Grace Notes

Are social media helping improve telcos' CRM?

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:51:19 +0800

April 25, 2013

Unless you live under a rock or in North Korea, you should know that social is the way to go.

Social media - blogging, online social networking, and micro-blogging - have become so pervasive that it is almost unthinkable for a business entity - at least those who want to remain relevant - not to use them.

In telecom, social media have transformed not only business models but the very concept of customer service. Never before have consumers been given the power and ability to inquire, give feedback, complain, demand, or throw a fit with the whole of cyberspace as audience.

But are telcos using Facebook and Twitter in a way that improves customer experience? Or are they using social media only because they have to? My Facebook newsfeed and Twitter timeline are a rich source of anecdotes telling me that it’s more the latter than the former.

I have read a variety of posts ranging from simple complaints (“My internet is slow today.”), to clarificatory (“Is there a way to fix this?”), to violent (“Magsara na lang kayo!”). That last quote in Filipino roughly translates to “just close shop!”, which doesn’t quite capture how an irate, desperate customer truly feels once all civility and options have been exhausted.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Is PH telecom moving fast enough?

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:39:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | March 18, 2013

“Arangkada” is a Filipino word which roughly translates to “move fast” or “accelerate.” The Joint Foreign Chamber (JFC) in the Philippines chose this term to call its advocacy paper of recommendations that could potentially lead to job creation, foreign investment, and revenue. To achieve these outcomes, the JFC posits that the country must focus on fast tracking reforms in what it labels as the “Seven Big Winner Sectors”, one of them being telecommunications.

It was a privilege to be invited as one of the assessment experts on telecom. Given a list of key reform areas, the exercise gave me the opportunity to step back, reflect on the past year, and look at the telecom and ICT sector from a broad perspective. The scoring method was simple and based on whether there was any movement in key recommendations or none. Experts had to substantiate their scores by citing references and examples. In short, the scores had to be based on fact, not impression.

Of the JFC’s 11 recommendations, three things stood out for me as areas where the government can and should initiate the reform.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Philippines anti-cybercrime law 2.0

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 00:00:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | January 15, 2013

Transparent, participatory, and consultative — big words often used to describe democratic processes. Yet, they are almost always wanting or non-existent in real life. But in the Philippines, often cited for its unpredictable and unruly political system, a Senate bill was conceptualized and drafted based on those very principles.

The proposed legislation called “The Magna Carta for Philippine Internet Freedom” (MCPIF) was filed by Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago — a veteran court judge and international law expert known for her ferocity in fighting to uphold the letter of the law. Santiago’s bill can be said to be a better and more informed version of Republic Act (RA) 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act. The latter was signed into law in October 2012 by the same president who abolished the country’s Commission on ICT a couple of years back.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Buyouts and the battle for spectrum in PH

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 23:18:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | November 23, 2012

Buyouts and the battle for spectrum in PH

November 23, 2012

In this wireless world, Globe Telecom is taking a great leap of faith with its recent announcement that it plans to invest in fixed line provider, Bayan Telecommunications Inc.’s (Bayan). The Ayala-led telco is seeking to buy almost 100 percent of Bayan’s outstanding debts worth $200 million for $184 million in cash. If the deal is consummated, Globe would become one of Bayan’s major creditors. Whether this takeover will happen or not, the country should know before December 18, the deadline for the offer.

In separate talks, Globe is also negotiating to purchase an equity stake in the same telco. Some analysts say this move is definitely an indication that Globe, the second largest telco in the Philippines, is feeling the heat of intense competition in the mobile market.

So, why invest in the struggling Lopez-owned telco? Apart from Bayan’s 200,000 or so landlines, it has 140,000 broadband subscribers and unused frequency. Ah, the magic word: frequency. It is such a precious, finite resource that is causing a lot of madness in the telecoms world, especially in this broadband and smartphone era.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Cybercrime law in an SMS, Facebook nation

Mon, 15 Oct 2012 23:14:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | October 15, 2012

As Filipinos remembered the declaration of martial law 40 years ago last month—and the curtailment of many freedoms that it entailed—the incumbent president signed into law the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

If the barrage of opposition and flurry of protests online and offline were to be used as gauge, Republic Act 10175 is easily one of the most unpopular laws to be enacted in quite a while.

Barely a month had gone by after its passage, and 15 petitions have already been filed before the Supreme Court asking to either repeal it or amend certain provisions deemed by its critics as unconstitutional.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

..of Ones and Zeroes: How the Anti-Cybercrime Bill Looked like when it Started

Thu, 04 Oct 2012 09:49:00 +0800

..of Ones and Zeroes: How the Anti-Cybercrime Bill Looked like when it Started:

This is one gem of an archived email message! This is the original proposed draft of Philippine Computer Emergency Response Team (PH-CERT) for a Cybercrime Prevention Act in the Philippines from 2003, sans the questionable provisions on online libel, cybersex, and the takedown power of the Department of Justice.

Also read their official statement on the current version of the recently approved law and as featured here: Cybercrime Law creators lament too much ‘insertions’.

ofonesandzeroes:

As PHCERT President that time, I got appointed to be the Public Sector Co-chairman of the Privacy and Security Subcommittee of the IT ECommerce Council during President Erap’s time. It is in this committee that we started work on the two IT Landmark bills we know today as RA10173 (Data Privacy…

Smart vs. Globe: It's about standards, silly

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 13:37:47 +0800

NTC should go further with QoS benchmarks.

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | September 26, 2012

Last week, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) released the results of its Quality of Service (QoS) benchmarking tests for the second quarter of this year.

The purpose of the testing was to measure the telcos’ cellular network performance based on “existing NTC prescribed minimum service performance standards.” More importantly, though, this yardstick can be used to inform and guarantee consumers that the telcos are providing services at a certain level of quality.

In fact, QoS tests can be used as the basis for Service Level Agreements (SLAs) between the telcos and their customers.

The results, announced through a press release, revealed that Smart prepaid performed better in four out of the five metrics (dropped call rate, average receive signal level, average signal quality, and call set-up time). Globe prepaid had an edge in one metric (blocked call or grade of service).

… Amid the furor over which telco is better, the limelight is deflected from the tester, the NTC. Truth be told, it is rare for the telecom regulator to be causing this much public stir. It is rare for the public to be paying any attention to it, at all. And this gem of an opportunity the NTC should grab and, hopefully, use to advance better telco service and consumer education.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

ITU & Google partner in Public Data Explorer

Wed, 26 Sep 2012 14:36:00 +0800

Global ICT data from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is now available through the Google Public Data Explorer (PDE). The platform not only gives quick access to the latest statistics on ICT, but also helps interpret and present them in a friendly format. Best of all, it’s free!

Below, I’ve extracted and compared three sets of stats among select Asian countries. Took me a few minutes. Neat! :D

The New Media, Society, & Politics in the Philippines

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 11:44:00 +0800

Check out this latest FES publication by Dr. Raul Pertierra (2012), where my research work on cybercampaigning and political blogging in the Philippines are cited. :)

The New Media, Society, & Politics in the Philippines (2012)

Abstract:

The Philippines is a paradox. The country is one of the most democratic and liberal societies in Asia, with a long history of western institutions and cultural practices. It is the only Christian-Catholic country in Asia and one of the most religious nations on earth. Its women are among the most liberated in the world, occupying senior positions in government, education and business. Its media is legendary for its critical stance and free-wheeling approach. It launched the so-called people power movement in 1986, inspiring other countries in non-violent revolution. It has accepted and domesticated the new media enthusiastically, making it the texting capital of the world and among the highest users of Facebook. The country is also known as the economic basket case of Asia, living on the income of its overseas workers. It is also among the most corrupt in the region. Its political elite rules uninterruptedly, winning elections repeatedly. It is the only country without divorce and contraception is too expensive for its poor. After Iraq, the Philippines is the most dangerous country for journalists.

One may well ask: how did all these things come about? The Philippines is a palimpsest where traditional, modern and postmodern influences manifest themselves contemporaneously. Its politics is traditional, its culture modern and its media postmodern. Understanding the role of new technologies, such as digital media, under these circumstances requires an appreciation of incommensurable factors that are nevertheless intercalated. The surface of Philippine politics appears imperturbable but underneath it, notions of the political are being reformulated as a consequence of the new media and its globalizing influence.

Why Globe needs to do better

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 13:15:54 +0800

Outages further complicate attempts to compete with PLDT.

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | September 6, 2012

September did not start easy for the Philippines’ Globe Telecom, as they received a deluge of complaints from subscribers complaining about disrupted services in the southern parts of Metro Manila.

Globe then issued a statement September 3 attributing the problems in the cities of Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Parañaque, Manila, and Pasayto to “a connectivity issue within [its] network systems.”.

While technical glitches in telco networks are bound to happen, Globe has had a few major ones recently. A service disruption that happened in May last year was caused by a “severed undersea fiber cable” serving the Visayas and Mindanao regions.

A second one, which occurred merely three months later, was reportedly due to a surge in calls and texts. The most recent downtime, however, created a big fuss because it happened in the capital.

Three disruptions in a row in less than two years is a bit too much, and too many for comfort for a player competing with the incumbent, PLDT’s Smart Communications.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Grace in Mono: Philippine internet, ICT lagging behind

Wed, 16 May 2012 14:15:00 +0800

Can it ever catch up to its SEA neighbors?

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | May 15, 2012

In CNN’s recent Eye on the Philippines feature, it was fascinating to see the number of internet users right next to the population infographic. This is proof that access to ICT, especially the internet, is as important a statistic as any development indicator in today’s hyperconnected world.

The Internet World Stats ranked the Philippines no. 7 among Asia’s top internet countries, with 30 million online citizens to boast. But does this figure mean anything? Although 30 million sounds like a lot, it roughly translates to 29% online Filipinos out of 102 million. This is 10% less than the internet penetration rate of a low-income country like Kyrgyzstan (39%)—a paradox considering that the Philippines is a lower-middle income nation and two stages higher than Kyrgyzstan in terms of digitization.

Internet laggard the Philippines is also marred by poor connection quality. In Akamai’s State of the Internet Report for the fourth quarter of 2011, internet in the Philippines was found to be among the slowest in the Asia Pacific region, with an average speed of 1.1 Mbps. This falls below Akamai’s definition of broadband – connection speeds of above 2 Mbps.

The report pointed out that “only a privileged few” (7.1%) actually enjoy broadband-speed connectivity, a stark contrast to that of neighbors like Malaysia (22%), Singapore (67%), and Thailand (70%). If Philippine ISPs do not feel the need to catch up with their Asian counterparts, they ought to improve service for their clients.

Filipino consumers feel that internet service in the country leaves much to be desired. And they are willing to shell out more money for better service quality, depending on how they use broadband and for particular circumstances, a recent survey by Ericsson’s ConsumerLab revealed. This begs the question: Aren’t consumers already paying enough for broadband? Or is slow internet caused by poor infrastructure combined with the telcos’ business practice of oversubscription?

In a broader context, this top Facebook user-country (ranked 8th in the world) has sadly remained a straggler in exploiting ICT’s full potential. The latest Networked Readiness Index (NRI) ranked the Philippines at no. 86 (out of 142 countries)—its worst performance in five years, starting from no. 69 (out of 122) in 2006. The NRI’s sub-indices point to some national issues that give a clearer picture of why and how the Philippines has failed to leverage ICT to boost its competitiveness.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Grace in Mono: Localizing the internet in the Philippines

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 20:15:45 +0800

PHOpenIX must address critical issues before fostering interconnects.

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | April 24, 2012

In this interconnected world, no economy can grow without the internet. Several studies have shown that a 10% increase in broadband penetration could improve gross domestic product (GDP) and labor productivity, especially in low– and middle-income countries. But apart from access, the quality of connection defines how the internet can bee exploited for development.

Internet exchange points (IXPs) are facilities that allow ISPs to connect directly to each other and exchange traffic using local infrastructure. Naturally, the shorter distance lessens latency, improves connection quality, and reduces the transmission cost of using third-party networks and expensive international links for routing traffic.

The Internet Society recently released a pioneering study that, for the first time, quantifies the positive impact of IXPs in emerging countries, like Kenya and Nigeria. The report attributes annual savings of at least $1 million for telcos, plus millions in additional revenues from new traffic, speeding local data exchange, and encouraging locally hosted content and services.

While developed nations in North America, Europe and Asia have long reaped the benefits of IXPs, countries like the Philippines have yet to exploit it. Internet users in the Philippines contend with a rather ridiculous situation. If A and B are subscribers of different ISPs, data from A will have to travel outside the country—making several hops to the US then to Hong Kong and Singapore—before it comes back and finally reach B. All this, even if A and B are just five kilometers apart!

Clearly, this sounds illogical. But the mere fact that major ISPs are not interconnected means that this makes (business) sense to at least one player.

Not that there is no IX facility available. In 2007, the Advanced Science and Technology Institute (ASTI), the research and development arm for ICT and microelectronics of the Department of S&T, developed the Philippine Open IX as an open peering facility for local ISPs. Several players have already connected to the IX, but without the major ISPs, its impact remains very limited.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Grace in Mono: What govt can do for the IT-BPO sector

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 20:08:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | April 12, 2012

The Philippines ICT industry recently made a great promise: by 2016, it will contribute as much as $50 billion in direct revenues, 70% of which would come from the IT-BPO industry.

It also promised a projected $150 billion in indirect investments in the economy, primarily through real estate, transport and telecommunications, banking, and taxes.

The country’s economic development authority already sees the IT-BPO segment growing at 15% annually. Much hope is also pinned on the sector in helping ease the country’s 7% unemployment rate and accelerating countryside development. Currently, IT-BPO accounts for only 1.6% of the 40-million strong labor force and 5% of the GDP.

Beginning with the Arroyo administration, the government has been gung-ho on harnessing the huge potential of IT-BPO as a means to leapfrog economic growth. Today, under the Aquino government, the Information and Communication Technology Office of the Department of Science and Technology is raring to tap into this gold mine—a priority in its ICT industry development programs.

All this raving about IT-BPO is for good reason. In recent years, the sector has contributed to the country’s economic growth, together with telecommunications, real estate, housing, and retail trade. The Philippines has already established itself as the clear global number two IT-BPO leader after India, which it had surpassed in 2010 as the main location for business support services.

To exploit the opportunity that IT-BPO brings, what is government doing for the sector?

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

Grace in Mono: Philippines Department of ICT makes sense

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 15:19:43 +0800

But after nearly a decade, it still hasn’t happened.

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | March 19, 2012

In this age of cloud computing, BPO and e-“everything,” having a separate Department of ICT (DICT) should make sense. But, in the Philippines, where proposed legislation to create one has been dragging for nearly a decade, this logic is still being challenged.

Last December optimism began to build when the Lower House approved the bill creating the DICT just seven months after its filing. In September the Upper House also introduced its version, which was unanimously passed after five months. A conference to reconcile the two versions was scheduled on March 14, but postponed the last minute “at the request of the House.” With Congress busy with the impeachment trial of the Chief Justice, some say the DICT discussion might have to be rescheduled when session resumes May 7.

This scenario is all too familiar: A DICT bill is introduced in Congress by “ICT champions,” gains momentum, and gets strong backing from government, business and civil society, only to lose steam in the end.

When Gloria Arroyo became president for a second term in 2004, she created the Commission on ICT (CICT), elevating it from a mere council to a “transition measure” to a DICT. Before stepping down, Arroyo certified a DICT bill as urgent. The bill died with the closing of the 14th Congress in May 2010.

President Benigno Aquino III concluded his first year in office by abolishing the CICT and downgrading it to an ICT Office (ICTO) under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), during National ICT month at that. Whether this was his administration’s way of “distancing itself from the ancien regime” is anybody’s guess. As expected, ICT stakeholders were shocked and worried about the perils of such a downgrade. Hope was pinned on the 15th Congress’ new DICT proposal.

Why does a DICT make sense? The answers are simple.

Read the full entry here. Visit Telecom Asia for news and analysis for Asia’s telecoms operators.

P-Noy: A Click Away From Every Pinoy? A Review of the Web Site of the Office of the President of the Philippines†

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 10:58:00 +0800

By Mary Grace Mirandilla-Santos

Asian Politics & Policy Journal, Volume 4, Issue 1, pages 134–137, January 2012

In a democracy like the Philippines, where elections are marred by a slow, manual counting process, the May 10, 2010 election offered new hope through automation. In this historic election that used precinct count optical scan machines, President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III was declared the winner only nine days after canvassing. The landslide victory of “P-Noy” (shortcut for President Noynoy, his official nickname), who garnered 15.2 million or 42% of the total votes cast, was no surprise—if his online campaign platforms were enough indication. The number of P-Noy’s “fans” on his Facebook page, for example, reached an astounding 95,000 within two months of its setup, dwarfing the networks of all the other candidates.² His cybercampaign maximized social media the most, especially in terms of providing information and mobilizing support using hyperlinks, blogs, online networks, and open-source database facilities (Mirandilla, 2009). The campaign is comparable to the strategy utilized by U.S. President Barack Obama (Bittle, Haller, & Kadlec, 2009; Lardinois, 2008). P-Noy is also the first Philippine president who directly responded to a citizen’s note on a social networking site.³

Against this background, a review of P-Noy’s current Web site under the Office of the President (OP) of the Philippines is conducted.⁴

Read the full review at the Wiley Online Library.

PLDT Q4 profit shrinks 87%

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 01:04:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | March 09, 2012

telecomasia.net

The Philippines’ PLDT revealed this week that its Q411 net profit fell 87% year-on-year to 1.1 billion pesos.

The company had already reported declining Q1 to Q3 revenues from its traditional call and text messaging services, which it attributed to “bucket” and “unlimited” type offers.

At a press conference, the country’s largest telco announced that its consolidated core net income dipped by 7% in 2011 to 39 billion pesos, from 42 billion in 2010.

These figures already include the operating performance of Digitel, of which PLDT now owns 98% after a much-debated acquisition that closed in October 2011. PLDT’s full-year net profit decreased by 21% in 2011 to 31.7 billion pesos, missing analysts’ expectations of around 40 billion.

PLDT, which is owned by Hong Kong’s First Pacific, Japan’s NTT Com and NTT DoCoMo, attributed decline in net income to lower service revenues and higher operating costs. These include a one-time asset impairment charge from an ongoing two-year 67 billion peso network modernization program that commenced in early 2011.

Read the full article at Telecom Asia.

Revising the Limits for the Unlimited

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 14:43:00 +0800

Revising the Limits for the Unlimited:

Matt Spaccarelli sued AT&T in small-claims court after his iPhone’s data speeds were slowed. A judge ruled in his favor last Friday.

“Some of the nation’s largest wireless phone companies, like AT&T and Verizon, use a process called throttling to slow down customers who exceed data limits — even if they have unlimited data plans.”

Read the full article at The New York Times.

Two Simple Steps to Take Control Over Google's New Privacy Policy

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:20:00 +0800

Two Simple Steps to Take Control Over Google's New Privacy Policy:

Did you know that Google recently changed its privacy policy? As Mashable explains, “… instead of treating your YouTube, Gmail and Google+ accounts as separate entities, Google now sees you as just one user. That should make it easier to target you with relevant ads.”

Some have started to question the legality and propriety of the new policy.

“France’s official data-protection agency has even launched an investigation to see whether the changes conflict with European privacy law. Read up on how you can secure your Google accounts,” according to Mashable.

Japan has also warned Google that “its new privacy policy may violate data protection laws.” South Korea earlier this month also “began investigating the possibility that the search giant was violating laws there,” TheNewWeb reports.

Read up to learn how to secure your Google accounts.

Grace in Mono: No turning back from unlimited data plans?

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:49:00 +0800

Grace Mirandilla-Santos | February 22, 2012

Telcos should learn an important lesson about consumers in the Philippines: Filipinos want to have their cake, and eat it, too.

What was supposed to be an uneventful Friday in the online community last week was disrupted when Twitter suddenly went abuzz with reports that Globe Telecom, Inc., the Philippines’ second largest telco, was going to end its “unli” (unlimited) data plan soon. Interaksyon.com first broke the news Thursday morning about an interview with Globe President Ernest Cu, but it was months-old online news network Rappler.com’s article? posted Friday morning that triggered a barrage of comments from angry consumers. Remarks ranged from worried to critical and outright irate.

By Friday afternoon, Globe was already in damage control mode. Using her personal Twitter account, Globe external affairs head Charo Logarta replied to tweets, explaining that the “story was out of context” and that Globe “won’t end its unli data plan anytime soon.” The company, in fact, recently launched a $700-million network modernization program to improve its service She also reassured the public that Globe “won’t necessarily follow what bigger telcos abroad do.” Logarta was referring to the global trend of dropping what Ovum calls the “unsustainable” unlimited data plan.

Interaksyon.com notes that Globe’s timeframe for its plans to discontinue unlimited data offers hinges on the uptake of smartphones in the country, which now stands at 20% of mobile subscribers. Meanwhile, Smart announced that it was sticking to unlimited data plan while ramping up the availability of its smartphones. It is banking on its “UNLIsocial” promo to encourage mass adoption of its Android phones, with unlimited access to social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter until March 31.

So, for now, the unlimited data plan stays. But there is good reason for Filipino consumers to be jumpy about threats of scrapping this offer.

Read the full article at Telecom Asia.

PLDT-Digitel Merger: Changing the Game for the Better or for the Worse? [A Belated Post]

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 14:06:00 +0800

It‘s a quarter past midnight, but Pilo and his wife, Elena, are just starting their day. While Pilo is busy loading their freshly harvested lettuce onto their jeep, Elena exchanges text messages with their runner, Jun, at the bus terminal downtown. She asked Jun to reserve a space for them at the 1 A.M. bus. Jun texts her back. He forewarns her that there are more loaders today than the usual. The couple immediately leaves for the terminal. They arrive just in time. Their cargoes are quickly transported to the public market. At 12 noon, Elena calls their suki vendors to check the sales of their lettuce. She is delighted to hear that they are already sold out.

This anecdote is all too familiar now, but was unthinkable in the 1990s. Today, almost every Filipino—regardless of age, income, and location—has a mobile phone. It’s hard to imagine that this remarkable feat in telecoms, one of the largest and most dynamic businesses in the Philippines today, started just over 10 years ago. Reform in this sector was strongly anchored in tearing down the barriers to market entry and allowing other players, “elephants,” to compete with PLDT, the country’s long-time incumbent telco. With more providers to choose from, consumers became king. In no time, telecom services dramatically improved and became more affordable.

But with the recent acquisition by PLDT, still the largest telco, of Digitel, the third–ranked telco that introduced Sun Cellular and its 24/7 unlimited call and text in 2003, things are likely to change. In October 2011, telecoms regulator National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) approved the PLDT-Digitel deal based on some preconditions, which include continuing Digitel’s nationwide unlimited voice calls and SMS, PLDT divesting itself of the 10MHz of 3G frequency held by its unit Connectivity Unlimited Resources Inc. (Cure), and continuing the provision of high-quality service to subscribers. Knowing what we do about regulation in the country, these preconditions are as good as gone. It is interesting to see how PLDT, who now controls 70 percent of the telecoms market, would change the game. Would the merger reverse the benefits that consumers have already learned to enjoy or would it further invigorate the sector through what PLDT claims to be the unhampered use and expansion of telecom infrastructure and services?

The PLDT-Digitel deal was a relatively painless battle, considering strong opposition from rival and second-ranked mobile operator Globe Telecom, Inc., consumer advocacy groups, and the Executive branch of government.

The merger story began in March 2011, when JG Summit announced a PHP69.2-billion share-swap agreement with PLDT for it to give up shares in Digitel for a 12-percent stake in PLDT. Digitel owns Sun Cellular, the brand that introduced the now-market-standard 24/7 unlimited voice call and text (SMS). The deal would allow PLDT to control 70 percent, adding 18 percent to its standing, mobile market share.

Rumors of the deal, which insiders said took only 10 days to close, spread like wildfire and immediately elicited market response. A day prior to the announcement, stocks were up by nearly 1%, with Digitel jumping by 18 percent (to PHP1.83 per share) and PLDT gaining by 0.59 percent (to PHP2,036 per share). A day after, even shares of rival Globe Telecom, Inc. soared to its highest in five months on assumptions that the PLDT-Digitel merger would boost telecoms pricing.

But consumers did not sharing in the optimism. Advocacy groups, TXTPower and Txtm8, opposed the deal and questioned its impact on the quality and affordability of services, which would affect the country’s 89 million-strong mobile phone subscribers.

Globe, which controlled 30 percent of the mobile market as of 2010, naturally opposed the PLDT-Digitel merger, arguing that it would place the largest telco at an “unfair disadvantage” and violate an NTC memorandum circular (07-08-2005), if PLDT’s frequency allocation would remain unchecked. Globe pointed out that PLDT, which owns leading mobile operator Smart, has already obtained 50 percent of the 2G bandwidth and 56 percent of the 3G spectra with its acquisition of Digitel, resulting in a “stock-out” scenario in the telecoms industry that would disallow existing and future competitors from competing cost-effectively.

The government, with no less than the President, expressed concern over the impact of this game-changing merger and sent two strong signals of its position: submission of an Anti-trust bill to Congress as a priority legislation and the sudden creation of an Office for Competition in June 2011 to investigate monopolies. It remains to be seen how the new competition authority figured in NTC’s approval of the PLDT-Digitel merger.

Congress, which approves telecoms franchises, was more accepting. In August 2011, the Senate Committee on public services upheld the merger’s validity, saying that it was consistent with existing legislative franchises, legal, and a regular business transaction.

Filipinos are bracing themselves for any changes in the services they currently enjoy. Although the NTC set certain preconditions to ensure consumer welfare, its performance has shown a lack of teeth in implementation, which, as recently reported, causes the government billions in uncollected fees and penalties. Still, the NTC is determined to allay consumers’ fears, or at least project so. Last month, a regulatory win was gained when the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the NTC to make the “six second per pulse” billing system mandatory. The telcos have vowed to bring the issue to the Supreme Court—a portent to a protracted court battle, which industry players have long used to delay or avert regulation.

On the brighter side, this can also be an opportunity for a third elephant—with the resources and market experience to compete—to come in, one like Sun Cellular, which would introduce fresh, innovative services that can shake up the market anew. Let’s drink to that possibility!