Telecommunications in the British Virgin Islands
This article was imported from the CIA's World Factbook. |
Calls from the British Virgin Islands to the US, Canada, and other NANP Caribbean nations, are dialled as 1 + NANP area code + 7-digit number. Calls from the British Virgin Islands to non-NANP countries are dialled as 011 + country code + phone number with local area code.
Number Format: nxx-xxxx
Telephones – main lines in use: 11,700 (2002)
Telephones – mobile cellular: 8,000 (2002)
Telephone system:
worldwide telephone service
general assessment:
worldwide telephone service
domestic:
NA
international:
Connected via submarine cable to Bermuda; the East Caribbean Fibre System (ECFS) submarine cable provides connectivity to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean (2007)
Radio stations: AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2004)
- ZBVI 780 Tortola
- ZJKC-FM 90.9 Tortola (repeats WJKC 95.1 Christiansted, USVI)
- ZGLD-FM 91.7 Tortola
- ZCCR-FM 94.1 Todman's Peak
- ZWVE-FM 97.3 Tortola
- ZKNG-FM 100.9 Chalwell
- ZROD-FM 103.7 Tortola
- ZVCR-FM 106.9 Chalwell
Television stations: 1 (
Internet service providers (ISPs): 1 (1999)
Internet country code: VG
Internet hosts: 465 (2008)
Internet users: 4,000 (2002)
- See also : British Virgin Islands
Deregulation of the telephone market
In 2006, the British Virgin Islands government undertook a
In 2007 the government abolished the previously existing monopolies under an order made pursuant to the new legislation. The process proved politically fraught, and the government's Minister for Communications and Works, Alvin Christopher, ended up leaving the government and joining the opposition party as a result of the furore. The process was also criticised as cumbersome and slow, the initial deregulation having been announced in 2004, and taking no less than three years to come to fruition through delays in legislation and regulation.
Although there have been no new entrants into the fixed line industry, the government issued three licences under the new regime to cellular telephone service providers. The existing provider, CCT Boatphone, obtained one licence.
Digicel then issued court proceedings against the Regulator, arguing that he had acted improperly by imposing an arbitrary limit of three licences (although no complaint was made about the decision to prefer BVI Cable TV's improbable licence over Digicel). Bmobile was joined to the suit as an interested party. High Court Judge Rita Joseph-Olivetti found in favour of Digicel and quashed the original decision.[4] Digicel commenced separate proceedings against Cable and Wireless (as bmobile's parent company) in the English courts, claiming that Cable & Wireless has unfairly stifled competition in several Caribbean jurisdictions.[5] During the intervening period, bmobile has obtained a virtual stranglehold on the cellular telecommunications market in the British Virgin Islands by a combination of low prices and aggressive advertising, as well as significant investment in infrastructure and technology.[6]
Digicel was finally granted a licence on 17 December 2007 and started operations in the BVI on 28 November 2008.[7][8][9]
References
- ^ Telecommunications Act (No 10 of 2006)
- ^ Under the Cable and Wireless (West Indies) Limited Telephones Act, 1975 (Cap 168)
- ^ BVI Platinum news, 23 May 2007 and BVI Platinum news, 4 June 2007
- ^ BVI Platinum News, 25 May 2007
- ^ BBC World news, 19 July 2007
- ^ BVI Platinum news, 8 June 2007 and BVI Platinum news, 25 June 2007
- ^ Caribbean Net News: British Virgin Islands Archived 15 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Jamaica Gleaner News – Digicel to take on two new markets – Investing US$15m in BVI roll-out, bids US$80m for Honduras licence – Friday | 21 December 2007 Archived 22 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ DIGICEL LAUNCHES IN BVI WITH US$17 MILLION INVESTMENT
This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook.
External links
- Ministry of Communications and Works of the British Virgin Islands
- British Virgin Islands, SubmarineCableMap.com