Hoy newspaper reports that Codetel and Tricom have joined forces to sue two newcomers to the telecommunication market in the DR and the Instituto Dominicano de Telecomunicaciones (Indotel), reportedly for damages to their business interests. Jose Guillermo Sued, director of Indotel that regulates the telecommunications industry in the DR, confirmed there is an ongoing court case. The two newcomers are Centennial of Puerto Rico and France Telecom (http://www.francetelecom.com/vanglais/i/i1.html), both considerable competitors to the established firms. Centennial (http://www.centennialcom.com) enters the DR market after purchasing 70% of the shares of All America Cables and Radio and recently announced it would be investing 75 million dollars to gain market share. The company has announced plans to establish services that will improve communication between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. France Telecom has partnered with Guaroa Liranzo, one of the most powerful men of the Balaguer administration who has continued his influence in this administration. Liranzo already has the concession for Skytel, (beepers and cellulars). Reportedly, France Telecom services will be available in Santo Domingo within six to eight months. Consumers that have seen quality of service drop considerably in recent years welcome the competition the two new telecommunication players should bring. Service has suffered at Codetel as the company seemingly is sacrificicing its reputation of excellence to maintain the high profitability levels of years prior to the Internet and telecommunications revolution.
