Bill seeks to lower mobile phone services
Kabataan partylist Rep. Terry Ridon said House Bill 4380 also mandates telecommunication companies to file a petition with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) before imposing price adjustments on phone service fees.
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Ridon said the bill also seeks the abolition of the interconnection fees for mobile phone services saying “the telecommunication companies have already recouped their expenses for infrastructure and equipment that enable interconnectivity.”
“Abolishing the interconnection charges would greatly contribute to lowering mobile phone rates without harming the economic viability of telecommunication companies,” Ridon said.
He said there is a need to empower the NTC to impose sanctions against telecommunications firms that do not adhere to the commission’s regulations.“Testament to this situation is the way telecommunications firms for the large part ignored the NTC’s memorandum circular that reduced the interconnection fees for text messaging from 35 centavos to 15 centavos per text, thus bringing down the cost of text message by 20 centavos,” Ridon said.
Under the bill, telecommunication companies shall charge a standard rate of fees for mobile phone services to their subscribers in accordance with the rates established by the NTC.The Cellular Mobile Telecommunications Service Providers (CMTS) are required to file a petition with the NTC on any proposed adjustment in the approved ceiling rates of mobile phone services.
The bill mandates the NTC to impose administrative fees, penalties and sanction against erring telecommunication firms and suspend action on all and future application for the adjustment of the rate of fees to mobile phone services of CMTS providers.The NTC would also have the authority to direct appropriate government financial institutions to withhold the releases on any loans or credit accommodation, which the violating CMTS providers may have with them.
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