News stories now report that Claro and Viva had opposed the Dominican Telecom Institute (Indotel) authorization of the sale of Orange Dominicana to Altice. Claro (Compania Dominicana de Telefonos) and Trilogy Dominicana (Viva) said that Altice would create market distortion as they were already the owners of 80% of Tricom. They said this would violate free and fair trade in the telecom sector. But Indotel in its Resolution 017-14 issued on Saturday ignored the observations and went ahead and authorized the sale of Orange to Altice. With the merger, Orange can now offer cable TV services through its Tricom division.
El Dia, in a frontpage story today, 11 April, forecasts a major commercial battle is on the horizon as the two major companies seek to convince consumers they are the best option for mobile, internet and cable services.
At the present time, Claro is the leader in the sector.
El Dia reports that the breakdown of market share is:
Residential lines: Claro has 67%, Tricom 22%, Viva 0.08%
Mobile phones: Claro has 53%, Orange 35%, Viva 0.08%, Tricom 0.04%
Internet: Claro 64%, Orange 31%, Tricom 0.04%
Cable: Claro 44%, Tricom 23%
Consumers are hopeful that the competition among carriers will lead to better quality service and lower prices. The quality of telecommunications and related services has declined in recent years, especially following Claro’s acquisition of Verizon. Orange, which has gained a large market share over the past few years especially for its mobile services, has been criticized also for setting high prices and offering questionable quality of service.
Telefónicas se aprestan a batalla comercial por supremacía en RD
La telefónica Claro pide medida cautelar y objeta venta de Orange
http://www.indotel.gob.do/index.php/documentos/estadisticas