monopoly is seeking permission in Canada to compete with another telecommunications giant.

Mr. Mike Kedar, president of TeleBermuda International Ltd., said the Bermuda company has a significant chunk of the Canadian enterprise.

The capital budget of the new Canadian company, GeoReach Telecommunications Inc., calls for the investment of CAD$107 million (BD$79 million). It is negotiating an alliance with a number of large Canadian and non-Canadian corporations.

One such company already with a firm foothold is TeleBermuda, which has a 10-percent equity interest in GeoReach, leaving room for additional international investors under the existing foreign ownership restrictions contained in the Canadian Telecommunications Act.

Mr. Kedar is the founder and chairman of GeoReach, which has applied to the Canadian federal government for the right to provide international telecommunications services in competition with Teleglobe Canada Inc.

GeoReach intends to operate as a carrier's carrier and to begin offering services through Canadian domestic carriers when Teleglobe's monopoly is expected to end on March 31, 1997.

Mr. Kedar was recently involved with local businessmen in advancing an application for an international telecommunications licence in Bermuda by TeleBermuda, and in a successful bid by ESAT Digifone Ltd. for a second GSM (mobile) licence in Ireland.

TeleBermuda intends to connect Bermuda to the world with a fibre optic submarine cable that would break the long-held, long distance monopoly of Cable & Wireless.

In commenting on the Canadian application, Mr. Kedar said, "The time has come for the introduction of competition in the provision of international telecommunications services.'' He said that long distance competition within Canada, and in the Canada-US market has brought many benefits to customers.

"GeoReach views this application as a continuation of the evolution of the telecommunications industry in Canada from a monopoly to a market-based, competitive industry.'' The GeoReach application was said to be consistent with the regulatory regime in Canada, and conforms to the objectives of the recently enacted Telecommunications Act, in particular, the objective to foster increased reliance on market forces for telecommunications services.

GeoReach said that it was important to bring new players into the telecommunications industry in order to promote effective competition and to avoid the concentration of power among a few large carriers.

The company proposed to the Canadian government that the current restrictions on domestic carrier ownership and control of Teleglobe which are contained in the Teleglobe Canada Reorganisation and Divestiture Act, be incorporated in the Telecommunications Act in order to extend those restrictions to other Canadian international carriers, including GeoReach.

Mr. Kedar is well regarded for his advancement of competition and innovation in the telecommunications industry in Canada and abroad.

He founded Call-Net Enterprises Inc., the parent company of Sprint Canada Inc., and Microcell Telecommunications Inc., a leading innovator in the personal communications field.

GeoReach is backed by a group of investors who were instrumental in the promotion of Call-Net.