Digicel introduces 4G broadband to Jamaica
(Jamaica Observer): Telecommunications firm Digicel is about to unveil its 4G Broadband offering in Jamaica. It already offers a GSM service in 32 markets across the Caribbean, Central America and the South Pacific. Digicel operates WiMax and Broadband networks in five of its markets, namely, Jamaica, Haiti, Cayman Islands, Barbados and Tonga. This new service will not be offered on mobile handsets but for use with laptops, PCs and netbooks. The idea is to leverage its infrastructure in Jamaica, its customer base of 2 million customers and to offer a cost-effective broadband service which can be used anywhere.
Group CEO for WiMax Alex Boothroyd said: "In terms of Jamaica, the country is reasonably urbanised with about 54 per cent of the population living in an urban area. Digicel Broadband will cover 60 per cent of the population. Jamaica is comprised of around 750,000 households and we will make Broadband available to 410,000 of them. We now have 2 million Digicel customers and our Broadband offering is likely to cover 1.2 million of those."
Boothroyd added that there are about 263,000 households in Jamaica that have computers, and growing atabout 8 per cent a year makes its 4G service a viable proposition. There are 110,000 homes with Broadband penetration, primarily with Flow and LIME DSL, and Digicel wants to join the party. The WiMax CEO says that in this case he is not including 3G and dial-up. Digicel will introduce a plug-and-play service that doesn’t require a landline.
Category: Business
