Tower Sharing Bahamian Style

Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) signed an agreement last week granting access to over 100 sites on its network from Paradise Island to Inagua to a second mobile provider, reported The Bahamas Press.

BTC claims to have one of the most advanced networks in the Caribbean, and says co-location is attractive to new entrants in the mobile market. This economically sound option allows companies to cease operations at any time, if necessary, since there are no tangible ties in an area. Partnering with BTC will allow this second mobile provider to offer their customers the best mobile network in the area, according to the account.

BTC CEO Leon William said, “Essentially, the second mobile provider will be offering services as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), where they do not own the wireless infrastructure that they use to provide services. Although BTC would receive some level of compensation, it pales in comparison to the investment that we have made over the many years that we have provided services to the people of the Bahamas. In order for one to truly have ‘competition’ the playing field should be fair and balanced.”

The Bahamas Press reported that BTC and the second mobile provider are currently working on finalizing infrastructure-sharing set up, including site visits and assessing technical feasibility. “Although we have signed the agreement in principle, we have to ensure that this request for infrastructure sharing will not compromise the quality and reliability of our network. After all, it is the customer that is most important in this scenario. What’s worthwhile for customers to note though is that through this MVNO setup, they will still be using BTC’s network for mobile services,” Williams ended.

April 13, 2017