Demand for submarine cable capacity on the rise in the Caribbean

Saturday, October 25, 2003

NORTH ADAMS, USA: There is already a requirement for new submarine capacity within the Caribbean region and a lack of capacity specifically designed to handle intra-regional Latin American traffic, say analysts at Pioneer Consulting in a new report that analyzes the supply-demand balances in each of 40 countries. 

Between 2003 and 2013, peak hour cumulative Caribbean demand or submarine connectivity to North America is forecast to increase by 27% p.a., while demand from Latin America for North American connectivity will grow slightly faster at 30%. 

With Hispanics set to eclipse African Americans in the next decade as the largest ethnic minority in the US, it is not surprising to see that overall demand for connectivity to North America is high and that Internet traffic is a dominant feature. There are a growing number of US-based Hispanic ISPs whose users are mainly located in Latin America. 

According to Pioneer, Puerto Rico is and will remain the main driver of Caribbean demand, both for North America and for intra-regional connectivity. The second echelon of countries in both segments consists of Jamaica, Dominican Republic, the Cayman Islands, the Netherlands Antilles, and Haiti. 

"This has been a fascinating exercise to understand the dynamics of two regions which are at slightly different stages of market liberalization," contends Julian Rawle, senior market analyst at Pioneer Consulting. "While Latin American markets in general are already open to competition, Caribbean states are in the process of breaking down incumbents' monopolies," he adds. 

The report, "New Business Models for the Caribbean & Latin American Submarine Cable Industry" examines the past, present, and future commercial environment in the Caribbean and in Latin America as it pertains to the submarine fiber-optics industry and draws conclusions about which business models are likely to be used for future submarine projects in these regions. 

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