strictly business
Q&A
Five quick questions For Digicel’s new CEO, Maurice McCarthy In Fiji you built up Digicel’s corporate business, as well as its retail structure. What are your priorities in PNG? A: In line with Digicel’s global approach, in Papua New Guinea we aim to remove boundaries and deliver the best service, best value, best network and the best products and services to consumers and businesses. As part of this, we are heavily investing in data networks, as we recognise that data services are such an important part of every economy. Our expansions included a significant investment in our data network, with additional 3G+ and LTE (4G Long Term Evolution) sites now available in Port Moresby and in Lae. The improved data services in these areas offer increased bandwidth and greater speeds. We also invested significantly to expand our network to areas previously not covered. Now there are an additional 300 new mobile communication sites, offering voice and data services to connect previously isolated communities to the rest of the world for the very first time. In 2015, we are focusing on using this expanded footprint to provide an improved customer experience, offering reliable access to worldclass products and services for all people from the Highlands to the New Guinea islands and beyond. Are you happy with current pricing levels? A: When you look at where we began and then contrast it to where we are now, you can clearly see that services are now more affordable, accessible and reliable. We’ve extended our network and our reach and launched a whole range of value-centric voice, SMS and data offers. Our new Social Passes allow customers to experience more of our data network, by offering them free social media with the purchase of any data pass. Additionally, we have launched a Pay-TV service, Digicel Play, with an objective to make access to TV more affordable. Digicel Play is not your traditional model, we offer three freeto-view channels, plus give customers the choice of a daily, weekly, monthly package. What are your plans to develop the HD pay TV service, Digicel Play? A: We launched Digicel Play last November in Port Moresby and we’ve extended that service from Moresby to Lae, Hagen, Buka and into Kokopo. This is an area we’ll continue to expand and invest in this year. We are producing quite a lot of local content, in terms of health, education and current affairs.
132 Paradise – Air Niugini’s in-flight magazine
Maurice McCarthy … wants to deliver reliable access in PNG to worldclass products and services.