Tomasi Vakatora New FINTEL CEO

AMALGAMATED Telecom Holdings Limited's new acting chief executive is its company secretary, Tomasi Vakatora.

An ATH statement said the appointment was made by its board of directors at its meeting last Wednesday.The appointment took effect on Sunday.

Group chairman Kanti Tappoo said Mr Vakatora deserved the opportunity to serve at the helm of the company, having played key roles in the acquisition of ATH by the Fiji National Provident Fund in late 1998, developed the company into fully operational mode in early 1999 through to the public offer of ATH shares and the company's public listing in early 2002 and addressed numerous issues and challenges that ATH faced to date.

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KIDANET ISP New Services

From March 7th Article
-Lee


Fiji's newest Internet Service Provider KIDANET has one big advantage. It has direct links to the Southern Cross Cable Network (SCCN) via its parent company, Fiji International Telecommunications Ltd (FINEL).

FINTEL... providing a choice for consumers.This, it says, will give it the edge over other ISPs in the market as it means-for those who buy its services-a direct link to the outside world without having to go through a local intermediary. So it has its money on this factor and not so much the pricing, although consumers are promised competitive prices-F$35 a month for a 128 kbps connection and unlimited download for instance, according to Jone Wesele, FINTEL's Commercial & Business Development Manager.

"It will be fast, affordable, good quality and with good customer service," he said. The company will, however, monitor downloads, as a lookout for abusers, mainly in the form of bypass operations considered illegal in Fiji.Scheduled for roll out this month, KIDANET's service will be delivered to its customers via BreezeMAX, a WiMAX certified product of Tel Aviv-based Alvarion Ltd, which means that consumers would be connecting to KIDANET via a wireless network that allows them to move around within the ISP's coverage area and stay connected.

KIDANET, a name that Wesele said has roots in the Fijian word "Kida", which means "to dawn", will offer high speed to broadband Internet connection to its customers.

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TELECOM Fiji chief operating officer Taito Tabaleka is the company's acting chief executive.

A Telecom spokesperson said the board unanimously appointed Mr Tabaleka to the position following the resignation of managing director Joe Mar.
Mr Tabaleka's appointment is effective from May 1.

Telecom chairman Felix Anthony said Mr Tabaleka brought with him a wealth of experience after working in the telecommunication industry for more than 23 years.

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For a small island nation, Fiji has a reliable and efficient telecom system with access to the Southern Cross cable that links New Zealand, Australia and North America. The country's fast growing telecom industry is made up primarily of three major monopolies that are all currently protected through exclusivity licences. Telecom Fiji Ltd has the exclusive licence to provide domestic voice and data services; Vodafone Fiji Ltd is the sole provider of mobile services; and Fiji International Telecommunications Ltd (Fintel) has the monopoly on the supply of international voice and data services. In October 2005 Unwired Fiji launched the country's first privately owned broadband wireless network. In June 2006 in a protracted court battle, Vodafone Fiji, filed an injunction in an attempt to stop the government from awarding a licence to a new mobile operator.

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