Recently appointed BTC CEO, Leon Williams, made a courtesy call to the Parliament Street offices of the Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Dr. Hubert A. Minnis. They discussed BTC three years after Cable and Wireless Communications acquired the majority share in the company, the telecommunications industry in the region and what BTC must do to remain competitive locally and internationally.
The conversation turned to the methods the new CEO and BTC are implementing to tackle dropped calls, to get their numbers well below the international standard of 1.8%. Mr. Williams stated that BTC has hired Cyber Comm Inc., a technology system maintenance and repair consulting firm, to identify and assess issues pertaining to this problem and furthermore plans to invest millions of dollars 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, CEO Williams noted that by law, telecommunications companies are required to cover 90% 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 all the islands in the country. He 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 with cellular liberalisation.
With their eyes to the future, Dr. Minnis and Mr. Williams discussed the opportunities for Bahamas to become an information and communications technology hub for the region. However, Mr. Williams claimed that first Bahamas would 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 believes that with strategic developments, Bahamas can fill this void.
The two leaders also expressed hopes that a boost in the technology sector could bring boons for the future of the people. Williams noted that many Caribbean countries have made significant pushes for increased computer literacy and technology penetration. Both men expressed the importance of Bahamas working toward this goal, with Williams voicing hopes that the Bahamas might seek out smart alliances with large technology companies to increase technology penetration in schools, and potentially emulate Caribbean programmes which provide laptops to high school students.
Williams wrapped up the meeting with a statement to Minister Minnis expressing his firm belief that technology, and BTC, are central to the sustainable development of the country. “The challenge for BTC is, how do we frame our future sustainability,” said the CEO “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.”
BTC CEO Leon Williams and Sr. Manager of Public Relations, Jerome Sawyer paid a courtesy call to Official Leader of the Opposition, The Hon. Dr. Hubert Minnis. BTC and the telecommunications industry in the region were the topics for discussion and also what BTC must do to remain competitive locally and internationally.
Official Leader of the Opposition The Hon. Dr. Hubert Minnis greets BTC CEO Leon Williams and Executive Assistant to the CEO Ivy Walkes at the MP’s Parliament Street offices.
