Laqtel staying nimble

The deal was supposed to be a ten-year agreement whereby the company would provide the local entity with technical and management support, but that has since been shelved.

Laqtel is now in discussion with another player, Bell Canada, and another US operator, to help take up the slack.

While admitting that it was a setback, Barrow said it all depends on what the other parties bring to the table. “Is it a set back ?” he asked. “It depends on how it is managed.”

He noted though that the company was working to mitigate any delays caused by this development. Pre-commercial testing was supposed to have started in March, with the switch — a major component of their start-up operations — “more than 99 percent ready,” Barrow said in an interview. Barrow said Laqtel has set June as the month to be fully operational.

Laqtel, he said, is working to create its own market niche “where nobody can touch us.” In newspaper advertisements, the company sought to explain why its CDMA network was ahead of the competition. As evidence of its market presence, Barrow said the company received 10,000 new applications seeking residential services.

“You are going to get much more for your dollar,” he said. One example of CDMA’s advanced technology is that there are fewer dropped calls and clarity of calls, coming from being connected to three cell sites, instead of one with GSM. He swears by Laqtel’s CDMA network. He talks about it being 30 percent more efficient than GSM, requiring less cell sites. Apart from being “software driven,” he trumpets the ability to “turn up capacity at the flick of a button.” A GSM upgrade, both Digicel and TSTT have to go to the telecom authority for more spectrum.

Questions have also been raised about the ability of Laqtel to survive, whether they can cut it in an environment that has become highly competitive. He admits their business plan is a conservative one, conservative in projection for both growth and revenue. “In a worse case scenario, we can still come out on top,” he said. “People think that we are not going to survive. They say we are going to be blown out of the market.”

“We have heard that and we are not phased,” he added.

He takes comfort in the fact that UK mobile company, Orange, was the last to enter the market and is now close to being number one. “We are optimistic that we can do the same,” he said. Barrow, who once headed TSTT’s mobile division, said the company has already acquired 169 of the 219 cell cites needed, they have installed just over 100 throughout the country.

To date, the company had spent about TT$300M building its network, building its switch and putting its billing system in place. This also includes its pre and post- paid platform, its WAP (wireless access portal) used mainly for formatting graphic files for hand sets gateway, and leasing cell sites.

He insisted that Laqtel has not built sites “at will” as other cell providers have done, an indirect reference to Digicel and TSTT.
“Laqtel has met the requirements of the Telecom Act,” he said, noting that it was no secret that cell sites were put down before the Act came into force and therefore unregulated.

“We are being made to pay for the sins of others,” he said, noting that the company had reached a cell-sharing site agreement with TSTT, in an effort to cut down on the proliferation of cell cites.

The setting up of cell sites by mobile telecom operators have drawn the ire of residents who see them as a danger to their health.

Laqtel is also having discussions with Digicel on co-location of cell sites, Barrow said, noting that co-location reduces both costs and the number of cell towers.

Leasing land for cell towers can be pretty lucrative. Residents can earn from between $3,000 and $10, 000 monthly just by giving permission to have cell sites set up. He said the Telecom Authority was caught flatfooted as far as the setting up of cellular towers go and feels that they fell short on the interconnection issue in that the authority could have done more to facilitate the process before licences were granted.

As far he sees it, cell sites can enhance property value, not bring it down. Asked about the health risks that these towers may pose, Barrow dismisses the risk factor, saying that nobody has proven emissions affect individual health. “I can’t say that there is no potential risk, but not a single case has been proven as yet,” he said.

He is adamant that the market is ready for change, and choice. He is dismissive of any suggestion that Laqtel might be squeezed out of the cellular market nor does he entertain any thought that Digicel and TSTT have the market sewn up. With an arsenal that includes broadband capability and voice and data services, Laqtel is confident that they can carve a niche for themselves.

In surveys done by the company, Barrow noted that 85 percent of the people have indicated that they want a change; they also give Laqtel the thumbs up for market presence, even though the company is yet to make a call.

“We feel confident that when we come to the market, our products are going to go beyond expectations,” he insists.

He was also adamant that Laqtel was not affiliated with any political party. Laqtel founder Dr Joe Laquis has for years had ties with the ruling PNM. “We have had no benefits as a result of Laqtel’s association with the PNM.” he said. “I am not seeing any.”

The company, he said, had had expressions of interest from regional and foreign entities to become equity partners. This includes Barbados, Suriname, Antigua, US, UK and Germany. Still, he insists that the company wants to remain a distinct local entity. “We are pushing 100 percent locally- owned.”

He said Laqtel chairman, Peter Genteaume, and who is due to retire as CEO at Guardian Holdings Limited (GHL) has brought an immense drive to the company. He has already set up several committees : Finance and tenders as well as the marketing and sales and HR.

On interconnection, he said there can be no more delays, deliberate or accidental. In obvious reference to TSTT’s tactics, Barrow noted that all incumbents string out interconnection. He said had they been the incumbent, Laqtel might have done the same. “It is business,” he said, matter-of-factly.