By McPherse Thompson, Assistant Financial News Editor
DIGICEL JAMAICA, which began competing in Jamaica just over two years ago, has accused, Cable & Wireless, of wooing its customers by using numbering information made available so that calls can be made between the networks.
However, the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) said access to the range of mobile numbers assigned to each of Jamaica's telephone companies remained in the public domain and could be accessed by anyone requiring such information.
"That is not confidential information," said David Geddes, the OUR's communication manager. "Cable & Wireless has access to the range of numbers Digicel has been assigned and anybody can get those numbers from the OUR," he added.
ALLEGATIONS
Mr. Geddes was responding to allegations made by Digicel Jamaica that unsolicited calls were being made from another mobile telephone operator to its customers, offering to sell them GSM products and services.
In advertisements during the past week, Digicel went further to say that "this invasion of your privacy by Cable & Wireless is likely facilitated by their use of numbering information, which is normally made available to them so that calls can be made between Digicel's network and their own."
Cable & Wireless Jamaica (C&WJ) when contacted, referred Wednesday Business to the carrier services mobile exchange codes of its customer information pages in its telephone directory, which carries a listing of the first three digits of all mobile telephone companies operating in the island.
SUBSCRIBER
A company official explained that this meant anybody could dial the first three digits of a Digicel number, then four additional numbers to get connected to a subscriber.
The OUR's Mr. Geddes concurred with the C&WJ official, saying that since information on the first three digits of the telephone numbers for Digicel, Centennial as well as C&WJ were in the public domain, individals telephone numbers could not be considered confidential per se.
On the other hand, he said, if C&WJ was using specific information it received from Digicel for billing purposes, and Digicel could provide evidence to substantiate the claim, that would be considered a breach of a confidential agreement. Furthermore, Mr. Geddes said, Digicel has not made a complaint to the OUR regarding an invasion of privacy.
Digicel's marketing manager, Harry Smith, said the company has been "getting a lot of calls" from its customers who said they have been receiving unsolicited calls from people, offering to sell them a range of telecommunications products.
Mr. Smith said Digicel's public notices are "an attempt to reduce the number of those calls being made to our call centre." However, he said it was up to individuals to take the matter to the OUR or other agencies as they saw fit.
