The National Telecommunications Commission said September revalidation tests showed previously recorded weak service from Globe Telecom Inc., Smart Communications Inc. and DITO Telecommunity Corp. remained “substantially unchanged” despite giving the operators time to make urgent fixes.
The telcos have begun responding to the NTC action, with DITO already in discussions with the regulator while Smart and Globe said they had yet to receive the show cause orders.
Smart said it therefore could not yet confirm or comment on the reported penalty, including its terms, applicability or potential impact on its business and operations.
P100,000 a day
The NTC said it prepared show cause orders imposing a P100,000 daily penalty on each operator beginning Sept. 25 and continuing until the identified service deficiencies are fully corrected.
Globe’s areas of concern were Manila, Makati and Quezon City, while DITO was flagged in San Juan, Pasay and Las Piñas and Smart in Parañaque, Manila and Pasig.
The regulator said it would conduct tests every two weeks in the affected areas to check whether the operators are making the required network improvements, while continuing to monitor mobile broadband performance elsewhere in Metro Manila.
—Edited by Miguel R. Camus
