Stephen Twomey

Dear Editor:

We refer to your articles in the Business Observer of 28th, July and 4th, August regarding the "War heats up for overseas call business".

In the article of the 28th, the OUR, in the person of Courtney Jackson alleges that Cable & Wireless has engaged in anti-competitive practices in the voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) call market. Subsequently, in an article on 4th August, Mr Errol Miller of C&W, in response, flatly denies the charges and demands an apology from the OUR.

The Jamaica Competitive Telecoms Association finds this issue potentially very damaging to the members of the association and to the consumers of Jamaica. We believe the allegations made by the OUR are very serious and merit a full investigation by the appropriate agency(s) as well as an independent source.

The potential impact on the Jamaican consumer over a two- to three-year period in terms of over-charging, lack of choice for overseas calls, barrier to entry in the market, flouting public policy and price gouging is substantial.

We are not accusing C&W of committing any wrongdoing. However, when a public agency alleges that a company has engaged in anti-competitive practices, it is imperative that the agency and minister take immediate action to either verify or dismiss the allegations.

We assume the Business Observer would follow up on such a story as it merits strong attention for readers and other interested parties.

Stephen P Twomey
vice-president JCTA

Editor's note:

Twomey is president and CEO of Reliant Enterprises - a company that offers a range of telecommunication services.
Cable & Wireless has strongly denied any involvement in anti-competitive practices.

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