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Digicel flexes into wireless broadband
Digicel all set to unveil 4G Broadband offering
BY AL EDWARDS
Friday, August 13, 2010
MOBILE telephone service provider 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.
It must be stressed here that Digicel will not be offering 4G Broadband on mobile telephone handsets, rather it will be available 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.
Speaking with Caribbean Business Report from Digicel Group's corporate headquarters in New Kingston earlier this week, 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 further added that there are about 263,000 households in Jamaica that have computers, and growing at about 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.
"In Jamaica we have more than a hundred per cent mobile penetration. So if customers are using their mobile phones then they are paying for a landline that is not being regularly used. So one of the things we will be able to do is offer Internet access to customers who can now get rid of their landline telephones. Then there are 147,000 customers that do not have computers, so in order to improve Internet penetration we have to improve PC penetration. So a key part of our strategy is to provide low-cost access to computers. We are working with retailers and distributors to provide finance and bundle arrangements for PCs, laptops, netbooks and our other products. Internet access is one thing, but you have to enable people to get PCs."
Digicel will therefore be targeting households and will be offering USP devices with high speeds. One simply has to unpack it from the box, put the power in then put the cable in and then one has Internet access.
"You don't have to wait for a guy to install it or take a day off work. It is plug-and-play with no landline or cable required for this product. It is very easy to install with no CDs or drivers needed. You can use it outdoors, in the car, anywhere. Our pricing will be very competitive. Our new 4G Broadband offering is reliable, it is affordable and it is easily installable with good coverage," said Boothroyd.
Both LIME and Claro are offering 3G services which Digicel's WIMax's CEO says is not very reliable, not very fast and are not islandwide.
So why doesn't Digicel offer this 4G service on handsets?
"4G handsets have just been launched in North America and Sprint is offering a mobile 4G service. It is a case of offering WiMax integrated into a smart phone. The problem is that a 4G handset costs around US$450 to buy. From our perspective, what is more important is to make sure people have netbooks and access to computers.
In some point in the future 4G handsets will take hold but with such low PC penetration in Jamaica, our average customer will be more interested in getting a netbook rather than a 4G phone. I think people may be more interested in what I call MiFi which is a small device you carry in your pocket making you your very own hot spot. This allows your smart phone, laptop, digital camera to pick up WiMax
and broadcast WiFi. Once
Internet penetration becomes ubiquitous, I think that's when 4G handsets will become more relevant," explained Boothroyd.
New technology such as WiMax has enabled Digicel, with its large customer base in Jamaica, to broaden its product and service offerings. Without its customer numbers, an enterprise like 4G Broadband would become extremely expensive as Digicel would then have to erect new infrastructure and fibre networks. That is why Flow's roll-out is behind schedule.
The way Boothroyd sees it, Digicel's 1100 sites make it economically viable to offer a Broadband service.
"Internet access should be a right and I think that governments need to be supporting Broadband and PC penetration in their countries and we are helping to enable this. Right now our focus with Broadband is Jamaica because it is our biggest market. We need radio spectrum that allows us to offer the WiMax service in the first place, and then we have to evaluate the market opportunities.
Some Caribbean countries already have very high Internet penetration where it may not make sense for a new entrant to come in and offer a service. So on a country by country basis we put together a business case of how we can offer this and in what time frame. Once we roll this out in Jamaica, I can see our CEOs across our markets wanting to get 4G Broadband in their individual territories."
The Digicel WiMax CEO believes that the new service will be a hit with small to medium enterprises. Digicel wants to do to Broadband what it did for mobile phone services -- that is make it affordable, accessible and backed by good service. Digicel has invested over US$850 million in Jamaica and will invest another US$22.7 million in its Broadband service.
BY AL EDWARDS
Friday, August 13, 2010
MOBILE telephone service provider 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.
It must be stressed here that Digicel will not be offering 4G Broadband on mobile telephone handsets, rather it will be available 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.
Speaking with Caribbean Business Report from Digicel Group's corporate headquarters in New Kingston earlier this week, 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 further added that there are about 263,000 households in Jamaica that have computers, and growing at about 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.
"In Jamaica we have more than a hundred per cent mobile penetration. So if customers are using their mobile phones then they are paying for a landline that is not being regularly used. So one of the things we will be able to do is offer Internet access to customers who can now get rid of their landline telephones. Then there are 147,000 customers that do not have computers, so in order to improve Internet penetration we have to improve PC penetration. So a key part of our strategy is to provide low-cost access to computers. We are working with retailers and distributors to provide finance and bundle arrangements for PCs, laptops, netbooks and our other products. Internet access is one thing, but you have to enable people to get PCs."
Digicel will therefore be targeting households and will be offering USP devices with high speeds. One simply has to unpack it from the box, put the power in then put the cable in and then one has Internet access.
"You don't have to wait for a guy to install it or take a day off work. It is plug-and-play with no landline or cable required for this product. It is very easy to install with no CDs or drivers needed. You can use it outdoors, in the car, anywhere. Our pricing will be very competitive. Our new 4G Broadband offering is reliable, it is affordable and it is easily installable with good coverage," said Boothroyd.
Both LIME and Claro are offering 3G services which Digicel's WIMax's CEO says is not very reliable, not very fast and are not islandwide.
So why doesn't Digicel offer this 4G service on handsets?
"4G handsets have just been launched in North America and Sprint is offering a mobile 4G service. It is a case of offering WiMax integrated into a smart phone. The problem is that a 4G handset costs around US$450 to buy. From our perspective, what is more important is to make sure people have netbooks and access to computers.
In some point in the future 4G handsets will take hold but with such low PC penetration in Jamaica, our average customer will be more interested in getting a netbook rather than a 4G phone. I think people may be more interested in what I call MiFi which is a small device you carry in your pocket making you your very own hot spot. This allows your smart phone, laptop, digital camera to pick up WiMax
and broadcast WiFi. Once
Internet penetration becomes ubiquitous, I think that's when 4G handsets will become more relevant," explained Boothroyd.
New technology such as WiMax has enabled Digicel, with its large customer base in Jamaica, to broaden its product and service offerings. Without its customer numbers, an enterprise like 4G Broadband would become extremely expensive as Digicel would then have to erect new infrastructure and fibre networks. That is why Flow's roll-out is behind schedule.
The way Boothroyd sees it, Digicel's 1100 sites make it economically viable to offer a Broadband service.
"Internet access should be a right and I think that governments need to be supporting Broadband and PC penetration in their countries and we are helping to enable this. Right now our focus with Broadband is Jamaica because it is our biggest market. We need radio spectrum that allows us to offer the WiMax service in the first place, and then we have to evaluate the market opportunities.
Some Caribbean countries already have very high Internet penetration where it may not make sense for a new entrant to come in and offer a service. So on a country by country basis we put together a business case of how we can offer this and in what time frame. Once we roll this out in Jamaica, I can see our CEOs across our markets wanting to get 4G Broadband in their individual territories."
The Digicel WiMax CEO believes that the new service will be a hit with small to medium enterprises. Digicel wants to do to Broadband what it did for mobile phone services -- that is make it affordable, accessible and backed by good service. Digicel has invested over US$850 million in Jamaica and will invest another US$22.7 million in its Broadband service.
