A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 10 April to Sunday 16 April 2017.

 

Monday, 10 April 2017

Aliv challenges BTC statement on network sharing

Bahamas – Former cellular monopolist the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) and mobile newcomer Aliv have locked horns over a long-delayed co-location agreement, after a press release by the former was immediately contradicted by the latter, the Tribune 242 reports… more

Bahamas telcos disagree on shared infra

Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) and mobile newcomer Aliv are encountering difficulties regarding the sharing of infrastructure as mandated by the… more

BTC  Boosts Its Data Offerings

Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) is designing more offerings to meet ever-increasing Bahamian demands for data… more

Technology and the future of employment

Barbados – Almost on a daily basis, there is news of some new scientific or technological development which brings to the fore the magnitude of the challenge of adjustment facing Barbados as a result of sweeping change taking place on a global level… more

Major developments expected in BPO this year

Jamaica – Major developments in Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) locally are expected to generate approximately 8,000 additional jobs this year… more

 Disabled People in the Caribbean Find Freedom in Technology

Regional – Visually impaired Kerryn Gunness is excited about the possibilities offered by a new free app that would serve as his eyes and enable people like him to enjoy greater independence… more

Marketing Strategies Today: The latest live video tips and how to make the best out of live streaming

Regional – Live streaming has taken over the marketing industry, and it is not going away anytime soon… more

PwC, Bitt sign MOU to promote blockchain across Caribbean

Regional – Professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Barbados-based financial technology (fintech) company Bitt Inc. to propel the use of blockchain technology across the Caribbean, according to a press release sent to CoinReport by Bitt… more

Tuesday, 11 April 2017

BTC in dispute with new Bahamas operator over site-sharing

Bahamas – Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) and new Bahamas mobile operator Aliv are in dispute over network-sharing negotiations, local daily Tribune 242 reported… more

WiFi scheme

Barbados – With Government proposing to ban all music on public service vehicles (PSVs), the Alliance of Owners of Public Transportation (AOPT) is preparing to roll out a scheme that will otherwise keep passengers occupied… more

In observance of Girls in ICT Day…NFMU launches Facebook hashtag competition

Guyana – In observance of Girls in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) day slated for April 28, the National Frequency Management Unit (NFMU) has launched a Facebook hashtag and win competition… more

C&W’s Garry Sinclair showcases innovative Flow Lend app

Regional – At the recently held Caribbean Telecommunications Union ICT Week & Symposium held on March 20 – 24 in Antigua, C&W’s Caribbean President, Garry Sinclair delivered an interactive presentation during which he showcased the Company’s newest award-winning, customer-focused app – Flow Lend – to more than 100 delegates… more

Social media whips donkey-riding priest

Trinidad and Tobago – ROMAN Catholic priest Fr Ian Taylor became the latest target of social media’s outrage yesterday… more

TSTT workers protest uncertainty of the company

Trinidad and Tobago – TSTT’s junior and senior staff continued to protest at its Cipero Road, San Fernando, location yesterday, over the uncertainty of the future of the company… more

Wednesday, 12 April 2017

Cloud Carib Becomes the First Red Hat Certified Cloud Solution Provider in the Caribbean and Latin America

Bahamas – Cloud Carib Limited has been recognized as the first Red Hat Certified Cloud Solutions Provider (CCSP) in the Caribbean and Latin American region… more

Cybercriminals ‘a step ahead’

Barbados – AS THE REGION GRAPPLES with cybercrime, criminals appear to be a few clicks ahead of authorities… more

Digital justice

Barbados – The St Matthias Magistrates’ Court is going digital with the receipt Wednesday of Liberty Court Recording Software from the United States (US) embassy… more

Ditch gadgets for day of peace, love

Barbados – ONE CURSORY GLANCE at the news or social media broadcasts on any given day would give the impression that the world is in absolute chaos – from the bombing of churches in the east to civil unrest in the south to a new wild, wild west in the most easterly of Caribbean islands… more

ON THE LEFT: Mobile market leading way

Barbados – THE TELCOM SECTOR continues to be a critical force for growth, innovation, and disruption across multiple industries… more

ON THE RIGHT: Digital societies the next step

Barbados – ULTIMATELY, WHERE THIS business is going is obviously digital neighbourhoods, digital societies, connected communities and the only way to do that is to ensure that the infrastructure that underpins those technologies and those software platforms are the best anywhere in the world… more

THE ISSUE: Telecoms can stimulate economy

Barbados – TECHNOLOGY PLAYS AN important role in the development of a country. Barbados is no different… more

BTL Union Flexes, Stages A (Brief) Work Walk Out

Belize – At around 3:00 this afternoon, dozens of BTL employees walked out of the telephone company’s St. Thomas Street Compound… more

B.T.L. Workers Walk Out Over Collective Bargaining Agreement

Belize – B.T.L. employees across the country staged a walkout this afternoon in protest of what is being reported as a refusal to properly address a two-pronged labor issue with the Belize Communications Workers Union… more

Digicel Play to reward customers with shopping sprees

Jamaica – New and existing Digicel Play customers could find themselves on the winning end of a MegaMart shopping spree, valued at up to $100,000, from now until May 31… more

Seeking competitive edge, Caribbean firms turn to internet technology

Regional – As clouds of uncertainty loom over the global economy, it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for Caribbean companies. But these days, a different kind of cloud is creating fresh opportunities for regional businesses… more

Unease at TSTT; workers plan protests

Trinidad and Tobago – JUNIOR and senior staff members of State-controlled telecoms provider TSTT intend continuing protest action every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to highlight issues affecting workers and until management can meet with them to discuss a way forward… more

Thursday, 13 April 2017

Bereaux: URCA wanted to ensure there is mobile portability in The Bahamas

Bahamas – During a joint weekly meeting for the Rotary Clubs of Lucaya and Freeport on Tuesday (April 11), guest speaker Chief Executive Officer at Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA), Stephen Bereaux, explained mobile number portability and the significance of the competition, and ultimately, the superior service that this will bring with those in attendance… more

Digicel Play up to 20,000 customers in Barbados

Barbados – Digicel Barbados has announced that its triple-play broadband, pay-TV and telephony service ‘Digicel Play’ has reached the 20,000 customer mark just over a year after launching… more

BTL workers stage walk out

Belize – Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL) employees walked out of their office on St. Thomas Street Wednesday afternoon, as a sign of discontent with their management… more

Security Awareness Training Provider To Speak At Cyber Security Symposium

Belize – Michael Levin, CEO and founder of The Center for Information Security Awareness (CFISA) in Boca Raton, Florida, has been asked to be a guest speaker at the upcoming National Cyber Security Symposium in Belize… more

Flow provides free live streaming of Carifta games over Easter weekend

Dominica – As sports fans here gear up for the Carifta games in Curacao this weekend, the Dominican public will have the opportunity to view their athletes perform live at the games exclusively from April 15 – 17th, 2017… more

CARIMAC : Same Name, New Meaning

Jamaica – The much-respected Caribbean Institute of Media and Communication (CARIMAC) is to be renamed the Caribbean School of Media and Communication on August 1, which means it will be operating under a new banner for the start of the next academic year… more

Cloak Descends On Liberty Offer – FSC Hauled Into Court As Liberty Talks Go Underground

Jamaica – The outcome of the Financial Services Commission’s (FSC) decision on whether Liberty Global is required to buy out minority owners of Flow Jamaica is now cloaked in mystery, but indications are that the fight has progressed to the courts… more

CANTO Chair and Secretary General Visit SMART in Belize.

Regional – CANTO Chairman and Secretary General met with Jaime Briceno Chairman Board of Directors SMART, Ernesto Torres CEO, Sean Duncan HOD Data Warehousing, Reporting and Billing, Juan Pablo Lorenzetti IT Operations Manager and Leonardo Calle Director of Network Services at the SMART Headquarters in Belize City, Belize… more

C&W, Digicel deny talk of merger

Regional – TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPETITORS Cable Wireless and Digicel have dismissed reports that they are to become one under the ownership of international cable TV giant Liberty Global… more

Are you killing innovation?

Trinidad and Tobago – It may come as a shock to you that the number one barrier to innovation in your organisation could be you: the boss… more

Online banking blues

Trinidad and Tobago – Advertising and marketing agency, cmb, has commissioned a survey on media consumption in T&T… more

Friday, 14 April 2017

Girls ‘hack’ for empowerment

Barbados – On April 27 as we prepare to celebrate the International Telecommunications Union’s ‘Girls in ICT Day’, girls and young women across three Caribbean islands are being encouraged to be just that! … more

The University of Guyana and the business community

Guyana – Based on what he had to say on the issue during a recent lengthy interview for a forthcoming issue of the Guyana Review, it is clear that University of Guyana (UG) Vice Chancellor Professor Ivelaw Griffith believes that the future of the university will be heavily dependent on the quality of the relationship that it can cultivate with the private sector… more

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HaitiDigicel annonce de nouveaux tarifs pour les appels en République Dominicaine

Haiti – Les clients de Digicel peuvent maintenant communiquer beaucoup plus pour moins cher en République dominicaine ! … more

Organizer Promises “Groundbreaking” Haiti Tech Conference

Haiti – In an effort to accelerate the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and strike a strong blow against the digital divide that has plagued both the U.S and global markets, Haiti is hosting what organizers are describing as the largest annual gathering of innovators addressing humanity’s grandest challenges… more

NOTICE : Hackathon, registration open

Haiti – As part of the celebration of the International Day of Young Girls (27 April 2017) in the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector, which will be organized around the theme « Jèn fi kenbe teknoloji pou louvri chimen », the National Telecommunications Council (CONATEL) is organizing a hackathon for university girls on the entire national territory in order to raise awareness on the science and technology professions… more

Online payment portal for ASYCUDA restored, says Customs

Jamaica – The Jamaica Customs Agency (JCA) is reporting that the online payment portal for the Automatic System for Customs Data (ASYCUDA) has been restored… more

 Nigeria strengthens ties with CTU

Regional – In the wake of the recently concluded ICT Week and Symposium Antigua and Barbuda, the Acting High Commissioner of Nigeria, Mr. Ganiyu A. Adeyemi, paid a courtesy visit to the Secretary General of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), Ms. Bernadette Lewis… more

Amazon Web Services eyes T&T

Trinidad and Tobago – AMAZON Web Services (AWS), the number one cloud provider in the world and a subsidiary of Amazon.com, has expressed interest in bringing its services to Trinidad and Tobago… more

Saturday, 15 April 2017

CANTO Chair and Secretary General Pay Courtesy Visit to New CEO of Belize Telemedia Ltd.

Regional – CANTO Chairman, Julian Wilkins and Secretary General, Teresa Wankin paid a courtesy visit to Rochus Schreiber the new CEO at Belize Telemedia Ltd. (BTL) headquarters in Belize City, Belize… more

Free Data

Saint Lucia – IN the news this week, the Health Minister offered a simple explanation for incurring “an exorbitant” telephone bill of almost $11,000 after attending… more

Call for more T&T women to lead ICT sector

Trinidad and Tobago – Nuria Simo, chief information officer and general manager, Department of Information Technology of the Inter-American Bank (IDB), says the time is ripe to see more women holding leadership positions in T&T’s ICT sector… more

Sunday, 16 April 2017

Carolyn Cooper | Who Is Regulating The OUR?

Jamaica – The director general of the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), Ansord Hewitt, responded quite quickly to the four questions I emailed him about consumer protection in the telecoms sector. His email went to spam, so I didn’t see it until after I’d written last week’s column, ‘FLOW giveth and FLOW taketh away’… more

Yoni Epstein: Building economies of a global scale in a small, sunny corner of the world

Jamaica – Natural entrepreneur and family man Yoni Epstein has achieved, in about half the time, what many men twice his age would envy: a successful, balanced work and home life while retaining the respect and admiration of his friends, peers and colleagues… more

 

Image credits:  GotCredit (flickr); Wikipedia;  Wikipedia;  Bahamas Weekly;  Wikipedia;  Wikipedia

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