[This week’s Communications column for the Vanuatu Independent.]

We’ve seen a lot of griping and moaning recently about – and by – our two telcos. The former is not really news in and of itself. The fact of the matter is that anyone relying on technology in Vanuatu will have ample cause to complain before very long. Human, logistical and environmental factors in Vanuatu conspire against even the best-intentioned, making high-tech businesses here a pale echo indeed of what one might see in Sydney or Auckland.

To see our two telcos descend to a juvenile level of petty and rather vindictive name-calling and insinuation, however, was surprising and not at all welcome.

On top of the all-too-familiar litany of complaints concerning mobile telephone costs and service levels, readers of the Daily Post this week witnessed a public dust-up of playground proportions between TVL and Digicel. If we’re to believe the two providers, a mobile user’s choice of providers is between an incompetent dinosaur and a dishonest fast dealer.

Neither depiction is accurate, useful or informative for people in Vanuatu. It leads one to wonder whether either of them really understands where they live. This undignified public display is an object lesson in how NOT to win friends and influence people in Vanuatu.

One thing is for certain: As far as the public is concerned, the post-liberalisation honeymoon is definitely over.

For Digicel especially, the bloom is decidedly off the rose. While people remain appreciative of the range and stability of their mobile service, complaints have become increasingly frequent – and strident – concerning what is widely viewed as a courteous but utterly ineffective customer service department.

Their first birthday celebration stands in rather stark contrast to the glitz and glamour of their kick-off a year ago. Their widely touted credit promotions didn’t go smoothly, with numerous people reporting that they never received the extra credit promised them. Others found that their ‘free after 3’ extra talk time wasn’t free after all. Efforts to redress this via Digicel’s customer care service were ineffective in numerous cases.

One particularly indignant person recounted how, when they phoned Customer Care and informed them that their 1000 vatu credit hadn’t been multiplied as promised, they were politely told to ‘try again.’ Not very useful for someone who had to pinch pennies to get that money together in the first place.

If reports on the VIGNET mailing list are any indication, it appears that the anniversary promotions experienced numerous failures of this ilk.

Despite several attempts to schedule a time to sit down and discuss this with Digicel management, they had yet to respond by the time this column went to press.

Digicel seems to be swamped by its own success. Scarcely more than half a year after their launch, they reported that they had over 70,000 active accounts to TVL’s 30,000. Anecdotal evidence has that number is closer to 100,000 now.

As TVL has learned from bitter experience, maintaining a communications network in the conditions which Vanuatu imposes on its inhabitants is decidedly non-trivial. In spite of years of experience in similar circumstances in the Caribbean and Central America, Digicel seems to be learning the lesson anew.

To what purpose, then, did the decidedly soot-stained pot decide to begin denouncing the kettle’s tarnished nature? Surely it must have occurred to someone that their time might be better spent actually cleaning up their own act than pointing out the other’s mess?

For Digicel to make accusations about TVL’s poor service history shows a distinct lack of sensitivity to the challenges faced by both TVL’s and Digicel’s technicians alike, operating as they do under difficult and sometimes extremely dangerous workplace conditions.

TVL was quick to denounce Digicel’s recent price changes, trumpeting especially what they characterised as a 35% increase in off-peak calls between Digicel customers. Their advertisements neglected to mention that back when they similarly flattened their fee structure to a 30 vatu across the board, people placing short calls benefited, but people placing longer calls ended up paying more.

There are, alas, no rules against juvenile behaviour. As unsavoury as their actions might have been of late, neither telco has broken any law or regulation. For alterations in pricing structures within a certain range, they are only required to notify the Regulator. Digicel did so in advance. TVL was not so prompt about things after a recent price change, sending notification only after the fact.

Common decency and respect are not codified in our telcos’ license agreements. It is nonetheless a welcome sight to see that the Interim Telecoms Regulator has been able to bring a little moral suasion to bear. Both his willingness to engage and the telcos’ willingness to adjust their behaviour without being beaten about the ears are positive signs.

The distrust between the two telcos is understandable and in many respects quite healthy. As much as we might decry the public tantrums we’ve seen of late, they’re vastly preferable to having the two telcos cosy up together and start cooperating more than they should.

Conspiracy theorists, pointing to the fact that both telcos changed their rates within days of one another, have suggested that if TVL and Digicel really were colluding on price, the best way to distract from any agreement would be a public tiff. In my opinion, that hypothesis stretches credulity. When I raised the possibility of collusion with an industry expert who had detailed knowledge of the Caribbean market, he scoffed and remarked acerbically that “if Digicel are cooperating with anyone, it would be a first.”

We can take a couple of lessons away from this week’s soap opera. The first is the welcome observation that the Regulator – if not his wards – has a good understanding of public values and expectations. With any luck, Digicel and TVL will learn a little from him. Second, it’s nice to see TVL and Digicel allowing themselves to be led by common sense rather than the overt exercise of regulatory clout.

One hopes most of all, though, that TVL and Digicel have learned a lesson too. Of all the public criticisms that emerged over the last week or so, one thing is clear: Both telecoms companies should spend more time looking to their own affairs than minding their neighbour’s. If they spent as much time and effort improving network quality and customer service as they devoted to talking about it, people might not avert their eyes every time they pass one of their wall-sized posters.

For their own sake, both Digicel and TVL had better hope that their respective leopards can change their spots. If not, they’ll both have a lot of explaining to do to their customers.