Digicel vs. LIME - Clash of the Titans

There should be a law against distributing reading material in traffic. Reading while driving is distracting. And it seems like every week there is a new promotion from LIME or Digicel. Someone should do a study to see if there is a correlation between Digicel and LIME promotions, and traffic accidents. Having said that, I'd like to see more companies hiring hoardes of young people to block traffic.
 
The level of competition we see in the telecommunications industry does not exist in any other industry locally. The liberalization of the market and entry of Digicel, saw Jamaica catapulted to the vanguard of mobile penetration. The efforts by LIME to regain relevance, gave Jamaica a network as advanced as those existing in fully developed countries. And subsequent efforts to best each other has seen coverage wars, data network upgrades, and price slashing bloodbaths. Such competition keeps both companies from stagnation, and ultimately benefits consumers.
 

 
The latest blow by Digicel is a perfect example of this. Digicel has finally launched a mobile data network which will bring high speed connections to your handset. This is an arena in which Digicel has been conspicuously absent, leaving LIME the king of the mobile data hill. LIME's support for a full range of mobile data devices including tablets, coupled with affordable pricing, garnered them a following of road warriors.
 
A few months ago, LIME reduced their already affordable mobile rates. It is now obvious that this was a preemptive move, in anticipation of Digicel's entry into the space. The result is that Digicel's mobile rates are on par with LIME's offering, giving consumers true freedom of choice.
 
Aside from the obvious benefits and growth in the telecommunication sector, other businesses have seen windfalls resulting from the heightened state of competition. Three years ago when Claro entered the fracas, media and advertizing companies had their hands full creating increasingly aggressive ad campaigns. Television and radio stations hardly had time to broadcast anything besides back to back advertisements. Promotion companies handed out jobs, and free tee shirts, to students and others who needed part-time employment...and free tee shirts. And even after the exit of Claro, we have seen this trend continue, even intensifying. And the tee shirts are even brighter too!
 
How much further along in our development would Jamaica be, if we had more companies trying to leapfrog each other, with the same intensity and ingenuity as these two telecommunication giants? Can you think of other industries which would benefit from such competition? Please share your thoughts below.
 

Competition Is Sweet - Per Minute Billing Isn't

Last night Digicel made it's move in response to LIME's onslaught against mobile rates. Digicel reduced it's on-net rate to $2.89, 10 cents lower than LIME's and matched LIME's cross-net rate of $6.99. The fierce competition between these two rivals is refreshing. In no other market do you see as much competition, and to such high levels of intensity, as you find in the telecommunication sector. Keep fighting guys! Each round is a win for the Jamaican consumer.
 

Now while these two giants duke it out, let's try not to get caught up in the marketing. At the end of the day, they are both companies which are out to get more money from our wallets. Ultimately, any move should have the end result of increasing revenues and stacking up profits for shareholders. This may mean giving something with one hand, and taking something back with the other hand, while you're distracted.

 

When LIME introduced their new rates, conspicuously absent were the 'XL' free minutes and free text promotions which predate the new package. Picking up on this exception, Digicel was keen to keep their 'Gimme 5' promotions in place with the introduction of their new package. However, the promotional goodies were significantly slashed. Both companies have reminded the public that nothing comes for free.
 
Something which is also significant about the new package from Digicel is the reversion to per minute billing. This is the most egregious of the recent changes with insidious consequences. A move from per second billing back to per minute billing will see an increase in the cost of the brief, and arguably most common types of calls. I can just imagine some business analyst spending the week crunching numbers, trying to find out how to reduce rates while keeping revenues the same. The solution - take away per second billing. There is no indication from LIME as to whether they have also reverted to per minute billing, but I wouldn't be surprised if they have.

 

Combine per minute billing with the recent emphasis on long calls - talk for X minutes and get the next XX free - and these phone companies are most likely pulling more out of the pockets of the public than their new rates belie. Competition is sweet, but let's not get lost in the tactics and fail to see the raw truths behind the marketing.
 

Long Live Chivalry!

In days gone by, acts such as opening a door for a lady, walking on the outside when on the road, or giving up your seat on the bus were considered common courtesy to be extended to women. Now such chivalrous deeds are an exception, rather than the norm. I think the reason for this is two fold.
 

The first and perhaps the most serious problem is the absence of fathers in the lives of young men. Chivalry is handed down from father to son in the same way that values are - directly through instruction, and indirectly by example. The problem in our country is that we have a generation of men who grew up without fathers, many of whom in turn became absentee fathers themselves. Like a spoken language with no one to pass it along, chivalry is a critically endangered practice.

 

The second issue lies squarely at the feet of women who have lowered their standards. Perhaps responding to the decline of gallant acts, they have grown accustomed to their absence and have come not to expect them. When something is not expected, it is less likely to be given.

 
Worse yet are women who either don't understand or don't care for chivalrous acts. I will never forget one experience I had in high school. I grew up in Montego Bay, and back in those days (I feel so old saying that) the city didn't have buses, but were served by ubiquitous route taxis. I was one of two passengers on the back seat of on taxi on the stand. A woman approached the taxi and so I opened the door and got out to put her in. This woman not only refused to get into the vehicle, but proceeded to cuss and chastise me for wanting to put her to sit in the middle. Not wanting to sit in the middle is fine as a personal preference, but the crass behavior was uncalled for, and absurdly I was the one that was embarrassed.
 
In hindsight, that experience had an unconscious effect on me. I find that I hesitate to do chivalrous things because I am uncertain of whether the recipient will be accepting or offended. While this is perhaps an irrational reaction, is it also not a conscious one. And I will assert that one may be considered anachronistic at best, and in extreme cases "soft" or quaint when one persists in socially uncommon acts. Sadly, changing views on what is considered manly have also left chivalry marginalized.
 
Having realized the forces that have unknowingly moulded me, I have now resolved to be counted among those who form the last bastion of chivalry. I will hold the line; I will stand my ground! I will not allow women who do not appreciate courtesy, nor unsophisticated miscreants who scoff, nor my own desire to blend in to curtail my gallantry.
 

To women I sound a call to arms: insist on valour, and train the uninitiated. When a man misses an opportunity to be chivalrous, call him on it. Most importantly, allow a man to be a man! Accept offers of assistance. It doesn't undermine your ability to take care of yourself, it only means that he wants to take care of you too. Let him open the door, don't race him for the handle. Allow him the opportunity to pull out your chair. Give pause so that he may open the car door. And never forget to acknowledge such acts; they are rare and to be appreciated.

 
What chivalrous acts would you like to see more often? Please share your thoughts below. And share this article with others!
 

Long Live Chivalry!

In days gone by, acts such as opening a door for a lady, walking on the outside when on the road, or giving up your seat on the bus were considered common courtesy to be extended to women. Now such chivalrous deeds are an exception, rather than the norm. I think the reason for this is two fold.
 

The first and perhaps the most serious problem is the absence of fathers in the lives of young men. Chivalry is handed down from father to son in the same way that values are - directly through instruction, and indirectly by example. The problem in our country is that we have a generation of men who grew up without fathers, many of whom in turn became absentee fathers themselves. Like a spoken language with no one to pass it along, chivalry is a critically endangered practice.

 

The second issue lies squarely at the feet of women who have lowered their standards. Perhaps responding to the decline of gallant acts, they have grown accustomed to their absence and have come not to expect them. When something is not expected, it is less likely to be given.

 
Worse yet are women who either don't understand or don't care for chivalrous acts. I will never forget one experience I had in high school. I grew up in Montego Bay, and back in those days (I feel so old saying that) the city didn't have buses, but were served by ubiquitous route taxis. I was one of two passengers on the back seat of on taxi on the stand. A woman approached the taxi and so I opened the door and got out to put her in. This woman not only refused to get into the vehicle, but proceeded to cuss and chastise me for wanting to put her to sit in the middle. Not wanting to sit in the middle is fine as a personal preference, but the crass behavior was uncalled for, and absurdly I was the one that was embarrassed.
 
In hindsight, that experience had an unconscious effect on me. I find that I hesitate to do chivalrous things because I am uncertain of whether the recipient will be accepting or offended. While this is perhaps an irrational reaction, is it also not a conscious one. And I will assert that one may be considered anachronistic at best, and in extreme cases "soft" or quaint when one persists in socially uncommon acts. Sadly, changing views on what is considered manly have also left chivalry marginalized.
 
Having realized the forces that have unknowingly moulded me, I have now resolved to be counted among those who form the last bastion of chivalry. I will hold the line; I will stand my ground! I will not allow women who do not appreciate courtesy, nor unsophisticated miscreants who scoff, nor my own desire to blend in to curtail my gallantry.
 

To women I sound a call to arms: insist on valour, and train the uninitiated. When a man misses an opportunity to be chivalrous, call him on it. Most importantly, allow a man to be a man! Accept offers of assistance. It doesn't undermine your ability to take care of yourself, it only means that he wants to take care of you too. Let him open the door, don't race him for the handle. Allow him the opportunity to pull out your chair. Give pause so that he may open the car door. And never forget to acknowledge such acts; they are rare and to be appreciated.

 
What chivalrous acts would you like to see more often? Please share your thoughts below. And share this article with others!
 

Misplaced Loyalty

LIME recently embarked on a Jack The Ripper style assault against mobile rates, slashing them by 40-80%. This follows previous reductions in mobile Internet rates, improvements in customer service, and increased support for mobile devices such as Apple's iPhone and iPad, and Samsung's Galaxy phones and tablets. Overall, the company has been making great strides.
 

 
Yet, as LIME improves there are people who still dismiss them with a deep seated hatred. They remark that LIME can keep their new rates, and recall the days when LIME was C&WJ, TOJ, or even the long gone Jamintel. They rehash the history of robbery and injustice perpetrated by this company. Granted, LIME did rape this country back in the day, and kept us in the dark in terms of telephony. In fact, they were like a spawn of the devil. Ok, maybe that's a bit harsh - they were an adopted child of the devil. But competition has changed them, made them better.
 
Alas, competition has not won the hearts of Jamaicans who spurned them. When Digicel came to Jamaica, the populace rushed to embrace them like a child running to meet the rich aunt from foreign. And Aunty Digicel did shower us with gifts - flashy phones, lower rates, and good customer service.
 
Fast forward 12 years and most Jamaicans are still in love with Digicel, even though LIME has surpassed them in many ways - these rate reductions being the most recent frog leap. Granted, it's not always about the money, or the technology. Digicel has done a tremendous job moving Jamaica forward. They have also taught the greater business community how to be better corporate citizens. All of that is worthy of appreciation and loyalty.
 
At the end of the day though, this is business. Companies are not people. Even if you want to believe that the past incarnations of LIME deliberately set out to rob this country, there are two things to note.
 
First, the government are the ones which allowed this. If the situation was reversed, and Digicel was the company which had the monopoly back in the day, things would have been no different. That is the nature of monopolies - they rob us of choice, and the lack of alternatives give them free reign.
 
Second, all the people who were at the helm of that ship that rammed into this country are probably no longer there. They are long gone, even deceased. So just who exactly is there to hold a grudge against? I repeat, companies aren't people.
 
It could also be argued that Digicel has virtually become a monopoly, abusing this country as LIME did in the past. Look at the rates they previously penalized their own customers with for calling outside of the Digicel network - $14 to $17 dollars per minute! Those rates still stand if you haven't signed up for their flat rate service. Furthermore, their $8.99 rate was the first reduction we've seen in a decade. Does that sound like a company that has your interest at heart?
 
Allowing resentment for past wrongs to simmer and affect our financial decisions, is like stabbing ourselves in the wallet. Remember, Digicel doesn't love you, they just want your money.
 

LIME Rises To The Challenge

A few months ago, Digicel launched a pre-emptive strike, slashing mobile rates by a whopping $1.01. Needless to say I wasn't impressed. But the marketing campaign surrounding it was very good - in an 'annoying get stuck in your head' kinda way. I thought to myself at the time, that even if LIME responded by lowering rates, that would seem like a 'follow fashin' move. But lo and behold, they have responded by lowering rates so drastically that the effect has been public amazement.
 

 
LIME has lowered rates to an unprecedented $1.99 and $2.99 for LIME to LIME calls, for postpaid and prepaid customers respectively. International calls are also $2.99. And here is the sweetest part: it is now cheaper for a LIME customer to call a Digicel customer, than it is for a Digicel customer to call a fellow Digicel customer! LIME to Digicel calls are now $6.99, a full $2 cheaper than Digicel's flop $8.99 rate. How ironic is that?
 
When I first discovered the new rates, I figured I'd wait for the catch. I went to LIME's website to read the fine print, only to discover that there is none. The rates are so unbelievably low, that some commenters on their Facebook page even joked that the LIME website had been hacked.
 
When Digicel made their move a few months ago, one could argue that it was more fanfare than substance. With this mad downward dash by a competitor who has very little to lose, how low can Digicel afford to go? In the rate wars, is this move by LIME a checkmate for Big Red? Regardless of your views on either mobile network, such aggressive competition can only benefit consumers. And when it comes to doing business, in the end I am loyal to one thing - my wallet.
 

Unintended Consequences

Look before you leap. Think before you act. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The English language has no shortage of phrases, which encourage one to evaluate the possible consequences of our actions. But truth be told, this is a nigh impossible task. With each choice we make, we simultaneously create and destroy innumerable possibilities. It's inconceiveable that we could anticipate all of them.

Things get infinitely more complicated when we contemplate human interaction. Even if we lived on a desert island, the actions of people thousands of miles away, could affect the quality of the fish we feed on to survive our solitary existence.

Most of us don't live on a desert island, so things are even more complex. When the web of our choices combine with those of others, they form a structure so complex, that there will always arise an unintended consequence from an innocuous act. And sometimes the consequence will affect others, more than ourselves.

Worst Invention Ever!

Speaker phones are the worst invention ever! They are immensely dangerous in the hands of complete idiots. Why would someone create such a device? No one should be subject to the torture of overhearing your boring meeting, or your sappy conversation with your lover. Sure, they may be useful for having a conference call, so restrict them to conference rooms! Don't put them on cell phones, in the hands of the same people who text and drive. It's a recipe for disaster.

Worse yet are the absent minded morons who put you on speaker phone, without telling you. They aren't the ones who suffer the unintended consequences when you blurt out something meant for their ears only. Not the ears of your girlfriend and her best friend who you think is hot. Certainly not the ears of your boss who was in the same room. And not the ears of the friend whose surprise party you're planning.

A word to the wise: do you see that convenient speaker phone button? The correct answer is no, you don't see it. Forget that it's there!

You Addict You!

Why do people like to bandy around the term 'addiction', attaching it to anything that achieves popularity and mass appeal? There was computer addiction, then Internet addiction, then Facebook addiction, BBM addition...well maybe that last one is real.

The word addiction has a negative connotation, and expresses disapproval more than anything else. When people see a behavior that they somehow disapprove of, they label it an addiction and the media takes it and runs with it. I can just picture some psychologist who is annoyed that their child is spending too much time on Facebook, writing the first article on this new 'addiction'.

Now if this child were busy reading books, psychologists wouldn't label them as a book addict would they? Nope, instead it's their peers who would label them a book worm, with the same negative connotation. There is something to be learned here.

The label isn't about the activity, it's about acceptance. Your fellow Facebook users aren't going to call you an addict, because its an acceptable behaviour within your group. Your parents aren't going to dissuade you from reading because that's an acceptable behaviour for their generation.

The problem here is the gap between those who accept new ways of doing things, and those who don't.  Someone who is 'addicted to the Internet' may really be craving knowledge; they may be no different from someone who loves reading.  Someone who is 'addicted to social media' may just love connecting with people - virtually or in real life.  And BBM addicts just love conversation, and probably used to get run out of class for talking too much.

What some fail to realize is that as the world moves forward, there are new ways to do old things. Reading books was about learning, keeping current, building the mind, and even entertainment and adventure. As new means of accomplishing all of this were developed and became popular, some dinosaurs couldn't adapt. They disdain what is new, often because they don't understand it, and sometimes because they don't care to.

I wonder if any of his contemporaries called Gutenberg a book addict?