HAITI Media and Telecoms Landscape Guide - Infoasaid

169Digicel Foundation contact - Sophia StranskyTel: +509 3777 7027Email: Fondation.Projet@Digicelgroup.comHeadquarters switchboardTel: +509 3711 3444Address : Tour Digicel, #151 Angle Ave Jean Paul II & Impasse Duverger,Port-au-PrinceNatcom www.natcom.com.htNatcom is Haiti’s number two telecoms company.It began operations in September 2011.Natcom said in January 2012 that it had signed up more than 500,000 subscriberswithin two months of its launch.The company claims to have a nationwide mobile network which reaches everycommune in the country.Its call rates are cheaper than those of its larger rival Digicel.Natcom is 40% owned by the Haitian government and 60% by Viettelhwww.viettel.com.vn, an international mobile telecoms group owned by the armedforces of Vietnam.Natcom inherited the assets of assets of Télécommunications d'Haïti (Teleco), thedebt-ridden national telephone company, which formerly controlled Haiti’s landlinenetwork.Teleco had 50,000 landline telephone subscribers at the end of 2010, according tothe International Telecommunications Union (ITU).Natcom has a 3,000 km fibre optic cable trunk network. It offers landline servicesusing fixed wireless access technology. This uses a wi-fi signal instead of a copperwire to bridge the “last mile” between the network and the subscriber.Natcom also offers mobile internet access.As of September 2012 it had not announced any plans to launch a mobile moneyservice.169