The Tribune

The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) last night branded a regulatory probe into its alleged anti-competitive behaviour as “misplaced”, saying it had invested more than $2 million in preparing for number portability.

Responding to the Utilities Regulation & Competition Authority’s (URCA) assertion that it was investigating BTC for causing a three-month delay to number portability’s launch, the incumbent carrier lauded its competitive credentials in a statement issued last night.

“BTC embraces competition as a means to providing better service and more competitive pricing for consumers. It sees number portability (NP) as a part of that business model for The Bahamas,” it added.

Tribune Business exclusively revealed last week that URCA was investigating BTC for anti-competitive behaviour, on the grounds that it deliberately delayed the launch of number portability to maintain its market share and damage rivals.

But, in response, BTC said last night: “Any suggestion that our behaviour at any time has in some way been anti-competitive is misplaced at best.

“Number portability is best served on Next Generation Network (NGN), and every effort is being made to complete it throughout the country in short order. All of our efforts thus far have been to ensure the swiftest and most efficient implementation of NGN and, thereafter by default, the seamless process of number portability for all.”

BTC added: “We have invested over $2 million already on this new system, hardly the sign of an operator being anti-competitive, and we are achieving in 18 months what has taken several years to achieve in most other jurisdictions. Many elements of this programme are outside of BTC’s control.

“Our concerns and issues in rushing number portability are a matter of public record on URCA’s website. On September 2, BTC submitted the Preliminary Determination to URCA laying out the company’s concerns with the number portability process and its management.

“URCA was aware of the realities of the labour environment and constraints facing the company that were impacting delivery of NGN and, ultimately, number portability. BTC has been frank in its disclosures to URCA, and always brought concerns to the regulator as soon as it could.”

This is not a view shared by URCA. As previously reported by Tribune Business, the regulator said BTC had waited until “a very advanced stage” to begin expressing concerns over how quickly number portability was being implemented.

The regulator said it was now investigating whether BTC’s failure to be ready for fixed-line number portability amounted to a breach of the Communications Act and accompanying regulations.

And it suggested that BTC’s behaviour was designed to buttress its dominant market position in fixed-line services by impeding the ability of competitors - chiefly Cable Bahamas - to poach its customers.

BTC’s concerns, and inability to meet the September deadline, related to the transition from its ‘legacy’ fixed-line infrastructure to its New Generation Network (NGN).

All BTC’s fixed-line/landline customers are being switched to the NGN network and, in documents released yesterday, URCA said the carrier had indicated on July 30, 2013, that “just over 50 per cent” had been transferred over.

The upshot of this was that BTC fixed-line customers still on the old network would not have been able to access number portability services come September 3.

BTC, according to URCA, had advised that re-engineering its legacy network to accommodate number portability would have been “too costly and an unreasonable investment in outdated technology and equipment”.

While BTC had advised URCA that it was prepared to implement a temporary solution by August 31, half its customers on the islands of New Providence, Grand Bahama, Abaco and Eleuthera would have been unable to enjoy the benefits of number portability.

Number portability is vital to fostering competition and choice in the Bahamian communications market, as it will allow consumers to keep their existing numbers when switching to another operator - something they will be able to do from September 3, 2013, for fixed-line services only.

This will be especially valuable to Bahamian businesses, who no longer will have to spend time and money on informing customers of phone number changes.

Those harmed most by the delay in number portability’s introduction in the Bahamas have been consumers and businesses.