From The Register – Biting The Hand That Feeds IT…
World Cup Internet Charges – Just Not Cricket!
Some saw it coming, others didn’t. When the first world media decamps to the developing world the last expression you expect to hear is “value for money”.
However, the Cricket World Cup in the West Indies is something of a record breaker for charging heavily for things that fail to work quite as expected.
Former England cricketer Derek Pringle – a seasoned world traveller with both a bat and a laptop – issued an early warning last year in his column in the Daily Telegraph.
“Next year’s World Cup in the Caribbean is threatening exploitation on a scale not seen in the region since pirates and colonial overlords plundered it hundreds of years ago. Hotels are the main culprits by tripling rack rates and their barefaced refusal to refund hefty deposits should any plans change.”
However, in-situ, the main bone of contention seems to be local technology hosts who are the monopoly supplier of communication services. The slowest wireless service per day is $60 for the six megabyte option. Add $50 to that for once-only set up charges.
Those wanting fixed line access are being asked to pay between $99 and $360 per week, but in a clever twist most journalists have to pay a month’s charges to cover the full tournament – even if their team goes home early. Those taking the top of the range service for the full World Cup are being asked to pay a whopping $720 with calls charged made through the line not included.
(At the last Cricket World Cup in South Africa fixed line access was only a token $7 a day.)…
… continue reading this article at The Register UK (link here)
3 Comments
March 20, 2007 at 11:39 pm
That is called gouging and that more than anything turns people off, when they feel they are being ripped off.
I have been talking out the rates for awhile and no one seems to care. In 2 weeks it will be the summer season, but they are charging winter rates, summer rates are supposed to start on the 15th April. But oh no, they start the 1st May due the CWC. April was a very busy month in Barbados as soon as the rates dropped April15th, you could bet your bottom dollar the hotel would be full until the end of MAY
Not this year and I bet the summer season is going to be a flop as well
March 21, 2007 at 12:23 pm
Caribbeancricket.com already reported that last week
March 22, 2007 at 7:04 pm
Should anyone be surprised that Cable & Wireless is gauging the world’s visiting journalists for their IT fees? After all Cable & Wireless has been ripping off Barbadians and most Caribbean peoples for years. Only recently have they got their comeuppance with decent cellular competition, and control over rates here in Bim.
They know their days are numbered here, so are taking this CWC opportunity for one last rip-off. It is blatant ingratitude to give the West Indies a bad name over this, after all the years they have been profiteering on us.
As for the hotels gauging prices. I leave this to Adrian Loveridge to comment on. It may have happened for certain hotels, but I suspect was not as widespread as the article would have us believe.