The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A senior Cable Bahamas executive pledged the group is “not rolling over and playing dead” as she was forced to defend its ability to compete with Elon Musk’s upstart Starlink satellite Internet service.

Chantelle Sands, head of small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) and Family Island innovations for Aliv Business, told the Harbour Island Business Outlook conference that the BISX-listed communications provider is closely monitoring Starlink’s pricing and product offering to ensure it remains competitive.

Asked by an attendee “why we should keep with Aliv and Cable Bahamas”, given the ease of accessing and acquiring Starlink’s services, Ms Sands sought to make a convincing case by pointing to alleged weaknesses in the wireless satellite provider’s business model. She replied: “We are certainly watching Starlink and comparing their service to our service.

“Starlink being a wireless means of connectivity doesn’t give you 100 percent connectivity year-round. We are in the hurricane belt. We have weather a lot, so persons who do have Starlink you will have experienced some congestion or latency or disruption in service.

“While persons may have been driven to take Starlink because of cost, because of convenience, because we know we don’t have infrastructure nationwide and it has become popular.... We are comparing the rates.”

Starlink has acted as a disruptor to the Bahamian communications market, and attracted significant attention from both incumbents - Cable Bahamas and the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC). Ms Sands confirmed: “We are going through the process of creating packages that are comparable to Starlink, and it will be on the wireless side of our business.

“So we are assimilating the product, the service and the feedback that is coming from the customers, so we are not rolling over and playing dead, that’s for sure.” This did not convince the attendee who asked the earlier question, as he replied that customers “can juts go online and purchase the thing” from Starlink “and it’s there”.

They contrasted this with the “typical experience” with Cable Bahamas and Aliv, which saw customers have to call a central office, sometimes take several attempts to get through, and then receive an installation date “sometime in the future” which required the prospective client to be at home. He questioned why Aliv and Cable Bahamas could not implement a system where “you pick up the box, plug it in and you’re good to go”.

Ms Sands, in reply, admitted: “We’re not there yet but we are looking at means of getting the wireless products to our customers at a faster rate; like you said, order online and it’s delivered. We are looking at that. Unfortunately, we do not have stores on every island. We are looking at that to have a means if someone orders through our business solutions line that we can ship the device over to you.”

The Cable Bahamas executive also argued that “Starlink does not have a customer service team in The Bahamas to help you when you have a problem” and that, while all customer payments to the satellite provider are exported outside the country to the US, those to the BISX-listed communications provider remain here.

“When you talk about keeping staff employed and laying people off, that’s it right there,” Ms Sands said. Starlink, though, has been particularly popular when it comes to providing Internet connectivity and service in remote Family Islands that are not covered by BTC and Cable Bahamas/Aliv infrastructure.

Regulators have already rejected Cable Bahamas’ renewed concerns that it is competing on an “unlevel playing field” against Starlink.

The Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA), in unveiling feedback to the consultation on its draft annual plan for 2024, disclosed that the BISX-listed communications provider is “unconvinced” that it is receiving regulatory treatment comparable with that enjoyed by Elon Musk, the Tesla and Twitter (X) magnate’s, new market entrant.

“The Cable Bahamas group believes satellite regulation must be equitable and comparable to the telecommunications regulatory regime. The Cable Bahamas group added that it is unconvinced that the playing field is level for the Cable Bahamas group,” URCA revealed of the company’s stance.

Cable Bahamas based this on how much Starlink is paying to URCA for its annual class licence, and queried how much the satellite Internet provider is contributing to the regulator’s budget in percentage terms. It also challenged if “an initial licence award fee was charged and paid for the granting of a licence”, and added that a spectrum-based service was equivalent to introducing a new cellular mobile operator.

URCA, in reply, said Starlink’s licence restricts it to providing broadband Internet services and it is not permitted to offer mobile services in conformity with a policy that restricts the sector to just two operators - Aliv (Cable Bahamas) and the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC).

“Regarding satellite regulation and the specific inquiries raised, URCA clarifies that Starlink currently provides broadband Internet services at fixed locations in The Bahamas but is not licensed for voice telephony or traditional mobile services,” URCA added.

“The licence conditions imposed on Starlink align with the Government’s policy to refrain from introducing additional competition in the cellular- mobile market. To address concerns regarding transparency, URCA has made the Starlink licence conditions available on our website for public access....

“Starlink is subject to the applicable fees as set out in its licences. On a related note, URCA does not discuss a company’s individual revenue numbers and licence fee payments.”