Carib-Tel, one of the recent entrants in Jamaica's telecommunications industry will cut the cost of overseas calls to $17 per minute on November 1, the same day that Cable & Wireless Jamaica will rationalise its international rate structure at $18 per minute.

Carib-Tel, which buys minutes in bulk from C&W and retails them through the use of calling cards, offers calls to any international destination, at a flat rate of $19 per minute.

The telecoms firm, which is headquartered at 12 Dominica Drive in New Kingston, says that with full liberalisation of the market in March next year, it expects to be able to further reduce rates, and offer a wider range of services to its customers.

"We are in talks with other international carriers," says Carlene Wint, operations manager at Carib-Tel.

With full liberalisation, telecommunications firms like Carib-Tel will be able to form alliance with international phone companies like AT&T and Sprint of the USA to offer long-distance service to Jamaicans. Under the current communications law, these intermediaries must go through Cable & Wireless in order to provide long distance connection to their customers.

But Wint expects full deregulation to herald a new era of low-prices and fierce competition in the Jamaican market. He company, she says, is now angling for a major stake in the liberalised market.

"With full deregulation of the local telecoms sector scheduled for March 2003, Carib-Tel, within the more equitable business environment anticipated thereafter, intends to provide Jamaicans with even lower international calling rates," says Wint.

At present, Carib-Tel's pre-paid calling cards are available at its office and through Track-Price-Plus betting offices. They will also soon be available at Paymaster Jamaica locations and the post offices.

Yesterday, Wint told the Business Observer that another land-based calling system that obviates the need for card, and which also had a soft launch in September, gave her company the ability to forge alliance with corporate entities.

With this service, corporate or individual customers are assigned a pre-paid access number which they can keep permanently, and can continually update by making payments. The company provides this service by buying minutes in bulk from C&W.

According to Wint, Carib-Tel has been forging alliance with corporate organisations - including co-branding of products - as one strategy to get a toehold in the Jamaican market. For example, member companies of the Jamaica Manufacturers Association can use the facility, while a multi-purpose co-branded card is being developed with Track-Price-Plus.

"We operate with very small margins," she says, "but only for a short time...What is important is that we are getting our presence in the market".

Carib-Tel is also licensed to provide data and Internet service, as well as free trade zone services.

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