The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Cable Bahamas has met all the obligations mandated by the Bahamian governnment, a senior executive telling Tribune Business the BISX-listed communications provider injected $50 million back into the economy annually.

Arguing that its submission for a 27 per cent increase in the monthly price of its basic cable TV product, SuperBasic, was being impacted by “misinformation”, David Burrows, Cable Bahamas` marketing chief, said the company “does pay its way and continues to do so”.

Pointing out that Cable Bahamas had invested $300 million in the roll-out and maintenance of its nationwide fibre optic infrastructure to-date, Mr Burrows acknowledged that “people have questioned over and over” whether the company had met its contractual and licence obligations.

He told this newspaper: “The first licence, our obligation was to cover 90 per cent of the population in certain communities. All those obligations laid out in that document we met in about 1999.

“We’ve satisfied all the obligations, the biggest question the public have. Based on the initial contract with the Bahamas Government in 1994, all those obligations have been met.”

Mr Burrows said Cable Bahamas’ first licence also required it to meet a “pre-obligation” of covering 40 per cent of the population in those communities. The company had to post a $1 million bond with the Bahamian government as security/a guarantee it would meet its commitments.

“Today, we are in front of 97 per cent of the population with our plant,” Mr Burrows told Tribune Business. And, with its off-air Universal Service Obligation (USO) signals carrying a six channel line-up to 16 Bahamian communities, “Cable Bahamas is in front of 99 per cent of the population”.

Cable’s marketing head reiterated the company’s position, though, that the SuperBasic price increase application and a USO cable TV offering were two completely separate, independent issues.

“How the USO breaks out from that is a completely separate issue from the price increase,” Mr Burrows explained. “They shouldn’t have been co-mingled, given that we are still in talks with URCA as to how that’s finalised and played out.”

With the new regulatory regime in place, he added: “Under the Communications Act 2009, we have been building stations throughout the Bahamas to take us to 99.9 per cent of the population.

“The question is the timing to get us to 99.9 per cent. The requirement is in fact to communities of 10 homes or more. The question of who is going to identify those communities is part of the talks with URCA.”

When it came to the 27 per cent SuperBasic price increase application, Mr Burrows told Tribune Business: “There’s misinformation out there, and in many instances it’s intentional misinformation.”

Tackling the notion that Cable Bahamas did not need the price increase, due to its profitability, and was simply imposing a further burden on Bahamian consumers, Mr Burrows said: “Yes, Cable Bahamas has made over $200 million over the past 17 yearrs. I will not dispute that number.

“But Cable Bahamas has invested over $300 million in our network. In 2000, when Cable Bahamas established the broadband Internet sector, we were the first player. According to the International Telecommunications Commission, at the end of 2000 the Bahamas had an 8 per cent broadband penetration. By the end of 2011, the country had advanced to where we had a built penetration of 65 per cent of the population.

“To take that a step further, that’s the 51st position in the world and number 12 among the developing countries. That’s not a small feat for a country of this size to have a network that is the envy of the region.”

Pointing out that Cable Bahamas had a duty to deliver investment returns for its 3,000 Bahamian shareholders, Mr Burrows said the company also had a responsibility to its 500 employees and, by extension, the 1300 people in their families.

“Cable Bahamas invests - whether it`s wages, buying goods, electricity, vehicles or buldings - $50 million back into the economy annually,” Mr Burrows told Tribune Business. “Cable Bahamas does pay its way in this community, and continues to do so.”

While acknowledging that URCA, as communications industry regulator, had to consult the Bahamian public over the SuperBasic price increase as part of the established process, Mr Burrows hinted that Cable Bahamas had its doubts about the Town Hall format employed.

Some observers believe they have acted as little more than forums for “open season” on Cable Bahamas, and Mr Burrows said he personally did not think they “lent themselves to a two-way form of communication”.

“There`s been a lot said, its a very emotional subject, but we see price increases happening every day throughout this community,” he added. “We see companies making millions and millions every day, and no ones saying anything. Were talking about Cable, and were not isolated in the community.”

Asked whether URCAs decision on Cable Bahamas application would be impacted by the consultation process, Mr Burrows added: “It has to be influenced because thats the procedure URCA put in place. Its important there is consultation, how that consultation takes place is debatable, but it will be influenced by that. There is no doubt about that.”

Asked whether Cable Bahamas had been surprised at the complaints about service quality aired at the Town Hall meetings, Mr Burrows said the company had 80,000 customers and just 50 spoke at the New Providence meeting.

Pointing out that the BISX-listed communications provider had invested heavily in digitising its network, going back into some clients` homes for the first time in 15-16 years to re-wire and upgrade them, Mr Burrows told Tribune Business: “Does our company have service issues? You betcha we do. Do we work on them on a continual basis? Absolutely.”

Pointing to Cable Bahamas` ongoing staff training, Mr Burrows added: “Customer service is a huge focus for our company. Will we have customer service issues? Yes. Do we fix them? Yes.”

Responding to criticism that Cable Bahamas` 15-year cable TV exclusivity had been too long, Mr Burrows said the company had never had a pay-TV monopoly in the Bahamas due to the presence of 30,000 satellite subscribers.