Tue | Mar 19, 2024

St Lucia hoping for amicable solution with Digicel over impending increase

Published:Wednesday | December 7, 2022 | 4:57 PM
Digicel postpaid customers have reported that the company informed them of a five per cent monthly subscription fee hike as it deals with the impact of substantial increases in business costs. - File photo.

CASTRIES, St Lucia, CMC – The St Lucia government says telecommunication company Digicel “has not followed the correct protocol” after postpaid customers said they were informed of a “price adjustment”.

Senior Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Ports, Transport, Physical Development, and Urban Renewa, Stephenson King, told reporters that while the company is not adhering to the correct protocol in its price adjustment notice, he is still hopeful of an amicable resolution.

Digicel postpaid customers have reported that the company informed them of a five per cent monthly subscription fee hike as it deals with the impact of substantial increases in business costs.

The company has said that the fees would be made to bills due from December 29 this year.

“I have seen those notices going around and obviously Digicel has not followed the correct protocol,” King told reporters.

King said that the National Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (NTRC) and the Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority (ECTEL) would receive such applications from service providers and that they would seek justification for the service providers' pricing requests.

But, he noted that Digicel, in its notice to customers, cited reasons for proposing the increase and that the NTRC is now looking at the proposal.

King told reporters that he had also spoken to ECTEL and is awaiting a response from both entities.

“…I have also reached out to Digicel themselves and I have had a conversation with them and hopefully we'll be able to resolve this matter amicably,” King added.

Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.