LYNCH... demand for our phones is even better than in Jamaica

DIGICEL Jamaica on Friday launched its US$15-million cellular telephone service in Grenada, becoming the first company to begin directly competing against Cable & Wireless (C&W) in the newly liberalised market of the tiny island.

"We spent between US$10-15 million to set up," said Seamus Lynch, Digicel chief executive officer for the Caribbean region. "It was financed by a combination of debt and equity arrangements."

Lynch would not say how long it would take to make a profit. "We have our business plan and prefer not to disclose it," he said.

Lynch expects that within a year, the cellular phone users will peak at around 70,000 in the population of about 100,000.

"C&W has around 20,000 customers and we expect to get the majority of the market...We had a phenomenal start today (Friday) at our stores. The demand for our phones is even better than in Jamaica."

According to Lynch, Digicel's international rates are 41 per cent lower than the rates charged by C&W, while its local mobile per minute rates are 20-25 per cent cheaper.

With 22 cell sites, Digicel says it has full coverage of the island.

Digicel says it will offer the market picture-sending and Internet connecting phones.

The Irish telecom company acquired the licence from the Grenadian government several months ago and signed an interconnection agreement with C&W in July.

For 40 years, London-based Cable & Wireless enjoyed monopoly in telephone services in Grenada and other English-speaking Caribbean countries.

It is reported that Digicel bought equipment from Trans World Telecom Caribbean, which had initially planned to set up cellular and fixed-line services in Grenada, having acquired the licence in January, but having subsequently pulled out.

Digicel already operates in St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia, Jamaica and Aruba with a combined customer base of close to 1 million -- nearly 800,000 of whom are in Jamaica.

Digicel first moved into the Caribbean in 2001, when it paid US$45 million for the licence to set up service in Jamaica, quickly becoming the larger of the two service providers.

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