DIGICEL files for bankruptcy

Postby **Dave** » May 19th, 2020, 9:39 am

Correct all those subject to an Audit opinion as that generally means 3 rd parties are privy to the financials and thus the company is in the position of getting all their checks and balances approved and other approvals sought.

Dizzy28 · Postby **Dizzy28** » May 19th, 2020, 10:03 am

Since Digicel doesn't really reveal much I wonder how well Trinidad's performance has been in their overall portfolio?
Given they are LAC and Pacific focused we have to be one of the largest economies they operate in as distinct from largest markets. For sure it doesn't seem their mobile was able to go up against TSTT just based on my limited sample size of contacts in our company address book. Most are still TSTT #s.

ICT men with more knowledge can chime in.

88sins · Postby **88sins** » May 19th, 2020, 10:48 am

You'd be surprised how many "TSTT" numbers were actually forwarded to & currently serviced by Digicel..

don't be fooled, they actually have decent market share locally

pugboy · Postby **pugboy** » May 19th, 2020, 1:10 pm

they would have had even bigger share not for the legal wrangling during the initial demonopolization attempts as tstt service really sucked then.

digicel got a fair start in jamaica and easily outpaced CW there, not sure how they stand in the jamaican market now.

Ryan197912 · Postby **Ryan197912** » May 19th, 2020, 3:21 pm

Dizzy28 wrote:Since Digicel doesn't really reveal much I wonder how well Trinidad's performance has been in their overall portfolio?
Given they are LAC and Pacific focused we have to be one of the largest economies they operate in as distinct from largest markets. For sure it doesn't seem their mobile was able to go up against TSTT just based on my limited sample size of contacts in our company address book. Most are still TSTT #s.

ICT men with more knowledge can chime in.

Clearly you never heard about porting...

meccalli · Postby **meccalli** » May 19th, 2020, 3:32 pm

Everything will be as usual down here from what I gather.

Dizzy28 · Postby **Dizzy28** » May 19th, 2020, 3:39 pm

Ryan197912 wrote:
Dizzy28 wrote:Since Digicel doesn't really reveal much I wonder how well Trinidad's performance has been in their overall portfolio?
Given they are LAC and Pacific focused we have to be one of the largest economies they operate in as distinct from largest markets. For sure it doesn't seem their mobile was able to go up against TSTT just based on my limited sample size of contacts in our company address book. Most are still TSTT #s.

ICT men with more knowledge can chime in.

Clearly you never heard about porting...

Porting started in 2016 whilst Digicel been here since what 2006?? I don't believe there was an en masse rush to change providers between 2016 to now just because you got to keep your number.

Any big changes to providers would have happened early on when Digicel actually had so much offerings and extras that they were actually much different from TSTT. Now its consolidation.

But if you happen to know some figures I welcome them.

FrankChag · Postby **FrankChag** » May 20th, 2020, 1:45 am

Compensations specialists know how to ensure executives get their handshakes when they leave. Exec compensation pegged to performance in the Caribbean is a joke. And when the CEO and the Audit partners are drinking / lodge partners, well, anything goes.

Unfortunately TATT reports don't help much with bmobile vs digicel mobile market share in this day and age, but at least we know there are 150 mobiles for every 100 ppl, so lots of folks have 2 phones still.

--> https://tatt.org.tt/ReportsPrices/Quart ... /2019.aspx

As for Digi, well, Digi's holding company in jamaica has been hovering around a junkish and C rating for a long time, so its not surprising (https://www.fitchratings.com/entity/dig ... d-86955953). Salary cuts during a restructuring hints at desperation (ppl are usually fired before salary cuts, and they've been sending folks home as part of the 'restructuring' already). It really doesn't look good. Here the actual filing: https://caymanmarlroad.com/digicel-berm ... -new-york/.

Flow/CW/Liberty has been itching to get into the mobile market.
They could make a play if Digicel goes belly up.

Or maybe Huawei themselves might swoop in... still too early to call it.

FrankChag · Postby **FrankChag** » May 20th, 2020, 1:55 am

afterthought: bmobile (tstt) is too highly levered to make that play for digicel mobile and fiber infrastructure, and tatt of course would never allow just one mobile/fibre operator. And if Liberty/CW/Flow purchases digicel assets, there's the ownership issue: CW theoretically still owns 49% of TSTT in a blind trust.. so there's that issue. So 3rd mobile and fiber operators without any attachments might be a more appealing option for TATT.. might be china, might be someone from latam.. might even be euro providers.

But knowing the pace that tatt moves at.. sigh... good opportunity for TSTT/bmobile to gain some marketshare. Give jack his jacket, bmobile is owned by NEL, so they not going anywhere in the short/medium term..

agent007 · Postby **agent007** » May 21st, 2020, 9:52 am

Huawei will take over if Digicel is gone. The Chinese Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, here we come!

Dizzy28 · Postby **Dizzy28** » May 21st, 2020, 10:02 am

agent007 wrote:Huawei will take over if Digicel is gone. The Chinese Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, here we come!

Huawei isn't involved in this segment of the market i.e. consumer services.

Why would they start now with a company serving a combined market smaller than the population of Shanghai?

death365 · Postby **death365** » May 21st, 2020, 10:43 am

Yeah but China Mobile can https://www.chinamobileltd.com/en/about/overview.php

Dizzy28 wrote:
agent007 wrote:Huawei will take over if Digicel is gone. The Chinese Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, here we come!

Huawei isn't involved in this segment of the market i.e. consumer services.

Why would they start now with a company serving a combined market smaller than the population of Shanghai?

Dizzy28 · Postby **Dizzy28** » May 21st, 2020, 10:46 am

death365 wrote:Yeah but China Mobile can https://www.chinamobileltd.com/en/about/overview.php

Dizzy28 wrote:
agent007 wrote:Huawei will take over if Digicel is gone. The Chinese Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, here we come!

Huawei isn't involved in this segment of the market i.e. consumer services.

Why would they start now with a company serving a combined market smaller than the population of Shanghai?

Who ever it is still not entering a monopoly market. In every segment there are choices. No one would be forced to stay with any Chinese company.

2ndchance · Postby **2ndchance** » May 21st, 2020, 1:56 pm

FrankChag wrote:....Flow/CW/Liberty has been itching to get into the mobile market.
They could make a play if Digicel goes belly up. ....

Have they really? If so, what or who has been stopping them?

wagonrunner · Postby **wagonrunner** » May 21st, 2020, 8:25 pm

2ndchance wrote:
FrankChag wrote:....Flow/CW/Liberty has been itching to get into the mobile market.
They could make a play if Digicel goes belly up. ....

Have they really? If so, what or who has been stopping them?

LIME ceased to exist?
The M in Lime is for Mobile, has been active in the Caribbean over a decade, and is owned by CW

FordeG · Postby **FordeG** » May 21st, 2020, 8:51 pm

I have heard this entire Digicel bankruptcy is fake news and it's a Bermuda company named Digicel Group One Limited, that has no affiliation with our regional Digicel, that has declared bankruptcy. What is the truth?

2ndchance · Postby **2ndchance** » May 21st, 2020, 9:10 pm

wagonrunner wrote:
2ndchance wrote:
FrankChag wrote:....Flow/CW/Liberty has been itching to get into the mobile market.
They could make a play if Digicel goes belly up. ....

Have they really? If so, what or who has been stopping them?

LIME ceased to exist?
The M in Lime is for Mobile, has been active in the Caribbean over a decade, and is owned by CW

I think C&WC had changed the brandname LIME to FLOW. I should have specified that I was asking regarding our local market. I thought FLOW was the most likely to become our 3rd mobile service provider. Wasn't TATT interested in facilitating one more provider, even after Laqtel? Does it have something to do with C&WC's 49% share in TSTT?

death365 · Postby **death365** » May 22nd, 2020, 6:49 am

That is fake news. Remember when it was to be laqtel circa 2006.

Tatt literally can give a concession to a 3rd provider at any time. They have the authority but the rather bend to politics.

2ndchance wrote:
wagonrunner wrote:
2ndchance wrote:
FrankChag wrote:....Flow/CW/Liberty has been itching to get into the mobile market.
They could make a play if Digicel goes belly up. ....

Have they really? If so, what or who has been stopping them?

LIME ceased to exist?
The M in Lime is for Mobile, has been active in the Caribbean over a decade, and is owned by CW

I think C&WC had changed the brandname LIME to FLOW. I should have specified that I was asking regarding our local market. I thought FLOW was the most likely to become our 3rd mobile service provider. Wasn't TATT interested in facilitating one more provider, even after Laqtel? Does it have something to do with C&WC's 49% share in TSTT?