The Tribune

Newly-appointed Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) chief executive, Leon Williams, is aiming to reduce the carrier’s dropped call levels to below the international standard of 1.8 per cent.

He discussed the company’s plans to remain competitive with Dr Hubert Minnis, the Opposition leader, and the way forward for BTC three years after Cable and Wireless Communications (CWC) acquired the majority stake in the company.

Mr Williams said BTC has hired Cyber Comm Inc, a technology system maintenance and repair consulting firm, to identify and assess issues relating to the dropped call issue. The carrier also plans to invest in new equipment to expand the network and improve service.

“We have already seen an improvement in service thanks to the use of cellular towers on wheels, or C.O.W.s,” said Mr Williams. “These are mobile cell sites containing cellular antennae, and are particularly useful in areas like the Baha Mar construction site, where new concrete buildings are blocking existing antennae.

“We understand the frustration in dropped and blocked calls, and are working fervently to permanently alleviate this issue. Currently, we have 30 stationary cell sites and plan to implement 20 more, an investment of $20-25 million,”

As the conversation shifted to the eventual issuance of a second cellular license, Mr Williams said that by law, telecommunications companies are required to cover 90 per cent of the population with their services.

This percentage is easily reached by serving the populations of New Providence, Grand Bahama and Abaco, which are just a handful of the Bahamian islands.

Mr Williams stressed BTC’s commitment to covering the whole Bahamas as their ‘social responsibility’, and sought Dr Minnis’ thoughts on rephrasing this law to protect customers in the Family Islands as new companies enter the market through cellular liberalisation.

Dr Minnis and Mr Williams discussed the opportunities for the Bahamas to become an information and communications technology hub for the Caribbean.

Mr Williams said the Bahamas would first have to improve its current cable network range. He said that within the existing regional structure, many calls to the southern Bahamas and southern Caribbean travel ‘up’ to Miami before going back ‘down’ to their intended destination.

This creates a dependency on Miami for all Caribbean telecoms. Mr. Williams said that with strategic developments, the Bahamas can fill this void.

Mr Williams also voiced hopes that the Bahamas might seek smart alliances with large technology companies to increase technology penetration in schools, and potentially emulate Caribbean programmes that provide laptops to high school students.

“The challenge for BTC is: How do we frame our future sustainability?” said Mr Williams. “Broadband is the oil of the 21st century and data is the currency. How can we as a company and as a nation maximise this?”