A roundup of the ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region during the period Monday 9 July to Sunday 15 July 2012.
Monday, 9 July 2012
Phone companies ready to turn off unregistered phones
Belize – Though it doesn’t really compare, a lot of people across the country may feel the digital age’s earth shifting and collapsing under their feet. The super information highway is often travelled not on a desktop computer, but on a cellular phone… more
$300-m thefts: LIME, Digicel cell sites hit hard
Jamaica – Telecoms firms LIME and Digicel have suffered hundreds of millions of dollars in losses over the past 18 months from thieves who have raided cellular sites across the island, the Jamaica Observer has learnt… more
Banks respond to illegal cash withdrawal from ATMs
Trinidad & Tobago – The Bankers Association of Trinidad and Tobago (BATT) Monday told the public not to panic after banks operating here uncovered a scam involving the illegal removal of cash from their customers through the use of Automatic Teller Machines (ATM)… more
Tuesday, 10 July 2012
Charles: Telephone monopoly was a good thing
Antigua & Barbuda – General Manager of LIME Davidson Charles has welcomed the opened telecommunications market that will enable all telecoms providers to compete on a levelled playing field… more
‘New security features coming after ATM scam revealed’
Trinidad & Tobago – No major breakthroughs yet in the bank card skimming scam, says Bankers Association of Trinidad and Tobago president Richard Young, but the industry is hoping for leads… more
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
BTC wary of number portability cost
Bahamas – The country’s sole mobile service provider has responded to a preliminary determination on number portability, and expressed concern it might be left holding the bill… more
Prominent TV figure’s son again arrested in hacking case
Dominican Republic – Agents Tuesday afternoon again arrested Jose Angel Gomez Canaan (Jochy), son of the prominent TV producer and opposition PRD party figure Guillermo Gomez, in a case of hacking… more
Trouble on the line – Lower call rates could be short-lived
Jamaica – The price offensive started by LIME last month may become bogged down tomorrow… more
Police Arrest ATM Scammer After High Speed Chase
St. Maarten – On Tuesday July 10th, 2012 at approximately 12:10pm, the Police central Dispatch received information that two unknown men driving in a black Wrangler Jeep with license plate R-441 were driving around with a considerable amount of false American currency in their possession… more
Two men held in ATM scam
Trinidad & Tobago – Two men who have been described as being actively involved in the Automatic Teller Machines (ATM) skimming have been arrested by police and are assisting in further investigations… more
Two suspects held in ATM banking scam
Trinidad & Tobago – Trinidad and Tobago police said Wednesday that they had detained two men, including an 18-year-old youth in connection with the illegal removal of cash from the bank accounts of customers through the use of Automatic Teller Machines (ATM)… more
Ex-Haiti official sentenced in telecom bribery probe
USA – A former executive at Haiti’s state-owned telecommunications company has been sentenced to a year in prison for accepting bribes from two U.S. companies awarded lucrative long-distance phone contracts in the poor Caribbean country… more
Thursday, 12 July 2012
Smartphone app lauds Antigua’s wares
Antigua & Barbuda – On a daily basis, Pierre Greaux is approached by scores of tourists wandering the streets of St John’s, seeking to indulge in the sights and sounds of Antigua & Barbuda. That is when a moment of ingenuity struck him and a smartphone travel application (app) was born… more
BTC customers suffer another round of disruptions
Bahamas – Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) officials said a disruption in cell phone service yesterday was caused by a power outage at BTC’s Soldier Road Exchange… more
E-commerce receives ‘overwhelming’ response
Bahamas – Executives at Bank of The Bahamas (BOB) are reporting an “overwhelming” response since the launch of its e-commerce platform… more
Unregistered Cell Phones in Belize to Be Shut Down This Friday
Belize – In October 2011 the Ministry of Police and National Security made an official announcement advising the general public that in the interest of National Security under the Telecommunications Act edition 2002 section 44 (5), Belize Telemedia Limited and Speednet telephone companies will begin the mandatory registration of all existing pre-paid cellular numbers… more
Digicel’s TchoTcho Mobile Reaches The 5 Million Transactions Milestone Monitored By “Haiti Mobile Money Initiative” (HMMI)
Haiti – Yesterday marked the final disbursement to both mobile operators, Digicel and Voila, for having achieved the 5 million transactions milestone as set out by the Haiti Mobile Money Initiative (HMMI), which is a partnership between the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the United States Agency of International Development (USAID)… more
Digicel disappointed after court throws out challenge to OUR
Jamaica – Telecommunications company Digicel said today it was “disappointed” with the ruling by the Supreme Court to refuse the company’s application seeking leave to proceed with its judicial review claim against the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR)… more
Digicel to appeal Supreme Court decision
Jamaica – After being rejected by the Supreme Court Thursday, the attorneys for telecommunications provider, Digicel will tomorrow seek permission to take their fight against the Office of Utilities Regulation to the Appeal Court… more
All Telem Services Restored
St. Maarten – All land line, internet, and mobile services at Telem have been restored. The services were interrupted from around 1:00PM Thursday, July 12, 2012 as a result of an unforeseen power outage that affected the optical equipment of Telem’s fiber network… more
Friday, 13 July 2012
Government Announce GATE Program
Antigua & Barbuda – On Thursday, 12th of July, the Government officially announced the beginning of the GATE (Government Assisted Technology Endeavour) Program, a much hyped Government program intended to improve Antigua and Barbuda in many aspects… more
Mansoor discloses final components of GATE projects
Antigua & Barbuda – Telecommunications Minister Dr Edmund Mansoor yesterday announced the remaining three major game changing multi-million dollar Government Assisted Technology Endeavour (GATE) projects to be achieved in a partnership with telecommunications giant Digicel… more
BTC blasts URCA judgment
Bahamas – The Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) has determined that the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) must publish its annual financials and imposed specific information requirements… more
Unregistered customers lose phone service during cuts
Belize – Today is the deadline for registering your phones… more
Roaming across the border with SMART
Belize – As prepaid cell phone users, have you been exhausted by not being able to make calls from you phones ones you cross the borders? … more
Cell phone porn pushing child sexual abuse in the Caribbean- official
Guyana – The sharing of pornographic images among school-age children appears to be a major driver of child sexual abuse across the 15-nation Caribbean Community (Caricom), according to a senior regional official… more
Haiti Continues Shift to Mobile Money
Haiti – Haiti is continuing its drive to use mobile phones to bridge the banking gap… more
Court backs watchdog on mobile rate cut
Jamaica – LIME shouted victory yesterday as the Supreme Court cleared the way for a rate cut on all calls to mobile phones… more
Software to track Jamaica’s homeless
Jamaica – The Board of Supervision of the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development has acquired software that will help to track and develop a database of homeless Jamaicans… more
Saturday, 14 July 2012
Techno ‘revolution’ ahead for A&B
Antigua & Barbuda – It’s all about innovation, entrepreneurship, job creation and sustainability. That’s how government describes the remaining three components of the multi-million dollar Government Assisted Technology Endeavour (GATE) project to be achieved in partnership with telecommunications giant Digicel… more
Both Digicel and LIME labelled as anti competitive in BVI
British Virgin Islands – Digicel and LIME have been found equally guilty of being anti-competitive against CCT Global Communications in their battle for market share in the British Virgin Islands (BVI)… more
Alleged hacker’s lawyer threatens to reveal videos of orgies with tycoons in drag
Dominican Republic – The attorney for multiple hacking defendant Jose Angel Gomez (Jochi), on Friday threatened reveal the photos and videos with as many as eight tycoons dressed in drag and taking part in orgies… more
Digicel backs down
Jamaica – DIGICEL’S has backed down from further challenging the Office of Utilities Regulation’s (OUR) decision to set a per minute mobile termination rate of $5… more
Sunday, 15 July 2012
TS for Teens 2012 Programme launched
Barbados – “The computer technology programme at its very minimum, instills greater confidence, provides hope as well as another chance for individual advancements and strengthens intergenerational linkages,” stated the Hon. Steve Blackett, Minister of Social Care, Constituency Empowerment and Community Development, as he spoke at the recent launch of the ITS for Teens 2012 Programme… more
CARICOM ready to take on Connect the Americas Summit
Guyana – With just a week away, preparations for the Connect the Americas Summit are in high gear, as the Caribbean Community seeks to show-case its potential for maximizing the use of Information and Communication Technologies for development at this Summit and to attract investments for more than 45 projects submitted… more
Clicking for capital – The latest way to raise funds is online
Jamaica – Entrepreneurs hampered by a shortage of cash are turning to the internet to raise funds for their projects… more
Mobile TV to air next year
Jamaica – LIME should launch its subscriber television service in 2013, according to company executives… more
Why are businesses ignoring the mobile opportunity?
Jamaica – Most local companies have a website but those with a mobile website are amazingly few… more
Image credit: Gary Thomson, flickr
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