PHInternet

Bam: ICT Hubs to Improve Internet Speed, Access

In an effort to boost the country’s Internet speed and access, a senator has filed a bill seeking to create an Online Network Establishment (ONE) that will build and develop basic information and communications (ICT) infrastructure throughout the country.

“The ONE Philippines Act is a concrete step to build and develop basic information and communications (ICT) infrastructure through the solidarity of both public and private agencies,” Sen. Bam Aquino said in Senate Bill No. 2698.

The bill calls for the establishment of ICT Hubs in every legislative district, which will improve the country’s Internet speed and give more Filipinos access to the World Wide Web.

“Being a nation with over 7,000 islands and with an estimated 10 million Filipinos living abroad, it is important that we establish quality access to the Internet, and other means of communications across the country,” Sen. Bam emphasized.

However, a report by the United Nations (UN) agency said seven of 10 Filipinos have no Internet access and only 18.9 percent of households have Internet connection.

“There is an urgent need to address the lack of Internet access in the Philippines so Filipinos can keep their connections alive and strong and business can continue to thrive,” Sen. Bam said.

Also, Sen. Bam added the country’s GDP will improve by up to one percent by improving access to ICT, based on a study by the Nathan Institute and the Oxford Institute.

“The approval of this bill will not only lead to more personal connections between Filipino families and friends, it will also advance industry and support the country’s exceptional economic growth,” Sen. Bam stressed.

Transcript of Sen. Bam’s interview after NTC public hearing on minimum internet speed

 

Q: Update po sa public hearing?

 

Sen. Bam: This is actually a public hearing ng National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) regarding the memorandum circular on publishing your minimum internet speed. Diyan sa public hearing, nagkaroon tayo ng iba’t ibang mga mungkahi, iba’t ibang mga suggestions at kuwento mula sa iba’t ibang stakeholders mula sa private sector at cause-oriented groups at pati na sa consumers.

 

Mukhang lumalapit na tayo sa pag-i-issue nito and the NTC committed na within March ilalabas na niya iyong memorandum circular, iyong patakaran kung saan kailangang i-publish ng ISPs or telcos iyong minimum internet speed na nakukuha ng ating mga kababayan.

 

At the end of the day kasi, mahalaga na ang binabayaran natin, nakukuha natin. Mawawala na ang misleading advertisements, at the same time, kung ano talaga iyong ma-e-expect sa pang-araw-araw na gawain, pati na sa ating Internet, sa telepono man or sa ating mga bahay, makukuha talaga ng taumbayan.

 

Right now, ang naging issue dito is yung batayan ng speed. Kasi maraming paraan kung paano pwedeng makuha ang speed sa iyong bahay o sa iyong lugar, ang mahalaga mayroon tayong isang batayan or a main standard. Part of that process was allowing NTC to purchase equipment, both hardware and software, para mayroon tayong official speed talaga ng isang ISP sa isang lugar.

 

Bawat telco, bawat ISP, may kanya-kanya silang mekanismo. Hindi naman tayo nag-a-agree. Ang mahalaga dito, all the stakeholders agreed that the NTC will be the official na tagabilang kung ano ang official speed sa inyong area. It’s now a matter of purchasing the equipment and providing the software, not just for the NTC pero para na rin sa consumers, para tayo rin, gamit ang software na iyon, puwede nating malaman iyong official na speed sa ating area at maibangga natin sa mga kontrata natin sa telco at ISP at malaman natin kung nakukuha natin ang nakasaad sa advertisements.

 

Q: May consumers tayo na can’t express ang reklamo nila…

Sen. Bam: Actually, malakas sila mag-express, especially online. Binabantayan na rin namin yan. The first step is really having this official standard. Kasi he said, she said iyan. Sasabihin ng isa na nakita ko sa isang website mababa, sasabihin naman ng telco, sa aming pag-aaral mataas naman iyan. Kaya ang NTC natin na siyang regulator, hindi makasabi kung ano dahil wala silang equipment at wala silang opisyal na batayan pagdating sa bilis at quality of service. With the equipment that they’re purchasing and this is a good step, hiningi nila ito last year, binigay naman sa budget, ngayon bibilhin na nila, magkakaroon tayo ng totoong standards. In the interest of fairness, an individual can check their speed at ang telco ay puwede nilang makita sa tool na iyan kung ano ang bilis nila sa isang particular area. In that sense, mailalapit natin kung ano ang user experience sa sinasabi ng ISP at telcos na binibigay nilang kalidad.

 

Q: Mensahe ho para sa consumers natin?

 Sen. Bam: We’ve been having this hearings for a number of months already. Tuluy-tuloy ang hearing, maging sa Senado o maging sa NTC. Hindi natin pakakawalan ito hanggang maabot natin ang sitwasyon na satisfied ang mga tao pagdating sa kanilang internet speed, price and access.

 

Mahalaga ito sa mga tao dahil this is the way we communicate with relatives abroad, ito ang paraan kung paano tayo nakakakuha ng trabaho at nakakapagnegosyo. The only way we can move forward if is all sectors are helping each other. Hindi na sapat na we blame each other. We need to built a right internet infrastructure – ano ang kailangang gawin ng gobyerno, ano ang kailangan niyang ilaang pera sa budget natin, ano iyong kailangang gawin ng ating regulators at kung ano ang kailangang gawin ng consumers. Kasi napag-uusapan din iyong responsibilidad ng consumers pagdating sa internet usage.

 

Of course, kung ano iyong kailangan nating makita mula sa ating telcos at ISPs. Ano ang paraan na kailangan nilang ipakita para makita natin na handa sila na ibigay sa taumbayan ang binabayaran ng tao para sa kanilang serbisyo.

 

Transcript of Sen. Bam Aquino’s Interview after the Internet Hearing

Q: Is NTC capable of ensuring na mabilis ang Internet?

 A: Si Commissioner Corboda, said it for the record, currently, wala silang kapangyarihan na i-dictate ang presyo pero nasa kanilang poder na mag-set ng mga minimum standards. Ito ang hinahanap natin sa susunod na hearing and they’re coming up with the memorandum circular on the matter.

Sabi ko naman hindi puwede na ang stated rate, o ang napapangakong rate at iyong minimum standard mo napakalayo, kailangan naman may batayan pa rin iyon.

So they’ll come up with suggestions, one is iyong possible amendments sa RA 7925. Napag-usapan din kung dapat bang gawing basic service ang Internet service kasi sa ngayon, value-added service lang siya.

Pangatlo, napag-usapan din kung paano maabot ang hard-to-reach areas. DOST has a current pilot using iyong frequency ng TV o tinatawag na white space project. There’s already a pilot in Bohol at iyong pilot sa Bohol ay doon sa mga palaisdaan.

In that area, using the white space frequency, 12 megabytes per second iyong speed nila. Kung tutuusin mas mabilis pa ang white space project na ginagawa ng DOST kaysa doon sa ibang lugar dito sa Metro Manila.

We’re also trying to explore if DOST needs more support para maikalat ang white space project nila para maabot ang far-flung areas.

For the next hearing, pag-uusapan din naming ang Open Access Bill. This is a bill which will help telcos put up more infrastructure. Kasi marami rin sa kanila may mga complaints na pagdating sa local government unit or even mga barangay, hindi rin ganoon kadali para makapagpatayo ng cell sites.

In the end, ang tao din ang nagsa-suffer kasi pangit ang services natin.

In the meantime, we’re waiting for the recommendations of NTC sa Republic Act 7925, sa memorandum circular on minimum speed ng ating telcos.

DOJ is also coming out with a memorandum circular stating na iyong advertisements ng ating telcos, kailangan ding mas malinaw para sa mamamayan natin.

May mga advertisement na nagsasabing unlimited pero hindi naman pala unlimited. Dapat hindi na iyon payagan.  DOJ will step in along with DTI to make sure that consumer complaints are also met.

 

Q: Malaking bagay ba kung magagawa bang basic service ang Internet connection sa speed at presyo?

 A: If it becomes a basic service, then government has all the powers to actually regulate it. Currently kasi, dahil commercial transaction ito, walang kapangyarihan ang gobyerno para mag-set ng presyo.

But I will have to admit, this would not happen if we experienced good experience pagdating sa ating Internet.  Sabi ko nga kanina, kung maganda ang serbisyo natin, mura, mataas ang kalidad at regular iyong kalidad ng ating Internet, we wouldn’t be having this hearing. Hindi pa mapag-uusapan na gawing basic service ang Internet.

At this point, I think government really needs to step in. Whether it’s getting all players to agree to IP peering, proposing minimum standards to protect our consumers or even just to make sure na ang far-flung areas natin ay mayroon pa ring Internet service.

It’s time government steps in.  It’s budget season now, kung kinakailangang maglaan ng pera ang gobyerno para ma-improve ito. Palagay ko dapat napag-uusapan na natin o napa-plano na natin iyan.

 

Q: Kanina nabanggit niyo doon sa mga ads na maximum usually ang nababanggit, iyong minimum hindi masyado.

A: Actually, magandang clarification nga ni Undersecretary Dimagiba, is that, kahit na may fine print iyan, iyong may asterisk tapos napakaliit na sulat diyan, iyong dahilan pa rin ng consumer complaint is of course the stated number, iyong ‘up to.’

So we’re asking the telcos to state very clearly kung ano ba ang pangako natin sa taumbayan. Ang ‘up to’ kasi, kung iyong ‘up to’ mo naman, ilang oras lang sa isang araw. Ang hirap rin kung iyon ang ina-advertise natin. We should advertise what is our assured speed and people should be paying on the assured speed and not based on ‘up to’, especially kung ilang oras lang sa isang araw mo makukuha iyon.

 

Q: Pumayag ba ang telcos?

A: They agreed and they nodded. For the record, nag-nod sila babaguhin nila ang advertisement. In fact one of the telcos mentioned that they’ll be doing away with the unlimited advertisement and state already kung anong volume ang puwedeng makuha based on your plan or based on what you paid for.

I think that’s an improvement. At least, in that sense, mas malinaw sa taumbayan na malinaw ang kanyang binabayaran at kung ano ang nakukuha niya.

 

Q: Kailan po magiging totoo ang ads nila?

A: Soon daw. Soon they won’t have a choice once DOJ comes out with the circular, they have to follow.

I’m hoping na unahan na nila ang circular ng DOJ at baguhin na nila ang ads. I also mentioned to them na tina-track naming ang ads, may ilang ok na at may ilan pa ring vague.

I got their commitment earlier na babaguhin nila ang kanilang practices.

 

Q: Pagdating sa IP peering?

A: Kailangang pag-usapan na natin iyan. I think at this point, NTC wants to bring in the players. I support that but at the end of the day kasi, if it’s a commercial transaction and not regulated by government, wala kang kapangyarihan na sabihin sa isang grupo na libre na iyan ah.

So, the question is, do we provide the right powers to the NTC so that they can do that. One, which might mean amendments to the law, or two, we come up with an agreement among stakeholders, which I hope is the better solution, so we can push for IP peering among local players.

At the end of the day, ang pinaka-objective naman ng IP peering is all local content, keep it local. Para at last iyong local content natin, di hamak na mas mabilis ang pagtanggap sa ating devices.

 

Q:  Can the government demand it to be mandatory?

A: If we amend RA 7925 and make Internet a basic service, then government will have the power to say that this has to be mandatory. Currently, it’s voluntary at sinasabi ng ibang telco, is that we’re ok with IP peering but we will charge.

To be frank, ako I’m fine with that but we charge the right rates. Kasi what the small ISPs are saying, ang taas ng charge ninyo, hindi naman ma-justify.

Right now, the NTC will try to bring all stakeholders together and hopefully, through these hearings and through meetings, pag-uusapan if they’re gonna stick to kung kailangang mag-charge, at least have a rate that’s acceptable to all. In fairness naman, meron naman silang investment doon.

The other extreme is i-amend mo iyong batas, gawin mong basic service ang Internet, and then have government step in and already regulate the sector, which, again is the extreme example.

The fastest example is just to get all the players to agree, ano ba iyong pinakamagandang patakaran between all of us.

Transcript of Sen. Bam Aquino’s Interview after the Hearing on the Slow and Expensive Internet Connection

Q: Kumusta po ang inyong hearing?

A: Marami pang kailangang pag-usapan, to be frank. We just suspended the hearing but you can expect that in a few months, we will have another hearing on this because marami pang unresolved issues.

 

Changes in Advertising

We talked mostly about the problems today but I really want to talk about solutions. One I think iyong changes sa ating advertising, I think that would be quite good for our consumers na mas malinaw kung ano ang nakukuha nila pagdating sa Internet.

Congestion

Pangalawa iyong pagdating sa congestion. We’ve instructed NTC to actually check if indeed congestion is the main problem kung bakit mabagal ang Internet.

Sabi ko nga, kung congestion ito na once in a blue moon, then maybe you can say ok at that particular time, mahina ang Internet. But if it a regular type of congestion, araw-araw mong nararanasan, that’s something that has to be addressed regularly.

Value-Added Service vs. Basic Service

Now, NTC has said na Internet natin is considered as a value-added service, hindi siya basic service meaning hindi siya makapagregulate nang todo-todo dahil hindi ito kasama sa basic services natin.

I think that can be one of the laws that could be amended na gawin nating basic service ang Internet. It is already recognized as a human right and if we make it a basic service, at least puwede talaga nating bantayan kung paano ito puwedeng maikalat sa maraming Pilipino, at the right cost and at the right service level.

Next Step: Technical Working Group

The TWG will probably tackle this more in detail. Hopefully aantabayanan po natin iyan kung paano gumalaw.

Kasi ang nagiging problema sa maraming hearing, nag-uusap-usap pero walang nangyayari.

Hindi natin iiwanan ang isyung ito.

Every quarter we can have this hearing and make sure that we get closer to affordable and quality Internet for our country.

 

Q: Puwede bang babaan ang charges sa Internet na mabagal?

A. Sa totoo lang, NTC cannot regulate even on that because it’s not a basic service.

It is a market driven system right now.  If we’re able to make Internet a basic service, it can one of the services which is regulated.

Alam naman natin na sa ating bansa, may mga regulators tayo, they can basically dictate the prices for certain services and if we’re able to make Internet a basic service, puwede nang gawin iyan. Puwede nang mag-regulate.

 

Q: Sir ano ang mga standards that you want to set?

A: In fact, in the Philippine Digital Strategy, nakalagay doon na by 2016, kailangang 80 percent na ng ating mga kababayan ang mayroong internet access and nasa minimum of 2 MPBS.

Mayroon na tayong standard na kailangang sundan. This Philippine Digital Strategy was made by DOST in 2010.

In fact, binabantayan natin kung umaabot tayo sa standards na iyon. According to the private sector and NTC, mukhang maaabot naman ang 80 percent access by 2016.

But iyong regularity of speed and iyong cost ang dapat bantayan, na dapat affordable pa rin ito at tuluy-tuloy at hindi dapat pawala-wala.

 

Q: Sino ba dapat magre-regulate? Dapat pa ba tayong mag-create ng regulator?

We have a regulator and that’s the NTC. So alam ninyo iyong isang na-reason kanina ay do we need new laws or just have NTC regulate.

In some cases, puwede na silang mag-regulate but in case of the Internet, na hindi considered as basic service, kailangan itong gawing basic service.

 

Q: Sir, how do we do that?

We’ll amend the Public Service Act, which is a 1936 law.

Isipin mo, we’re talking about high-tech information age and we’re still using a 1936 law.

So it’s about time that we update this law and we use those amendments to really push for better access, more affordable internet in the Philippines.

 

Q: This means powerless po ang government?

No that’s not right. In fact, we asked NTC to come up with standards for Internet. Initially, walang pa silang standard na sini-set because this is a value added service.

Standards

To respond lang sa hinaing ng maraming Pilipino, kahit iyong ibang senador may hinaing na rin sila, it’s just right that they come up with standards to check the infrastructure kung talagang kaya ng infrastructure natin ang pinapangakong speed ng ating Internet.

Kung hindi, pilitin natin ang private sector na ma-match ang standards na nakalay-out na at gagawin ng NTC.

Responsibility of Users

Iyong kabaligtad din dito I think, we must be responsible users of the Internet just to be fair. Earlier nga na-mention na iilang tao lang na heavy users, apektado ang lahat.

Kung 24/7 ka sa mobile, panay ang download mo, nakakaapekto sa mga kasama mo.

 

Q: Sir in your next hearing ano po ang tututukan ninyo?

A: First we’ll have a TWG. All of the resource speakers, the NTC, DOST, DTI and telco partners. We’ll invite the other ISPs. I think mahalaga rin dito ang ating local government units.

 

Puro Salita

Himayin natin ang discussion natin and come up with specific recommendations and from there, we’ll give it maybe two to three months to have another hearing para ma-track natin kung may nangyayari ba o wala.

Ang masakit kasi, puro salita at walang nangyayari. By the next hearing, after three months, we can check already, mayroon ba tayong solusyon na naihain o nagawa na o wala pa rin.

 

On Local Government Units

Iyon isa ring siguro na na-raise ay iyong sa local government units. Sinasabi ng ating telcos, hindi pare-pareho ang pagtrato sa kanila ng LGUs. There are some LGUs who will charge a really high amount, ang iba naman will charge less.

Nahihirapan sila (telcos) na i-roll out ang kanilang services. Kaya it’s important also to have the DILG, League of Cities and the League of Municipalities to have a common stand that when it comes to Internet and providing, kailangang tulung-tulong tayo rito.

On Congestion

Standards when it terms to congestion. At the minimum, they can actually show kung iyong infrastructure natin nagma-match sa population or Internet usage, para kung congestion nga ang problema, makita natin kung ano ang paraan kung anong ma-decongest natin.

Q: What’s the issue with Internet peering?

A: Well this is something NTC is already working on. We’ll ask for an update on the next hearing or during the TWG.

Ibig sabihih nito nagko-connect locally ang ating mga nodes. To be frank, maybe a technical answer might be better.

 

Paikot-ikot

Simply put, kunyari galing akong Quezon City pupunta akong Makati, dadaan akong EDSA. Hindi na ako iikot sa Manila Bay, pupunta pa sa Cebu at babalik pa bago makarating sa Makati.

This makes the nodes faster. I think NTC is already working on this, and we’ll look for updates after three months on this issue.

 

Q. Kasama po ba ang mga text na pinapadala ng network na may promo sa resolusyon ninyo?

A: It’s not part of the resolution but we can add it.

 

Q: Kung minsan matutulog ka na lang may magtetext, akala ko importante.

A: I can have that checked. Pag nandoon na ang NTC puwede nating patanong iyon. But primarily kasi, the question is more on the expensive Internet.

Compared to other countries, medyo lumalayo na ang presyo. So we’re hoping kung ma-refer na siya sa aming committee today, we’re hoping to have the hearing next week.

 

Q: Hindi magkakalayo ang mga rates nila, so puwede ba nating sabihin na maaaring may cartel rin sila?

A: Hard to say that that’s a crime.

 

Fair Competition

But babalik din tayo diyan sa competition policy. That’s one of the bills we’re pushing for.  If you have better competition, you have more people in the market, mas competitive, mas bababa ang presyo.

 

Roadmap for Internet

Primarily gusto naming tanungin sa NTC, ano ang roadmap natin.

Technically, regulated industry iyan, NTC should have a roadmap in terms of the price and quality.

Unfortunately, napag-iwanan na tayo ng ibang mga bansa so we want to see. Antabayanan natin kung anong sasabihin nila.

Transcript of Sen. Bam Aquino’s Interview on the Slow, Expensive Internet

Q. Kasama po ba ang mga text na pinapadala ng network na may promo sa resolusyon ninyo?

A: It’s not part of the resolution but we can add it.

QUESTION: Kung minsan matutulog ka na lang may magtetext, akala ko importante.

ANSWER: I can have that checked. Pag nandoon na ang NTC puwede nating patanong iyon. But primarily kasi, the question is more on the expensive Internet.

 Compared to other countries, medyo lumalayo na ang presyo. So we’re hoping kung ma-refer na siya sa aming committee today, we’re hoping to have the hearing next week.

QUESTION: Hindi magkakalayo ang mga rates nila, so puwede ba nating sabihin na maaaring may cartel rin sila?

ANSWER: Hard to say that that’s a crime.

But babalik din tayo diyan sa competition policy. That’s one of the bills we’re pushing for.  If you have better competition, you have more people in the market, mas competitive, mas bababa ang presyo.

 Primarily gusto naming tanungin sa NTC, ano ang roadmap natin. Technically, regulated industry iyan, NTC should have a roadmap in terms of the price and quality.

Unfortunately, napag-iwanan na tayo ng ibang mga bansa so we want to see. Antabayanan natin kung anong sasabihin nila.

 

QUESTION: Kailan iyon?

ANSWER: If it is referred today, we can have that (investigation) next week. Kung ma-refer siya today.

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