Globe seeks PCC help in securing 700 MHz band

GLOBE Telecom Inc. may bring its quest to secure part of San Miguel Corp.’s powerful 700 megahertz (MHz) frequency before the newly-formed Philippine Competition Commission (PCC).

In a roundtable discussion organized by the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (Ejap) on Monday, Globe Telecom director for policy division Ariel Tubayan said “it would be more appropriate to approach” the PCC regarding the matter.

He claimed the government was losing about P250 million in annual spectrum user fees by failing to redistribute parts of San Miguel’s 700 MHz. Also present during the Ejap event were Philippine Competition Commission chair Arsenio Balisacan and National Competitiveness Council co-chair Guillermo Luz.

Tubayan said the company would “possibly” bring their plea to the commission after the elections.

Globe and rival Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) were seeking part of the 700 Mhz spectrum that San Miguel president Ramon S. Ang said the conglomerate would use to launch an inexpensive LTE high-speed mobile Internet service within 2016.

San Miguel’s entry would likely signal the end of Globe and PLDT’s five-year duopoly. The conglomerate holds almost the entire spectrum, which is good for penetrating walls and covering large areas efficiently.

Balisacan said in the same forum the PCC was already conducting a “scan” of the competitive environment in the country. He said PCC would flag industries with “problematic” competition issues.

“The commission was empowered to address all competition related issues, with telco being one of those,” he said, citing complaints about poor service quality and expensive Internet.

“It’s not far-fetched that telco would be on our radar,” he said.

The competition commission was also due to publish the implementing rules and regulations of the Philippine Competition Act or Republic Act No. 10667, the country’s first foray into antitrust regulations.

Balisacan said the commission was hoping to release the rules before President Aquino steps down in June this year.