Wednesday, May 24, 2006

FORT DE FRANCE, Martinique: Digicel, the fastest growing mobile operator in the Caribbean, has announced the appointment of Eric Viel as CEO for Digicel French West Indies, who will be responsible for ensuring that Digicel's entry into the French West Indies will bring more value to customers by leveraging the company's seamless pan Caribbean GSM network.

Digicel's expansion into the French West Indies' markets of Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guiana follows the recent completion of the Caribbean company's acquisition of Bouygues Telecome Caraibe, formerly owned by French mobile operator, Bouygues Telecom.

As CEO of Digicel French West Indies, Viel will focus on delivering a smooth transition for Bouygues Telecom Caraibe's 160,000 plus customers who will maintain all of their existing benefits, in addition to receiving an innovative product range and the region's best performing network with the widest coverage in the Caribbean.

"Eric's customer centric focus and excellent record of leadership in the telecommunications industry position him to deliver on the existing momentum for Digicel's entry into the French West Indies," said Digicel Group CEO Mr. Colm Delves. "We look forward to joining forces with the current team in providing the residents and visitors of the French West Indian territories with our industry leading service and unmatched customer care."

With eight years of experience in the Caribbean mobile telecommunications market, Viel worked as Vice President of Customer Care and Billing with Orange in the Dominican Republic before joining Digicel in 2005 as Group Customer Facing Director. A French national, Viel's experience also includes eight years of consultancy work with Cap Gemini Telecom in Paris where he supported the rollout of GSM networks across the globe from French Polynesia, India, Romania and the French West Indies. Viel is a graduate from the Institute of Technology of Lannion, France.

The acquisition of Bouygues Telecom Caraibe has provided Digicel with a large established pre-paid and post-paid customer base and an advanced GSM network in markets that are populated by more than one million people. The three territories have economies centered on the Euro as their functional currency and serve as a destination for international tourists. Digicel French West Indies coverage area includes St Barths and French St Martin.

Digicel has completed three acquisitions in the past 14 months including Cingular Wireless' Caribbean and Bermuda operations. With recent launches in Trinidad & Tobago and Haiti, the pan Caribbean operator now has operations in 20 Caribbean markets covering a total population of over 15 million people.

  Most popular articles: viewed, printed and e-mailed

  Printable version