Give telecom firms a bit more time – Vanterpool

By Davion Smith, BVI News Online Journalist

Minister of Communications Mark Vanterpool said residents should indulge local telecommunication companies a while longer as they try to improve the quality of their internet services, adding that there have been some improvements in such services since last year.

“If you give them a little bit more time, I believe within the next 12 months I’m expecting a much better improvement,” Vanterpool said in an interview with BVI News Online amid renewed concerns about the relatively poor quality of internet services locally.

He stated that the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) will have to ‘take further measures’ if the telecom companies don’t improve their services to an acceptable standard.

“Over the last year or so, there have been some improvements. We are still not satisfied because there are a lot more improvements to be made. We issued some spectrum last year… We try to encourage them to move along with that. Obviously they have to make an investment to make it happen, and we are doing our best to encourage them,” Vanterpool continued.

“At some point, if it (much better internet) doesn’t happen as we would like, we would have to encourage the TRC to take further measures.”

Vanterpool added that the relatively poor quality internet being offered does not discourage persons from doing business in the territory.