Telcos given 6 months to fix prepaid load validity for one year

The deadline for telecommunication companies to make prepaid load valid for one year has been extended until July this year, according to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

The DICT earlier announced that starting January 5, the expiry date of prepaid load would be valid for one year from the date of top-up.

In a statement on Friday, the DICT said the extension was made to prevent glitches within telecommunication systems if changes were made abruptly.

“We apologize for giving the public false expectations, but if we have to err, it would be on the side of being 100-percent certain that nothing untoward will happen,” said DICT OIC Eliseo M. Rio Jr.

“However, the 6-month period is only a time limit where the telcos can be penalized if they have not complied by then,” Rio added.

At the same time, Rio likened the 6-month deadline to a race, saying the first telecommunication company to implement the one-year validity period would attract the subscribers.

“With this, we expect their compliance earlier than the deadline. This will show that there is real competition on their part,” he said.