Saint Lucia – Cyber Eye Security Services Limited is a security company run by Nigel Noel and Shantelle Ernest… more
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