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FLOW Swallows Karib Cable Immediately AFTER Barbados General Election

The following is an extract from Pat Hoyos’ column which appears in today’s Sunday Sun. BU cannot find a link online but a scan of the article titled Karib goes with the Flow does the trick. And why do we find it interesting you ask? Hoyos appears to be a little protective in his writing.…

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Rhea Yaw Ching's, Corporate Vice President - Sales and Marketing at Columbus Communications Inc
Rhea Yaw Ching’s, Corporate Vice President

The following is an extract from Pat Hoyos’ column which appears in today’s Sunday Sun. BU cannot find a link online but a scan of the article titled Karib goes with the Flow does the trick. And why do we find it interesting you ask? Hoyos appears to be a little protective in his writing. Come on Pat Hoyos, tell us what is really stuck in your craw like the proverbial chicken bone!

AT THE TIME OF COLUMBUS’ LAUNCH in Barbados were negotiations already under way with Karib Kable? My silly, inquiring mind wanted to know. Not for any particular reason. I just like to think about such things rather than find myself playing stupid games on Facebook with “friends” I have never met. From the time it officially announced its arrival in Barbados last year through the purchase of TeleBarbados, it seemed like a whole lot of nothing was happening on the street level as far as Columbus was concerned.

Meanwhile, almost everywhere you turned along certain highways and byways, you were in danger of bumping into a Karib Kable van parked under an electricity pole, its linesmen busily “building out its network”. But then, when you stopped at its sales kiosks and asked a question, you were told that the service would only be available in certain parts of the island. So TeleBarbados’ existing set-up remained more or less untouched (it seemed) by its new owners, while Karib Kable was busy as beavers.

30 responses to “FLOW Swallows Karib Cable Immediately AFTER Barbados General Election”

  1. ColonelBuggy Avatar
    ColonelBuggy

    And it stands to reason that duplication within the two entities will be minimised, and that translates into load shedding..of employees.

  2. ColonelBuggy Avatar
    ColonelBuggy

    Meanwhile over in Guyana,
    http://www.stabroeknews.com/2013/news/stories/03/17/bajan-investment-brings-mega-farm-to-region-nine/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+stabroeknewsguyana+%28Stabroek+News%29

  3. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    Fuh true? Fuh real?

    Good reporting ColonelBuggy

    “A Barbados company is pushing ahead with a mega farm in Region Nine, which will have rice as its centrepiece with 120 acres of the crop currently under cultivation and another 980 acres expected to be sown by the end of June.”

  4. Kevin Avatar
    Kevin

    @ ColonelBuggy

    I think thats great news.

  5. Carson C. Cadogan Avatar
    Carson C. Cadogan

    That is old news. But dont be fooled, the money is not Bajan money, when you see projects like this you should follow the money trail.

  6. David Avatar
    David

    This blog is a classic example how the politicians will continue to screw us and there is little regard shown by the public which it is suppose to serve, including the fourth estate. Unless it is an in your face partisan issue where both sides can bray everything else escapes us.

  7. Checkit-Out Avatar
    Checkit-Out

    Col Buggy;
    re. your 4.15 pm post. That development might be a good Ark for any predictable future meteor strike.

  8. millertheanunnaki Avatar
    millertheanunnaki

    @ ColonelBuggy | March 17, 2013 at 4:15 PM |

    Very good news indeed! A very good gesture to advance regional integration to make Guyana the breadbasket of the region in keeping with the dream of EWB and the other past elders.
    What would also be of some interest is some investment- albeit on a smaller scale- in the Four Seasons project and the revitalization of the agricultural sector with all those plantations lying idle and overgrown with cow itch.
    Only goes to show there are people in the region with money or access to money.
    Is that a show of confidence in Guyana and why not Barbados too?

  9. Carson C. Cadogan Avatar
    Carson C. Cadogan

    Miller

    “Is that a show of confidence in Guyana…..”

    Where in Barbados can you grow a 1000 acres of rice?

  10. Pinkie Avatar
    Pinkie

    i do not mind hooking up with karib but i decided to stick to LIME, i am glad i did. everything here now is about some foreign company buying out a small company when they look to make a big mark such as karib was about to do

  11. millertheanunnaki Avatar
    millertheanunnaki

    @ Carson C. Cadogan | March 18, 2013 at 11:16 AM |
    “Where in Barbados can you grow a 1000 acres of rice?”

    Not even one acre can grow rice. Barbados does not have the water and stream-fed fields for paddy production. What we have are good beaches and services to support a viable and vibrant tourism industry along with international business and retirement homes for people looking to live in a warm clime.

    So CCC what’s up with Four Seasons? Gone down Maxwell pond $60 million of NIS funds and all? Not a word so far from the MoF in the Estimates debate.
    Blame! Blame! Blame!

  12. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    @ millertheanunnaki wrote “in keeping with the dream of EWB and the other past elders.”

    I listened to the RE EWB at a political mass meeting outline the vision for a Caribbean that could be 90% self sufficient. Rice,Sugar from Guyana, fruit and vegetables from Dominica, St.Lucia, Jamaica, Oil from Trinidad. Tourism Barbados etc.

    Unfortunately cooperation is not in the DNA of the majority of Humans.

  13. Colonel Buggy Avatar
    Colonel Buggy

    Carson C. Cadogan | March 18, 2013 at 11:16 AM |
    Miller

    “Is that a show of confidence in Guyana…..”

    Where in Barbados can you grow a 1000 acres of rice?
    ……………………………………………………………
    Not in Kingsland, where the plantation has gone to bush.Not on those seven or so Clico plantations in St John that are now covered in cow-itch,and possibly some Mara-warner in between.Not in Gibbons Bogs, which has gone to grass since the Guyanese has left. In fact you are right ,we are hard press at the moment to even find land to produce 18000 tonnes of sugar.
    The buzz word among politicians and industry is , ” Going Green” .We have already achieved this mostly, by allowing our lands to revert mainly to what it was like, when the Portuguese first set eyes of this fair land.

  14. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    Simpson growing rice in Guyana because it is the best place in the Caribbean to grow rice.Cheap land and cheap labour.

    Farming in Barbados requires a lot of investment. Expensive land and labour.

    Ever wonder why Barbados has a farm labour supply program toCanada? Canadians want cheap labour because canadians do not want low wage jobs.

  15. David Avatar
    David

    Was Karib at an advanced stage of negotiation in acquisition talks even as they were applying for a license to operate in Barbados?

  16. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    David wrote “Was Karib at an advanced stage of negotiation”

    These things are usually planned years in advance. capitalists exist to make profits by any means they can get away with.
    Good capitalists business people are like good Chess or Draughts players.

    They plan several moves ahead.

  17. Knight of the Long Knives Avatar
    Knight of the Long Knives

    Telebarbados had actually been out putting up lines (fibre) prior to Karib Kable’s very visible entrance. I know one of their senior operations people and some others and spoke to him a few times in different places on the island. Their vehicles were not branded so it would have slipped by most people.

  18. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    Something sounds not quite right about putting more wires on old rotted poles in a hurricane prone island – when the technology for wireless transmission is so readily available.
    Reddifusion days ain’t long gone…?

  19. Knight of the Long Knives Avatar
    Knight of the Long Knives

    Truthfully i dont see many rotted poles around BL&P is also out swapping them out.

  20. Knight of the Long Knives Avatar
    Knight of the Long Knives

    well BL&P’s contractors

  21. David Avatar
    David

    Should the regulators have been aware of ongoing talks between FLOW and Karib?

  22. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    Bush Tea “Something sounds not quite right”

    As usual Bushie proves he knows everything..

  23. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    @Knight of the Long Knives,

    New pole or old pole they will come down in a Hurricane.

  24. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    david wrote “Should the regulators have been aware of ongoing talks between FLOW and Karib?”

    David the regulators are just there to rubber stamp what the big ups negotiate.

    Hopefully when FOI and IL is implemented we may get more transparency in the wheeling and dealings of the Investor class.

  25. Colonel Buggy Avatar
    Colonel Buggy

    Just a few weeks ago I jokingly asked a FLOW Lineman , if he was looking forward to giving Karib Kable some competition. Not Karib Kable,he answered but,LIME. Perhaps he knew something.
    Bajans at this stage may be hesitant to support Karib Kable, bearing in mind, what was done to many of them last year by Net2View. The bastards knew that they were on the brink of going out of business. invited all disconnected customers to enjoy a free period while they were reorganising.Then encouraged many customers to purchase a now useless upgraded modem .
    All of these entities should from the very start, come directly under the Fair Trading Commission.

  26. It is what it is Avatar
    It is what it is

    David Karib Cable were cleared by licensing from the Broadcast Authority on the 4 the 4th May 2012 and within a couple of weeks were being installed on poles on the island, the reality of the matter is about 6 weeks ago and offer was made to the owners of Karib Cable and on further consideration and in view of the vast resources available to Columbus and the decision was made to sell the entity to Columbus.

    Karib Cable was licensed first and took on making inroads to getting Fibre optics wired around the island at great pace to get the jump ahead of Columbus were they to gain their license to operate locally they subsequently received their own approvals and made the offer to buy out Karib Cable which is where it is at today.

  27. millertheanunnaki Avatar
    millertheanunnaki

    One wonders what is Lime’s take on all of this competition.

    There is no way that C&W will remain a contented player in a contracting profits market. Given the forecast underperformance for the region C&W will see no growth or any highly profitable future and would try to exit the landline business. Too much fixed costs and overheads with declining profit margins in a regulated environment might see the exit of C&W from this sector; at least in Bim.
    We shall soon see when Alex McDonald is “reassigned”.

  28. Knight of the Long Knives Avatar
    Knight of the Long Knives

    I was told 4 or 5 years ago, by a senior LIME manager, that the entire rebranding was part of the effort to sell LIME, in fact they were in discussion with a global telecomms company at the time (i forget the name), this is also the reason for the restructuring that has been going on, there are more layoffs to come.

  29. Wow what happen ?????????? Avatar
    Wow what happen ??????????

    Well FLOW buy Karib Cable and are steadily getting rid of the KArib CAble management staff. Mst of the senior team gone and Tele Barbados team ruling the roost.

  30. clichs.tumblr.com Avatar
    clichs.tumblr.com

    fantastic put up, very informative. I ponder why the opposite specialists of this sector don’t notice this.

    You must proceed your writing. I’m confident, you’ve a great readers’ base already!

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