BARBADOS-BASED Columbus International, which operates as Flow Jamaica locally, completed the acquisition of TeleBarbados and Tele St Lucia on Wednesday.

In doing so, Columbus has bought out its direct competitors in the eastern Caribbean islands.

The acquisition gives Columbus a fibre-based telecommunications network in Barbados which allows it to provide services domestic and international voice, Internet exchange, managed data network services, domestic and international telecoms, and various wireless spectrum packages.

The Barbados network currently provides telephony and data services to over 500 commercial clients spanning a variety of industries, and more than 2,300 residential customers.

Tele St Lucia, which was acquired under the agreement, will provide Columbus with similar services in that country.

The company plans to roll out a series of corporate data, connectivity and information technology services under the brand Columbus Business Solutions.

Columbus wants to offer the full triple play of broadband Internet, digital landline telephone and advanced Internet protocol-based video services under the brand name Flow.

The telecoms company already operates in Trinidad, Jamaica, Grenada, and Curacao and provides digital cable television, broadband Internet, digital landline telephony.

The company also provides corporate data services as Columbus Business Solutions. It provides telecoms services through 39,000 kilometres of sea and land to almost half-a-million customers.