Pimentel lauds possible entry of 3rd telco player in PH

Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III welcomed on Tuesday  the proposed entry  of a third telecommunications company in the country  from China,  saying it is the only way to force the two giant local telcos to improve their services.

Pimentel was apparently referring to Smart Communications Inc. and Globe Telecom.

“A third telecommunications firm is exactly what our country needs to end a telco duopoly mired in mediocrity; a situation that has allowed them to hold the Filipino consumer hostage to poor communications and data services,” Pimentel said in a statement.

“By acting decisively to address this problem, the President is showing the kind of political will necessary to address the long-standing problems of our country. Our people need fast, stable internet speeds that are reasonably priced. Bringing in a new competitor helps achieve that,” he added.

At a press briefing on Monday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque revealed that President Rodrigo Duterte has offered China “the privilege to operate the third telecommunications carrier in the country.”

READ: Duterte offers China to be the third telecoms operator in PH

Pimentel said adding a third player to the Philippine telecommunications market “is the only way to force the two major local telco companies to improve their services.”

“The absence of alternatives has numbed us to the reality of poor network coverage, dropped calls, disappearing loads, lost text messages, and slow data or internet speeds. This should be unacceptable; our countrymen deserve better,” he said.

The Senate leader had earlier urged the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to direct the country’s telcos to adopt the Mobile Number Portabilty (MNP), a feature that allows mobile phone subscribers to retain their mobile phone numbers even if they switch to a different carrier.

Pimentel pointed out that under the current system, the first four numbers of a mobile phone number are assigned to specific carriers, thus forcing mobile phone subscribers to change numbers when switching to a different telco.

The MNP, he said, would spur competition among the Philippines’ telecoms giants.   /kga