The three main network service providers operating in the Territory have said that they are working towards considerable network improvements.

At the ceremony awarding the winners of the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission’s (TRC) video competition held in May, Chief Executive Officer of CCT, Mr. Averad Penn said the consumer’s need for data has grownexponentially.

He added, “We hear the frustration that is out there, but we also work diligently every day to try to make our network better and better, and the work that the TRC has done to open up more spectrum has really greatly assisted us in being able to bring additional capacity to the BVI.”

General Manager for Digicel BVI, Mr. Kevin Gordon, similarly stated that his company wants to step beyond LTE. He added, “We want to go into fiber, we want to connect businesses, we want to connect homes, and if the environment is right, [then] everywhere [in the BVI] everyone will be connected with the fastest, most reliable internet connectivity.”

Meanwhile, General Manager of Flow, Mr. Colin MacDonald spoke of a future of better internet connectivity in the BVI. He said, “The LTE speeds that we are experiencing in the BVI, I have to say, are absolutely world-class. What this also does is it allows us to prepare in the BVI for the massive demand that will be brought on by the internet for things.”

CCT, Flow and Digicel were all granted spectrum awards by the TRC in 2016. The awards gave each service provider the capacity to deliver higher speed internet to residents.

The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC), a statutory body under the Ministry of Communications and Works,is responsible for regulating the telecommunications sector of the British Virgin Islands. The TRC’s goal is to “enable and facilitate the availability of adequate telecommunications infrastructure and services with the view to ensure the long term benefit to the residents and businesses in the Virgin Islands.”