Digicel Haiti

Digicel Haiti is the largest mobile network operating in Haiti. The Digicel Group and its former Haitian minority partner, GB Group S.A., signed a memorandum of understanding in January 2005 to apply for a GSM telecommunications license through its jointly held subsidiary. This structure allowed Digicel to comply with the Haitian government’s requirement that any application for a license be made through a local Haitian company. Digicel’s subsidiary was awarded one of three new telecommunications licenses in Haiti in June 2005. Digicel subsequently acquired the minority interest held by GB Group S.A. in 2006. This license is for a 15-year term and allows Digicel to use 2 x 20 MHz of spectrum in the 1800 MHz band and 2 x 9.8 MHz in the 900 MHz band.

In March 2010, Digicel acquired ACN, a WiMAX operator which has 20 MHz of 2.3 GHz spectrum assigned to it. ACN has relatively small operations and a limited customer base. Its primary asset is the 2.3 GHz spectrum and fiber landing rights contained in its license.

Late March 2012, Digicel completed the acquisition of Communication Cellulaire d’Haiti S.A. from Trilogy International Partners. Communication Cellulaire d’Haiti S.A., which operated under the Voila brand, was the second largest mobile phone operator in Haiti. In October 2012, Digicel completed the integration of the Voila network with its existing network.

On March 30, 2012, Digicel received a further 2 x 10 MHz in the 2100 MHz ban. The acquisition of Comcel and its GSM service, branded as Voila, on March 30, 2012, included the provision of an additional 2 x 20 MHz in the 850 MHz band, allowing Digicel to evolve to 3G.