Globe pushes for fair distribution of 3G frequencies

THE EXPONENTIAL growth of the number of Filipinos accessing the web through their mobile phones highlights the need for wireless frequencies to be allocated equally among telecom industry players.

Ernest Cu, president and CEO of Ayala-led Globe Telecom Inc., said the company no longer had enough frequencies to serve its growing subscriber base of mobile broadband users.

He likewise said Globe’s rival, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), already had more than enough frequencies to serve its own subscriber base. Even after its planned takeover of Sun Cellular, the PLDT group’s frequencies will still be adequate.

“In many countries, no telecom firm owns more than 35 percent of a frequency band,” Cu said in a recent interview. PLDT currently has two of four available third-generation (3G) frequencies that are used to deliver mobile Internet services.

Globe and Digitel Telecommunications Philippines Inc., operator of the Sun brand, have one frequency each. However, Sun’s frequency will be absorbed by the PLDT group once the takeover is completed.

Only four 3G frequencies are available in the market. With three frequencies held by the PLDT group and one with Globe, no other company will be able to enter the market.

“How will a competitor survive?” Cu said, pointing out the “imbalance” in frequencies.

Cu said Globe was ready to compete with a bigger PLDT, which, after the Sun takeover, will have 70 percent market share from the current 55 percent. Globe holds 30 percent of the market.

Cu said it needs the additional frequencies to keep the quality of its broadband offers high.

Globe has asked the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to strip PLDT of some of its frequencies before approving the takeover of Digitel. The NTC’s approval is the last step for the takeover to be completed.

PLDT’s P74.1-billion takeover of Digitel was originally set to be completed by the end of June.