Telecommunications giant Digicel says it has reached an agreement with Telstar Cable Limited to acquire its cable and fibre network.
Digicel announced the acquisition in a statement today, noting that the deal is subject to approval by the Broadcasting Commission.
Nationwide News asked the company to put a price on the deal.
But Digicel has refused to disclose the price, citing a confidentiality clause in the agreement between the parties.
The company says it will invest significantly in the network to increase coverage and further expand the products, services and content available to cable customers in Jamaica.
The Corporate Area based Telstar, is the first official subscriber television company in Jamaica.
It opted for independence, when most of its competitors were swept up in a massive acquisition exercise by Columbus Communications, operators of Flow, in the late 2000s.
A senior executive at Telstar says the acquisition deal is not yet complete as the necessary due diligence exercise to determine the value of of the company, is still ongoing.
The executive says the current management team will remain in place for a period after the acquisition has been complete to facilitate a smooth transition.
Digicel says the agreement with Telstar represents its fourth acquisition of a Caribbean based cable company in the past four months.
With the latest move by Digicel, only LIME of the three dominant players in the local telecommunications market, does not have a presence in the Cable TV market.
Meanwhile, Opposition Spokesman on Telecommunications, Dr. Andrew Wheatley, says the acquisition is a positive development.
Dr. Wheatley, says the deal will have to rubber stamped by the Office of Utilities Regulation, OUR.
Dr. Andrew Wheatley, Opposition Spokesman on Telecommunications.
