Dito cries foul over ‘faulty’ telco interconnection

DITO Telecommunity complained against Globe Telecom and Smart Communications at the Philippine Competition Commission on Monday, claiming that its subscribers were struggling to call users of the two dominant telecommunication companies.

Adel Tamano, DITO chief administrative officer, said in a press briefing that only about 20 to 30 out of 100 phone calls made by DITO subscribers to Globe and Smart users tend to get through.

This means the failure rate ranges from 70 percent to 80 percent—way above the 1-percent grade of service allowed by the law. Grade of service refers to the probability that a portion of calls will be lost or blocked in the system.

Tamano said this exhibited abuse of dominant position on the part of the major players—an act that lessens competition in an industry. While all parties have interconnection agreements, the DITO official raised the need for Globe and Smart to give them the “proper capacity” to allow seamless calls.

“We are doing this (filing of case) mainly because it is unfair to our subscribers, and ultimately, it is unfair to the Filipino people who want real competition in this segment,” he said.

“Globe reiterates that it has always advocated for fair business practices and competing in level playing field,” said Yoly Crisanto, Globe corporate communications officer.

For its part, PLDT-Smart said: “We can assure the government and the public that PLDT and Smart have always supported and ensured fair competition in the telco industry.” INQ