Digicel Confirms They “Intend To Acquire” BTC
Digicel has confirmed they have “finalised an agreement whereby Digicel intends to acquire BTC,” saying they believe that “BTC’s fixed voice and internet services will complement Digicel’s mobile offerings allowing Digicel to bring better services and value to consumers.”
A statement from Digicel said, “As a complete communications and entertainment provider, we are always looking for opportunities to bring the Digicel promise of best service, best value and best network to more people and to grow and enhance our service offering. As such, Digicel and BTC have finalised an agreement whereby Digicel intends to acquire BTC.
“Digicel believes that BTC’s fixed voice and internet services will complement Digicel’s mobile offerings allowing Digicel to bring better services and value to consumers.
“The financial terms of the agreement are confidential and will not be disclosed. In addition, the proposed deal is subject to regulatory approvals and as such, we must hold for those before progressing with our plans.
“With the good of customers and employees being our main concern, our intention is to grow our business here in Bermuda and to invest in the future.
“That will see us working to improve the service delivered to customers and looking to build out and enhance the products and services offered to them with an ultimate view to delivering an enhanced multimedia experience across multiple devices.
“As and when we have updates, we will be sure to give them. But it is worth pointing out that Digicel is built on a promise of delivering best service, best network and best value – and to giving back to our communities.
“As such, you can expect us to take the same approach in this regard in terms of investment and innovation. We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for the opportunity to serve the people of Bermuda and to reiterate our commitment to them.”
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Not convinced this is good news for us consumers – we need more, not less, competition in this area.
This is bad news. I hope the RA does not approve this deal. Digicel already purchased Transact. Now they’ll purchase BTC. And I’m sure there will be layoffs at Digicel will look to streamline roles and responsibilities.
So far most of our “reform” has involved the telecoms companies rearranging the pool chairs.
Government, please intervene.
Your electorate are speaking. They don’t like this.
Going to be interesting for the “NEW” RA boss…. Since the RA basically forced Keytec to relinquish control of their Cellular branch considering them “too big” a player.
If the RA now allow Digicel to go ahead with this purchase they will be going against their own policies.
Look at Jamaica, Digi comes in buys up all the competition and service goes out the window….
Didn’t BTC just get bought last quarter? Why would they sell? Is this a PR stunt? #fail
I am at a loss for words you can’t be serious this is a bad joke and I am not laughing!!!
Seams as if the digicel group are going all around the Caribbean buying up everything, sports max sports max 2 now BTC. We still don’t have reliable mobile service with LTE but most consumers bills adverage $220 a month. Invest in your network same goes for cellone.
Both companies want to launch it but the regulator is getting in the way.
I doubt that.
wrong
BTC needs new direction anyway. This might be beneficial to the consumer.
Did some guy from Rogers Canada but BTC last summer
Close. Sold to Barrie Holdings Limited/Roy Graydon for $30 mill Sept 2014. I wonder what he sold it on for?? I think is will be good for Bermuda. Digicel are keen to invest in Bermuda and provide up to date services. It gives them the island wide fibre network or backbone and then they will have take the fibre the final stretch into customers houses. It will be Cablevision vs Digicel. Remember the sparing that was going on a few months ago in the media between the two firms…CV are preparing for battle/healthy competition in the area they have owned since 1988 – TV.
The RA may deny the merger. Logic and Cablevision will then want to merge. Then what happens to TBI and LinkBermuda who do not have local loop access to every home in the island? Is this really good for competition?
We don’t want job loss either. The RA/OBA better get this one right.
Logic already have the controlling interest in CV. Bermuda has been held back technologically by outdated telecommunication law and only recently has it been amended. What we are seeing the result of the changes. If we want a modern tech infrastructure these are the kinds of changes that will make it happen. Adjustments in the labour come with the territory. If that sounds cold, ask me how I know. TBI and Link will just arrange access from Digicel, as they do with BTC currently.
Your reasoning doesn’t promote fair competition. That’s not a level playing field. TBI and and Link don’t own a company that has local loop access to the home.
Cablevsion already made it public they are building out their infrastructure to support fiber to the home under the current telecommunication law.
A fragmented industry will never make the kind of investment needed to update the infrastructure.
Lois Frederick— work for digicel do ya?
Nope. I just know the business.
No, but I get a monthly bill from them. Does that count?
Digicel are keep to invest in Bermuda???? LMAO. They were incorporated here and have moved just about everything to JA. However, the rates we pay here are far higher than what I would pay in JA for the same service. Ask or check online to see what a JA customer has for roaming option packages.
My JA business associates keep their phones on 24/7 while in the USA and pay one small flat rate for unlimited roaming while I must rely primarily on wifi hotspots for data and still pay $500+ for roaming after 4-5 days. They stick it to us.
Sorry, while they may be interested in the Bermuda market it is because they can get away with charging more…and we let them.
@WOW …
What if your ISP or Cell Phone Carrier decided to BAN you from using free or paid VOIP services like Skype or Facetime. Don’t think these guys wouldn’t or couldn’t do it?! Think again, take a read at the article below. Be careful what you wish for.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article1974983.html
http://gordonswaby.com/2014/06/digicel-and-limes-move-to-ban-voip-apps-bad-for-innovation-in-jamaica/
Shoot. DigiHELL is at it again. In good news I hope land line numbers can be switched to mobile use.
You can already do that… it’s called LNP – local number portability.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…dont let this happen…..not Digicel…sighs !
Today learning: CHANGE: every living thing best friend.
So this must be step #1 to the introduction of prepaid home telephone service.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0322/298932-moriarty/
This foreign business operating here has stunk right from the get go, IMHO.
How about they spend some money and give us a decent network and some decent data speeds? I pay $65 a month for data on my phone and maybe works half the time, half decent… How about some LTE? One of the smallest countries with one of the highest income per capita and our network and internet speeds rival the bush… sigh…
You get one out of the 4mg you pay for too?
This is NOT good for Bermuda, surely there is enough common sense within the RA to see that, if not we need to stand up and demand change within at organization and get people in there who care about Bermuda consumers and no about their fellow countryman flipping 120 year old Companies.
No matter how good you think that joke is, I’m not laughing.
BTC just sold the county
Nah. The PLP already sold the country to foreign banks.
Money.
Shalom.
So who’s going to buy BELCO?!
That’s next.
Digicel.
If the OBA and regulatory authority let this go through we need as a country to look very hard at who is governing and get to their motives, this isn’t for Bermuda its for corporate greed and this regulatory authority is not working for us they allowed BTC to be sold about 5 months ago and now there considering a flip?? Come on OBA lets get involved here and do something positive if for no other reason than keeping the redundancies (not immediate) from adding to the dismal unemployment numbers.
Cell1 – Tomorrows news. Cell1 buys Belco lol
Lovely, even less competition.
This is horrible! One horrible service provider buys an even worse service provider, but now gets to price gauge us for horrible service
I don’t know about anyone else. But the only person to call my landline is my mother in law… nuff said..
anything that can bring us anywhere near 1st world Internet and phone speed I am all for it… at a resonble rate
Hahaha hahahah ha ha…oh you were serious?
They should be able to purchase BELCO too. The amount $ they are getting from their subscriber’s.
Wow it really is easy to make lots of money in a short time in Bermuda especially if your nort Bermudian and have a Regulatory body from your country on your side and a Goverment body that doesn’t really care about what’s going on in the real world, congratulations Graydon and Dobson, don’t spend it all in one province.
The issue is about lack of completion and foreign ownership of the telecommunication infrastructure. Neither will bode well for the consumer in the long run. Bermudians need to benefit as owners not just consumers. Digicel is a privately held foreign owned company. An economic colonial predator throughout the Caribbean, and soon to be Bermuda.
Wondering why internet is soooo slow in Bermuda with BTC??? Wonder no more…
You are only getting 85% of what you are paying for.
We have 6Mbps with BTC and just upgraded to 8Mpbs with Logic. Wondering why am I getting on average 4-5.5Mpb and only getting bursts, not sustained traffic (i.e. 6Mbps or 8Mpbs). Clearly BTC Bermuda is applying traffic policing not even shaping. Found this document to prove they QoS 85% of residential traffic. BTC needs to send out a tech to see why we are getting such slow speeds. Same story when upgraded from 4Mbps to 6Mbps magical QoS in the middle. (QoS Quality of Service… My A$$..)
http://www.btc.bm/downloads/BTC_Access_Interconnection_Agreement.pdf
Since DigiCel bought BTC let’s hope they will recognize the problems and fix this. It would be nice to get what you paid for not losing 15%.
I know it’s geek talk. Do a speed test http://www.speedtest.net if you see a flat line there is no QoS and you should get full speeds based on what you are paying for. If you see the line going up and down you are only getting 85% as per the Access Interconnection agreement but paying 100%
Hardly geek talk, common sense talk would be change your provider buddy
Logician is the problem
Less competition? LoL. BTC & CableVision were brother and sisters which equals no real competition from the local access providers. When was the last time either lowered their prices as far as Internet goes?????
Digicel’s intentions may have proved a catalyst as to why CableVision announced their plans to upgrade their system last week. These upgrades would have happened, but when they felt like it, probably around 2050 or so. The 50/100MB promo that has been advertising since early last year is still not available to residential customers and it’s now mid January 2015. “Coming Soon”
Digicel will definitely shake things up if this is allowed to go through. If memory servers me correct, Digicel played a major role in making Black Friday what it is in Bermuda today. Advertising by most companies is on a whole next level thanks in part to them. The only way I could see things remaining the same is if CableVision was somehow able to take over Digicel.
One may not be always happy with the service Digicel provides, but one thing that is certain is prices will drop and we will see true competition between the 2 access providers that we have not had up until now.
I feel for the employees of BTC, I know a few people there who give their all to the company and work really hard, I guess by now they must be feeling like a bag of beans being traded back and forth. I’m sure the morale (and productivity) has taken yet another dip, are the Management of BTC represented by the BPSU?
Not Yet!
I hope this opens up job opportunities! I want to join the Digicel team. I have a wonderful job right now, but working for a phone company is ideal for me! I know alot about cellphones. #TechWiz