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Caribbean mobile telephone service provider Digicel has ended its fiscal year with a record 4.7 million subscribers as of March 31, 2007, representing a 144 per cent increase when compared to the same quarter in the previous fiscal year (March 31, 2006).
Big growth in Haiti Digicel Haiti also set new records of mobile growth in the region. Celebrating its first year anniversary since launching new services on May 3rd 2006, Digicel Haiti achieved a milestone of 1.4 million customers. Operating in 22 markets, Digicel continues to experience sustained growth in existing markets as well as new markets. In April 2007, Digicel first entered the Central American market with the launch of mobile service in El Salvador. Later this year, Digicel plans to further expand its presence with a pending launch in Suriname. "It's been an exciting financial year as we have expanded our reach beyond the Caribbean and received a resounding vote of confidence from the international financial community. Digicel enters the new financial year with strong growth prospects and a dedicated workforce that is committed to realising our goals for 2007 and beyond," said Colm Delves, Digicel Group CEO. Digicel's key milestones for 2007 to date include: New Mobile Markets: Digicel Guyana launched under the Digicel brand name February 14, 2007, after Digicel acquired Cel*Star U Mobile, the second wireless operator in Guyana, in November 2006. The operation had 18,400 subscribers at the date of acquisition, which has now grown to more than 100,000 subscribers. Digicel El Salvador formally launched under the Digicel brand name on April 12, 2007 after the October 2006 acquisition of the El Salvador mobile operator, Digicel Holdings Limited (an unrelated company). The company has shown strong subscriber growth since acquisition. On April 23rd, Digicel was awarded a licence to operate a GSM network in the newly liberalised market of Suriname. With a population of close to 500,000, Suriname's mobile penetration is estimated at just over 40 per cent, which offers strong potential for growth. Digicel Suriname is expected to launch later this year. New Partnerships Vodafone - In February, Vodafone and Digicel entered into a partnership agreement to offer new roaming capabilities across Digicel's markets in the Caribbean and Bermuda and Vodafone's global network. Under the terms of the agreement, Vodafone and Digicel have become preferred roaming partners, offering customers a seamless world-class mobile experience while travelling on each others' network. Both companies are jointly developing innovative products and services that offer tremendous cost benefits, more solutions and greater value for customers. Huawei Technologies - In March 2007, Digicel partnered with Huawei Technologies to offer CDMA roaming in the Caribbean and Bermuda. Capital Markets and Bond Offering Digicel closed a US$1.4 billion corporate bond offering in February, representing the largest corporate bond offer in the Caribbean. Five times over-subscribed, the issue enabled Denis O'Brien, founder and chairman of Digicel, to drive future growth opportunities and acquire 100 per cent of ownership of the company. Digicel also launched the Digicel Haiti Foundation in March 2007 with a commitment to build 20 primary schools across the country. The company's investment in the Caribbean and the Central American region exceeds US$1.5 billion. Digicel directly employs over 3,000 people across its 22 markets. article link |