A roundup of ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region during the period Monday 15 September to Sunday 21 September 2014.
Monday, 15 September 2014
Dominican Republic to study antenna site sharing
Dominican Republic – The president of the Dominican Telecommunications Institute (Indotel), Gideon Santos, has announced the creation of a commission to conduct a study on antenna site-sharing in the mobile industry… more
Digicel: Approval For Caribbean Fibre Network
Guadeloupe – Digicel has received the required approvals from Government and regulatory authorities with regard to its purchase of a submarine fibre network across the Caribbean region… more
Digicel Business Helps Jamaica’s Business District Deliver World Class Service
Jamaica – The Business District is Jamaica’s first private serviced office complex. Renting fully-furnished offices – physical and virtual – as specified by its clients… more
Tuesday, 16 September 2014
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Wednesday, 17 September 2014
US banned Chinese telecoms giant looking at Antigua-Barbuda
Antigua and Barbuda – One of the world’s largest telecommunications company, Huawei of China, which has been banned from doing business with United States companies as a result of spyware discovered in some of its devices, has expressed an interest in doing business in Antigua and Barbuda… more
Columbus Business Solutions Levels the Playing Field for Students
Barbados – After receiving 60 new Samsung Galaxy 3 tablets from The Aron & Christina Foundation, Class 3 students from St Joseph Primary, St Bernard’s Primary and St Elizabeth Primary were able to go digital last Friday for the new school year… more
Digicel Doubles the Value for Grenadians
Grenada – Following Digicel’s successful launch of 4G Data technology in Grenada, Digicel is doubling the Value for Grenadians when it comes to prepaid data and postpaid smartplans… more
Education Ministry records noteworthy traffic on new website
Guyana – Having launched a refined website in July of this year, the Ministry has recorded an increase in the number of users accessing the site… more
LIME’s ‘rip and replace’ project interrupts mobile service
Jamaica – TELECOMMUNICATIONS provider LIME has recorded its highest increase in complaints over the last year… more
Moneague College Offering Training In Call-Centre Operations
Jamaica – FACED WITH reduced enrolment, Moneague College in St Ann has broadened its curriculum to include training in call-centre operations, with the likelihood of job placement immediately upon completion… more
Editor’s Pick: The Coolest Mobile App Builders in Latin America
Regional – “Mobile has been a blessing for nearshore companies.” These were the words of Alex Robbio, co-founder and president of Argentine software factory Belatrix, in a previous interview with Nearshore Americas… more
LIME committed to region
Regional – Barbados is to get a share of $2 billion in new investment telecommunications company Cable & Wireless (C&W) plans to spend… more
Thursday, 18 September 2014
Digicel Completes Acquisition of Telstar Cable Limited
Anguilla – Jamaican business is Digicel’s fourth Caribbean cable acquisition in the last number of months and will increase its cable footprint to six markets… more
CEO: LIME here to stay
Barbados – Telecommunications company LIME has not ruled out the possibility of an acquisition of, or collaboration with, its competitors in the future… more
LIME pledge
Barbados – Barbados is in line to receive a significant share of $2 billion in new investments that longstanding telecommunications provider Cable & Wireless has in store for the Caribbean… more
GT&T Telecommunications Licence prohibit others – Dr. Mahadeo
Guyana – “While iNet Communications Inc has said that it has had a Telecommunication License for many years, I do not know any company other than the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GT&T) or Digicel that received a Telecommunication Licence.” … more
University of Guyana’s GT&T-funded Internet Resource Centre commissioned
Guyana – President Donald Ramotar today congratulated the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GT&T) Company for their contribution to enhancing the social development of students, as a result of their decision to renovate the Information Computer Technology Laboratory’s Resource Centre at the University of Guyana (UG)… more
Columbus Enables Live Broadcast of Exciting Guinness Concert
Jamaica – Columbus Communications, operators of the Flow and Columbus Business Solutions brands, announced this week a partnership brokered with Guinness Jamaica for the regional broadcast of the annual Arthur Guinness Day Concert… more
Draft cyber security strategy to be finalized
Jamaica – The Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy, and Mining is now finalising Jamaica’s draft cyber security strategy, according to junior minister Julian Robinson, who anticipates that the document will be completed within two weeks of the ministry’s recently-concluded two-day cyber security validation workshop… more
Regional ICT Week in St. Kitts, to focus on Security and Inclusion
Regional – The Federation is preparing to host Information Communication Technology (ICT) Week 2014 from September 22-26… more
Threat To Ban OTT Services On CTU Meeting Agenda
Regional – Dealing with threats by Caribbean telecom networks to ban ‘over-the-top’ (OTT) services would be a priority for telecommunications ministers, who meet in St. Kitts, Sept. 22 to 26, for the annual meeting of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU)… more
TSTT’s acting CEO resigns
Trinidad and Tobago – Acting chief executive of majority state-owned TSTT, George Hill, has tendered his resignation to the board, amid reports that some of the telecommunication provider’s local directors want to replace him with Digicel’s former country manager in Tobago… more
Friday, 19 September 2014
New Employment Opportunities for Young People in Area of Information & Communications Technology (ICT)
Barbados – Barbadian Prime Minister Freundel Stuart expects new employment opportunities for young people in Barbados will be found in the area of information and communications technology (ICT)… more
St. Ignatius students take learning anywhere with new tablets
Cayman Islands – Forget pencil and paper, a stylus and touchscreen are the new tools of school. Thursday (18 September) St. Ignatius Catholic School issued 155 new tablets to students… more
Curaçao Company Fuuzle: New Supplier Of Information From Across The Globe
Curaçao – The digital world is teeming with information, yet a lot of it cannot be found via search engines or only after many hours of painstakingly surfing the net. The innovative company Fuuzle fills this gap… more
Chief Justice wants increased use of technology in court
Dominica – Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, Dame Janice Pereira wants improvements in the preparation of transcripts in the court system… more
182 Information Technology Centres Established
Jamaica – A total of 182 information technology (IT) resource and skills training centres have been established across the country, as the Government continues to provide Jamaicans with access to information technology (IT)… more
Digicel turns major content provider following cable TV acquisitions
Jamaica – DIGICEL has bought a majority stake in the parent company of regional sports broadcaster, SportsMax… more
LIME employees rise to CEO’s challenge
Jamaica – WHEN LIME CEO Garfield Sinclair challenged employees to come up with an innovative idea to reduce the telecoms firm’s utility expenses, little did he know he would have been richly presented with a wide array of recommendations… more
LIME to begin network upgrade in MoBay in November
Jamaica – LIME is set to begin upgrades to its mobile and broadband platform in Montego Bay come November… more
Movements – LIME Switches Company Secretary
Jamaica – Senator Kamina Johnson-Smith is giving up the position of company secretary at Cable & Wireless Jamaica, which trades as LIME… more
CWC inks managed services deal with Comverse for LIME unit
Regional – LIME, the Caribbean unit of UK-based Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), has selected Comverse to provide managed services for a range of Comverse and non-Comverse products… more
Digicel acquires International Media Content
Regional – Digicel has acquired Saint Lucia-based International Media Content (IMC), parent company of regional sports broadcaster SportsMax, and North American broadcaster Ceen-TV, for an undisclosed amount… more
Digicel Buys SportsMax
Regional – Digicel has acquired majority ownership of International Media Content Limited, the parent company of regional sports broadcasting company, SportsMax, and North American broadcaster CEEN-TV… more
BrightPath Foundation brings TechLink to T&T
Trinidad and Tobago – Secondary school teachers and students will be immersed in a day of technology gadgets, spacemen and science experiments when the BrightPath TechLink program comes to T&T this month… more
Loss affected TSTTStories
Trinidad and Tobago – Chairman of the Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT), Everald Snaggs, said the loss the company suffered in the last financial year was because of the huge undertaking of a five-year strategic plan… more
‘TSTT’s long-term plan to improve performance’
Trinidad and Tobago – In defending the telecommunication giant’s performance, TSTT chairman Everald Snaggs said had it not been for the long-term, five-year strategic plan initiated last year, the company would have been making a lot of profits for NEL… more
Saturday, 20 September 2014
Phone fires
Barbados – A Fire official has linked some house fires to the careless charging of cellphones, warning that it was like playing Russian roulette… more
Online Security Strategy
Jamaica – The Organization of American States (OAS) says it has concluded a two-day event in Kingston with the government of Jamaica during which a draft of Jamaica’s National Cyber Security Strategy was presented and discussed publicly for the first time… more
IDB Launches Digital Platform to Promote e-Governance in LATAM
Regional – The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched a digital platform aiming to promote a more transparent and inclusive form of governing in Latin America by bringing citizens closer to their governments… more
MPs concerned about TelEm-Digicel accord
Sint Maarten – Members of Parliament (MPs) have expressed concern about the signing of a financial information sharing contract between the St. Maarten Telephone Group of Companies TelEm and regional telecom company Digicel… more
TSTT appoints new CEO
Trinidad and Tobago – State-controlled telecoms provider Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) has appointed Ronald Walcott its new chief executive officer… more
Walcott new CEO of TSTT
Trinidad and Tobago – The Board of Directors of Telecommunications Services of T&T (TSTT) yesterday announced the appointment of Ronald Walcott as the new CEO of the company to take place with immediate effect… more
Sunday, 21 September 2014
Laptops for Huntley residents
Guyana – The Government of Guyana on Friday continued its One Laptop Per Family programme by distributing 191 more laptops, this time to residents of Huntley, Mahaicony. In this GINA photo Huntley residents wait for their laptops… more
What’s happening with the fibre optic cable project? – Harmon asks Ramotar
Guyana – A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament, Joseph Harmon, is calling on the Project Manager of the E-Governance Unit, Alexei Ramotar, to be respectful towards the citizens of Guyana and at least let them know the status of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) project, commonly referred to as the Fibre Optic Cable Project… more
Cable theft plagues landline, Internet service
Jamaica – Dear Claudienne, I live in the Boscobel Housing Scheme in St Mary, and for almost one month now the entire scheme has had no landline or Internet service from LIME… more
PSOJ, CBS join forces to put on tech-solutions workshop
Jamaica – POWERFUL private sector lobby group, the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), will join forces with Columbus Business Solutions (CBS) to help entrepreneurs “transform their businesses through technology” in a SME workshop on Thursday in St Andrew… more
Cashing In On Social Media
Jamaica – Are local businesses cashing in on social media? A few, are, but most are barely scratching the surface in unleashing its potential to enrich their businesses… more
DL750 enhances customer’s smartphone experience: Digicel introduces the latest addition to its own brand smartphone range
Regional – Digicel just launched its DL750 – the next generation in its line of affordable smartphones which will offer customers the best value as it comes loaded with cool new features that will sure to suit their varying tastes and lifestyles… more
Image credits: NS Newsflash (flickr); Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Wikipedia
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