The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) is urging the sector regulator to give it more time to both develop a list of its infrastructure facilities, and negotiate facility sharing agreements with rival operators.

The incumbent mobile monopoly, in its response to the Utilities Regulation & Competition Authority’s (URCA) consultation on its draft infrastructure sharing regulations, argued that the timeframe to negotiate such agreements be extended from 42 days to 60 days.

As for submitting an inventory of its network infrastructure and facilities BTC said the deadline should be increased from 30 days to six-nine months.

Neither suggestion is made to measure for a rapid liberalisation of the Bahamian mobile market, but one area where BTC appears to have found common ground with its main domestic rival, Cable Bahamas, is their opposition to URCA’s plan to mandate co-location/facilities sharing between operators.

“Though BTC supports the principles of underpinning the concept of infrastructure sharing, it strongly encourages URCA to ensure that such principles do not operate so that an operator in the market structures its operation such that it is completely reliant on the infrastructure developed by another,” BTC urged.

“Such a situation would operate to undermine the intent behind liberalisation of the telecommunications sector and would not serve the interests of the public of the Bahamas.

“BTC therefore urges URCA to resist any assumption that parties entering the market do not have the requisite resources and deep enough pockets to develop their infrastructure and network, as players market do have pockets and market power that would allow them to undercut BTC.”

The soon-to-be ex-monopoly added: “While BTC appreciates the benefits of infrastructure sharing, particularly those relating to environmental concerns outlined in this consultation, the model which allows for facilities sharing, while still require operators to build out their network, should prevail.

“Any operator entering the market should be required to hold closely to obligations to build out its network within the reasonable timeframes established by the Government of the Bahamas.”

BTC said investment by the new mobile operator in masts, towers and other infrastructure was necessary, as this would further boost “redundancy and resiliency” in the Bahamian communications market by giving this nation two different networks.