Guyana, Suriname “soft launch” fibre-optic cable in Curacao

Jul 21, 2010 News

High speed internet…

– Bankers in talks, virtual classrooms a reality soon
Guyana and Suriname have teamed up for an international “soft launch” of their much-hyped multi-million fibre-optic cable.
This, according to Yog Mahadeo, Chief Financial Official (CFO) of the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T), was done during the recent annual meeting of Caribbean Association of National Telecommunication Organizations (CANTO), held in Curacao.
The company is gearing to officially launch the cable later next week, almost a month after customers started experiencing a faster internet.
On Monday, Mahadeo disclosed that there is high interest in the many new services and several banks, including Republic Bank and the Guyana Bank For Trade and Industry, are in talks to benefit from increased bandwidth now available. These will see a host of new services, including e-banking, coming on stream, revolutionizing the way the financial institutions do business.
Already, there has been a surge of applications by new customers for DSL modems to connect to the internet.
Additionally, a major programme that will link schools, universities and enable students to participate in a “virtual classroom” is underway already.

GT&T’s Yog Mahadeo

In Curacao, representing Suriname’s TELESUR, was Russ Headley, a senior official who helped oversee the implementation of the cable in that neighbouring country.
According to Mahadeo, many times in the launch of new services and products, there is the tendency to forget the benefits that these would have. In the case of the new cable, literally hundreds of thousands of students and young people will now experience the possibilities with a new generation growing up and taking for granted what is now happening.
In the case of the “virtual classroom”, a Canadian organization is being consulted to link schools and the universities in the regions, Mahadeo said.
Lauding the collaboration of the two countries, Mahadeo disclosed that GT&T also took the CANTO opportunity to express gratitude to former Chief Executive Officer, Sonita Jagan, for her work in making the cable a reality.
Updating Kaieteur News on the roll-out progress locally so far, the CFO said that already everybody in the Georgetown phase has been upgraded.
However, there are a few challenges, like the state of some copper lines. Explaining, Mahadeo disclosed that damaged lines will break down the signals and there are a number of these challenges being addressed in which some customers are not experiencing the full “experience”.
Additionally, some customers have placed their DSL modems too far away from their computers, again breaking down the reception.
This week, GT&T is meeting with the Private Sector Commission to discuss the possibilities.
Faster downloads, browsing and increased bandwidth are part services being offered by the $30M fibre optic cable.
In the first phase of upgrades, DSL customers in the area of Georgetown and extending to Central Beterverwagting (BV), East Coast Demerara, will be benefitting. It would also include the South Ruimveldt area.
“So if you are receiving a standard 256 kbps (kilobytes per second), you can expect with the upgrade 1024 kbps when the upgrade is completed,” Mahadeo had said late last month.
GT&T is hoping to move eastwards on the East Coast of Demerara by September/October.
The company is targeting to complete its upgrade of all current DSL customers across the country to the “superfast” system by mid-2011.
Explaining this phased approach, the CFO had disclosed that because of the layout of the land and logistics involved, this is the only way it can be done.
Regarding some customers who may have concerns over the fact that they are paying $9,980 monthly for a standard DSL service and still receiving the 256 kbps until the upgrades come, the official hinted at an across-the-board reduced rate in the near future.
Already, the benefits of the heavy investments of the fibre optic cable are being felt.
While GT&T has an estimated 7,000 DSL clients, the executive had said that the company has put into place an aggressive marketing plan to target 40,000 customers by next year.
Already, in addition to three call centers, including Qualfon and Nand Persaud, two other businesses have approached the company to explore talks of buying bandwidth to open more of these facilities.
“The fibre optic cable and its possibilities have opened a host of areas. Additionally, the cost to buy bandwidth has dropped 40-50%. So it is attractive to these businesses interested in call centers.”
While, GT&T had plugged US$30M to bring the cable, additional features to fully optimize the potential of the cable will see another US$20M-US$30M being added, GT&T had disclosed.
The deal to bring the cable to Guyana from Trinidad, through Suriname, was signed in December 2008.
GT&T had announced that it has moved into a “partnership mode” with several businesses in which the company will ensure internet connections and then work with businesses to provide computers and other equipment.
Mahadeo, who is earmarked to take the helm at GT&T as the CEO from August 1, stressed that the company is not just satisfied with bringing the cable, but is fully aware that its potential has to be fully exploited.
Recently, government announced that it is bringing a fibre optic cable from Brazil to help improve its “e-governance”.