This Is Guernsey

By Tom Edwards

Wave Telecom managing director Tim Ringsdore is focused on the future. (0614919)

WAVE Telecom is playing a crucial role in encouraging finance companies to come to the Channel Islands, according to its managing director.

Tim Ringsdore said investing in on- and off-island infrastructure made Guernsey a more attractive place for businesses.

The multi-million-pound Project Liberty – Wave’s fibre optic cable to the UK – is due to come into operation this month and further enhance communication links.

‘Investing in something like Liberty is good for the island as a whole,’ said Mr Ringsdore.

‘A lot of finance centres are pan-Channel Islands and they want to know that they have absolute resilience in communicating with the wider world.

‘If a cable goes down, there is always a back-up. No matter where we have a failure, we can route text, voice or data traffic wherever it has to go.

‘That’s crucial for finance companies because if they lose communication just for an hour, it’s literally millions going down the pan.’

Wave’s investment in its infrastructure supported the States’ strategy for developing financial services and e-commerce, said Mr Ringsdore.

The telecoms firm is also supporting the e-gaming industry by supplying internet access for hosting companies.

‘Without a first-class communications infrastructure, financial companies simply won’t base themselves in the Channel Islands.

‘Hopefully, the investment that we’re making will encourage more of them to come to the islands and in turn they will invest here and employ more people.’

Last week Wave posted figures that showed in 2007 that its revenue had exceeded £7m. for the first time.

It was its fifth year of trading in Guernsey and its share of the domestic mobile market grew to 25%.

‘The successes have been in both the residential and business marketplaces and alongside this we’ve laid the foundations to meet our growth targets for the coming years,’ said Mr Ringsdore.

‘It’s all about offering a complete one-stop-shop solution. We’ve focused on providing bundle packages of fixed line, broadband and mobile services and believe that’s what the customer wants.’

The marketplace had become more crowded since the arrival of Airtel Vodafone this year, making it more competitive and benefiting consumers, he said.

‘Brand identity is crucial and I think we’ve established ourselves as Guernsey’s “local” provider.

‘We were the second operator and were instrumental in bringing prices down and have taken nearly half the market, which is consistent with what happens in the UK.’

Wave continues to work closely with the Office of Utility Regulation and shares its strategies with the regulator, said Mr Ringsdore.

‘We’ve had a close relationship with the OUR from our inception. We know the conditions of our licence and I think it is fair in terms of their approach and clear about what you can and can’t do.’

Telecommunications remains a fast-paced industry and Wave is well placed to react quickly to changes, he said.

‘Our business model has altered since we set up in 2002, but overall we have been able to stay flexible and adapt speedily to the market.

‘I’ve always believed mobiles are going to be the one device of the future and it’s becoming more and more interactive all the time.

‘BlackBerry has given companies and individuals more opportunities in terms of how they do business and it’s really only the start for m-commerce.’

Article posted on 5th August, 2008 - 2.30pm