This year has been a crazy one for telcos (telecom companies) here in the Philippines. More and more content like Netflix and We all thought that Telstra would arrive in the Philippines (with the help of San Miguel) and save the day. Sadly, PLDT and Globe had other ideas and bought the telco assets from San Miguel after talks with Telstra failed. I think that this Globe and PLDT duopoly must stop. We really need a third Philippine telco.
Why We Need a Third Philippine Telco
Having a third Philippine telco would help spur more competition between them. This means customers like us would have more options in getting their access to mobile data. I’ve recently been hearing complaints from my friends regarding this. Some are pissed at Globe for their data cap for ALL internet services. Others get annoyed at PLDT for intermittent connection. Despite all that, they stuck with their current telco because they haven’t found a better one. A new telco here would ultimately be beneficial to consumers, even if it will have a hard time initially.
Like I said, it will be hard to make an impact in this sector.
The Problem also lies in the PH Gov’t
The Philippine government isn’t doing any favors at all when it comes to this. Did you know that it takes 8 MONTHS to put up a SINGLE cellsite? That’s insane! If a telco wants to put up a lot of cell sites, it would take LITERALLY FOREVER to put them all up! It would be nice if the red tape surrounding this would be lessened so that cell sites would be put up quicker.
What the Third Player SHOULD Offer
I may sound discouraging with what I said earlier. Don’t fret though! I listed down some things a potential third Philippine telco SHOULD offer to make a splash in this industry. Here they are:
MORE DATA for LESS MONEY
I put this first on the list because this is what people demand from telcos today. Without advancements in mobile internet, we wouldn’t be able to take advantage of the power of smartphones! The problem is that telcos still charge more for internet services due to the difficulty of putting up even a decent internet service in the Philippines.
NO DATA CAP
This one would be quite difficult to accomplish, given that MORE devices are connected to a cell site in the Philippines than in ANY OTHER Asian country. If only the government would help in lessening the time it takes to get a permit for one cell site.
Solid Network Coverage (at least in Major Cities)
Let’s face it. Being an archipelagic country with 7,107 islands, it is difficult for a Philippine telco to build out infrastructure. We would have to consider the landscape more often. It would amaze me if the new telco can do this in a short amount of time.
Wide Phone Selection
Of all the things I mentioned here, this one’s the easiest of them all. It helps to get the most popular smartphones from the big global players (Apple, Huawei, Samsung) and then bolster the lineup with more affordable smartphones from a wide range of manufacturers (Oppo, Vivo, Cherry Mobile, Starmobile).
That being said, it still will be difficult for a potential third player to get in. But if what Philippine President Duterte says about opening the telco sector to new players is true, then we might get one sooner than we thought.
How about you? What would you want to see in a potential third Philippine telco? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
We need a telco that doesn’t think of profit but service. But where do we find one? Everyone’s about profit and because of this, service is always sacrificed.
The right balance is what we need to look for in new telcos, Rome. 🙂
Agree with Rome! Everything all boils to business, huhu. Well, let’s see what happens if the government allows a third player. Hopefully, Telstra again? I also really hope they remove the data cap but not sure what they can do about that without losing money.
I was really sad about the whole Telstra thing! #UmasaKasiSiAte
I’m really hoping for a third telco that will offer plans with no data capping. I’m with PLDT because of this, but heck, the service is also bad most of the time. Hopefully, ma tupad atong wish in the future.
A big yes to having a third telco! Competition is always better for the consumers and after all these years of pretty much suffering through the not-so-good service that the telcos generally provide, it would do us so much better to have another provider around.
Yes!! We really need a new TELCO company to compete the 2 giant TELCO in the Philippines.. Hopefully the Telstra will come to our country now..
I am shocked that San Miguel had sold the Telstra stocks to PLDT and Globe. Sad to say the most awaited new telco is cancelled. I hope that Philippine Gov’t and business entities would allow another and would give better services. At the end of the day, it should boil down to quality.I am shocked that San Miguel had sold the Telstra stocks to PLDT and Globe. Sad to say the most awaited new telco is cancelled. I hope that Philippine Gov’t and business entities would allow another and would give better services. At the end of the day, it should boil down to quality.
It’s not as easy you think. Making a network in an archipelago is such a huge undertaking and the current telco cartel will not allow it. I just hope someone is brave enough to gamble on such tight odds.
Yes, we really need another player in the telecommunications business. I really hope that the new company if ever there will be a brave company to venture in this market would take into considerations the quality of service they can provide to their subscribers.
Another player would be great for competition and would make other companies do better in terms of quality service and not just think about profit. A company that is customer oriented that would provide excellent service.
I agree. The service doesn’t seem to be improving even if they claimed it would.
I check the current news at http://www.telco.ph – nothing seems to change