fp Turks and Caicos

For Digicel the new year will bring more than just a new page in the calendar, it will mark a major milestone for the five-year-old telecom.

Claiming savings of over $150 million for its customers, Digicel’s All Pass Plan has been a tremendous success. “We expect to reach our 1 millionth activation in January 2012,” Digicel TCI CEO E. Jay Saunders told media at its year end briefing Dec. 15.

The All Pass plan was launched in July 2010. Less than a year later in May 2011, Digicel proudly announced it had reached 500,000 activations. “The popularity of the All Pass goes to show that Digicel’s Best Value plans appeal to our customers and allows them to reach out to more of their loved ones in more places,” said Head of Marketing Ava-Dayne Kerr.

On the All Pass Plan, for $2.50 customers are granted a 24-hour pass to unlimited local Digicel to Digicel calls, 100 minutes to Digicel regional numbers and 30 minutes to the U.S., Canada and U.K. fixed lines.

In addition to the All Pass Plan, Saunders said the company’s youth plans have also been well received. “Imagine you can keep in touch with your son or daughter for only $6 per month,” he said of the BlackBerry social media plan.

While 2011 has been a tough year, Saunders said it was a slightly better than 2010. He also confirmed that Digicel continues to enjoy more than 50 percent of the local market share.

“Our trend has always been to drive rates down,” he said, and Digicel customers can continue to expect low bundled rates in 2012.