The Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) issues the Final Determination on
the review of the state of competition within the markets for retail fixed electronic
communications services in The Bahamas. This encompasses retail fixed voice, retail fixed
broadband, and retail pay TV services.
URCA issued the Preliminary Determination ECS 04/2024 on 28 February 2024 where URCA
outlined its preliminary views on the competitive dynamics in the retail fixed markets of the
sector.
URCA received feedback over two consultation rounds from The Bahamas Telecommunications
Company Limited (BTC) and Cable Bahamas Limited (CBL). Having considered the feedback
received, URCA now issues its confirmed findings in the Final Determination.
URCA identified significant market power (SMP) in various segments of the electronic
communications market.
In the Retail Fixed Voice Services sector, BTC holds SMP. BTC is required to continue offering its
current standalone fixed voice tariff plans to residential and business customers.
Regarding Retail Fixed Broadband Services, CBL holds SMP in areas where it competes with BTC
and BTC holds SMP in the remaining islands where it is the dominant provider.
Both BTC and CBL are required to continue offering their current standalone fixed broadband
plans and double play bundles that include fixed voice and fixed broadband services to
residential and business customers. BTC is required to offer geographically uniform prices for its
retail broadband services.
For Retail Pay TV Services, CBL is the dominant provider. CBL is required to continue offering its
current standalone pay TV plans to residential and business customers.
URCA now allows providers more flexibility in implementing new services and price changes by
relaxing certain pre-approval requirements. URCA’s pre-approval will only be required for price
increases above the previous year’s inflation rate in markets where the provider has SMP. All
other modifications in SMP markets will only require the provider to notify URCA before
implementation.
With Multi-product Bundles including Pay TV Services, CBL holds SMP however no additional
remedies beyond those applied to other markets were deemed necessary.
Beyond market-specific measures, URCA has outlined several overarching remedies applicable
to both BTC and CBL, including the continued need to produce separated accounts in line with
URCA’s Accounting Separation Guidelines. Additionally, both operators are mandated to
publish all tariffs on their websites, enhancing transparency and accessibility for consumers.
This initiative underscores URCA’s commitment to fostering a competitive and fair market
landscape for electronic communications services in The Bahamas, ensuring that consumers
enjoy high-quality services at reasonable prices.
The document is available at www.urcabahamas.bs.
Media Contact:
Juan McCartney
Corporate and Consumer Relations Manager
Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority
jmccartney@urcabahamas.bs
1 (242) 396-5242