PH telcos take closer look at India’s move

Philippine telecommunication players are studying the impact of India’s recent decision to block Facebook Inc.’s Free Basics app, which provides access to select websites without charge.

The move was seen as boon to supporters of net neutrality, or the principle that service providers should treat all data on the Internet equally.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Globe Telecom have rolled out the Free Basics platform, originally called Internet.org. Locally, it provides free access to certain news websites, online jobs postings, and transport services as well as Facebook’s own social media platform and messaging service.

“We’re studying how it impacts the Philippines,” PLDT chair Manuel V. Pangilinan told reporters on Wednesday.

“I think it depends on the circumstances of each country. So I don’t think there’s a general rule that will apply to all countries even in the US and so forth. We will study what the implication will be for the PH and for the rest of the world,” he said.

Globe Telecom general legal counsel Froilan Castelo said in separate interview that net neutrality was not as crucial in the context of the Philippine market, citing the sachet mentality in paying for the use of goods and services.

“We have not discussed it on a very discriminating level,” Castelo noted.

As of July last year, 4.5 million Filipinos have used the Free Basics app, according to TNT, the value brand of PLDT’s Smart Communications.

Facebook said Free Basics, which operates in 35 developing countries, was designed to promote Internet access “that is free and non-exclusive.” End users and content partners, services that partner with Facebook, do not pay to use or be on the platform.