Cybersecurity threats and governing generative AI are amongst the most pressing challenges facing telecommunications companies globally.
While the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) characterises the complexity and pace of technological change in this sector, other challenges reflect the broader global economic climate – the impacts of inflation, disrupted supply chains, and a workforce that needs to be supported to adjust to these changes.
Many of these issues are also faced in the Pacific Islands, although there are others specific to our remote locations and market size.
Open RAN
In Vanuatu for their recent AGM, members of the Pacific Islands Telecommunications Association (PITA) had a robust discussion about Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN), which allows interoperation between cellular network equipment provided by different vendors.
Several Pacific nations have multiple vendors deploying RAN technology (for example, Digicel and Vodafone), and PITA says the implementation of Open RAN would enable greater flexibility, allowing companies to mix components from different manufacturers, potentially reducing costs and improving response times to issues and problems.
Palau has already started moving to Open RAN, and the rest of the Pacific is watching this process with interest.
However, PITA notes: “While the promise of full openness is tantalising, the reality may not match expectations with a list of limited players so far. Telecom companies may be forced to remain with a single player that may have key components not suitably designed for the special needs of the region, often proving prohibitively expensive.”
In a report from the Vanuatu meeting, PITA adds that there are also concerns over the skills available to manage and trouble-shoot in a multi-equipment ecosystem.
“The complexities inherent in such a setup would necessitate clear demarcation with regulatory intervention and substantial investment in training and resources, posing additional challenges for SIDS telecom operators,” PITA states.
Palau leads
Open RAN aside, Palau is leading the region in other ways. Its Bureau of Communications published comprehensive rules and regulations for the industry in 2022, that establish best practices for spectrum management, regulatory fees and other areas of the telecommunications industry. Those rules were drawn up after extensive cross-sectoral consultations.
It is now finalising its national ICT policy, which focuses on the benefits of digital technologies and services across society.
Besides the upgrading of its mobile network to 4G/5G standards, Palau’s Development Plan is also looking at deploying a nationwide FTTP network and improving international connectivity through the Belau Submarine Cable Corporation’s cables.
Telstra transitions
When Australian company, Telstra—with the backing of the Australian government—bought Digicel Pacific’s operations in 2022, there was keen interest in how it might affect regional operations.
On 21 May, Telstra announced an AU$350 million (US$232.99 million) cost reduction plan that will see it shed 2800 jobs by the end of the year, predominantly from the business-focussed enterprise division.
“Our industry and the world we are operating in are changing. We have new and different competitors. We have rapid advances in technologies happening. Our customer needs continue to evolve and we have ongoing inflationary and cost pressures,” Telstra CEO Vicki Brady told media at the announcement.
Quoted in Market Index online, Macquarie Bank analysts identified Telstra’s Papua New Guinea business as posing continued political and operational risks to the company.
However, Telstra Corporate Affairs Communications Principal, Philippa Perry told the PNG’s Post Courier that there will be no repercussions in the Pacific.
“There are no impacts to Digicel PNG or Digicel Pacific more broadly following Tuesday 21 May announcement,” she told the newspaper. Telstra, through Digicel, operates in PNG, Fiji, Nauru, Samoa, Tonga, and Vanuatu.
It recently announced the commissioning of an International Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) Network-Network- Interface (NNI) enabling direct network connectivity between Telecom Fiji and Telstra’s network.
The NNI with Telstra is directly linked to Telecom Fiji’s second Point of Presence (POP) in Sydney, enabling local organisations in Fiji and the region to establish links with their overseas branches through the Telecom-Telstra NNI link.
“Our customers will experience heightened data security, remarkably improved delivery speeds, and a
telecommunications encounter that’s truly second to none,” said Mesake Tuinabua, Chief Technical Officer at Telecom Fiji.
Telstra International also plans to develop a regional hub in Guam, by developing a new point-of-presence (PoP) in Piti at the carrier-neutral GNC iX data center, which is owned and operated by TeleGuam Holdings, LLC, doing business as GTA.
Guam is located at the crossroads of several major submarine cable routes—including the Asia-America Gateway (AAG) cable system, the Australia-Japan cable (AJC), which is fully owned and operated by Telstra, the Taiwan-Philippines-US (TPU) cable, and direct network connectivity to nine additional cable systems—connecting Asia, Australia, and the United States.
The new Telstra PoP will be a key connection point for the new Echo cable and central Pacific Connect cable being constructed by Telstra.
Starlink
This month, the SpaceX satcoms service, Starlink, finally went live across Fiji, after months of anticipation.
Starlink was granted a licence to provide Internet services in Fiji in mid-November 2023.
Meeting SpaceX boss Elon Musk in Bali in May, Fiji’s President, Ratu Wiliame Katonivere highlighted Starlink as a proven solution for providing services during natural disasters, in particular after the 2021 underwater volcano disaster in Tonga.
In response, Musk said Starlink views the Internet as a necessity for financial services and e-commerce, citing the loss of Internet connectivity that costs billions of dollars for six East African countries, following the cutting of an undersea cable in May.
Musk plans to visit Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in October.
Samoa’s Office of the Telecommunications Regulator has temporarily banned importation of Starlink kits by individuals as the government considers the company’s application to operate there.
In Fiji, the move to introduce Starlink was welcomed by the Fiji Competition and Consumer Commission, which said it would boost competition and help bridge the digital divide.
“Competition in the market is always welcome as it motivates businesses to enhance their offerings, ultimately leading to greater advantages for consumers. We anticipate more competitive pricing and enhanced service quality, making high-quality internet services more affordable and accessible to a wider range of consumers,” said CEO Joel Abraham.
Meanwhile in Tonga, where internet services remain poor since the Hunga-Tonga Hunga-Ha’apai eruption, the government continues to consider Starlink’s application for a license to operate. As with many parts of the Pacific where no formal licence has been issued, individual users are currently connecting to the service through roaming plans.
Licenses to operate have already been granted in Papua New Guinea and Cook Islands.
Pacific Islands telcos are increasingly looking at the introduction of ulitilisation rates to address concerns over fairness and equity in the face of new entrants such as Starlink into their markets.
The digital divide
Speaking in Sydney earlier this year, Samoa’s Prime Minister, Fiame Naomi Mata’afa spoke of the potential that fast, affordable international connectivity opens for small island states.
But she said small domestic markets and the small number of ICT suppliers posed challenges: “Often people do not know how to take advantage of the technologies. There is often a lack of awareness of the advantages of connecting, a lack of relevant local content online in the local language and a much higher cost of connection than in most countries. Many small island states rely on satellite connections, and a small domestic market does not offer industry enough return on investment – nothing like the large urban areas. Industry therefore needs to be incentivised; regulatory frameworks need to be harmonised.”
She noted the importance of regional cooperation, citing the immediate benefits of landing new cables has in the region. And she said that Samoa was “struggling” to develop a whole-of-government framework to manage the economic and social transformation inherent as ICT advancements converge with advances in other technological fields.
Fiame pointed to concern over the impact of ICT and AI on the labour force, in exacerbating inequality and in posing new risks to public safety and national security.
She said public engagement is critical to ensure equity, transparency, and accountability, and that: “This will necessitate agreeing on the nature of national regulatory oversight bodies and determining whether they should be public, private or of a mixed composition.”
