The Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Tuisugaletaua Aveau Sofara, has confirmed the arrival of a new telecommunication company.
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Although the company has been quietly setting up in town, the Minister stopped short of revealing the company’s name and who is involved.
Speaking to the Samoa Observer yesterday, Tuisugaletaua said the Company has already been given a license to operate.
“The company is owned by Samoans, 80 percent of it and the rest from U.S.A,” said Tuisugaletaua.
“The family has one business already here but this would be a huge one on their portfolio.”
The Minister added that the company is owned “by a woman who is full Samoan and her son who studied in the States and runs a similar business there.”
“They see coming back to Samoa as a way of giving back to the country,” he said.
The company will compete with Digicel and Bluesky.
According to the Minister, the company’s license to operate was issued by the former Regulator, Donnie de Freitas.
Tuisuga said this followed a lengthy due diligence process undertaken by Mr. de Freitas and his Office.
“This was the last project by Donnie before he left,” the Minister said.
“The Regulator had done all that verification and had looked at spectrums on which band they can use so that they won’t interfere with others…they are here.”
Tuisugaletaua said the company is focusing on internet services to start with and will introduce other “products” later on.
“They are very advanced in terms of technology,” he said. “They also have quite a few products on the way but I cannot release those. They also have a very competitive edge.”
Asked how their arrival will benefit Samoa, Tuisugaletaua reminded that competition is healthy.
He said the cost of internet service and access in Samoa remains an issue and he hopes that the bigger the competition, the better it will be for Samoa.
“I’d like to see every family in the rural villages have efficient access to the internet,” the Minister said.
It could not be confirmed when the company will be officially launched.
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