Konektadong Pinoy bill faces review amid telco concerns

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos is expected to scrutinize the proposed Konektadong Pinoy Act, a priority administration bill designed to boost connectivity in the country, but which has raised alarm among telecommunications firms over possible security and regulatory risks.

The bill, which aims to remove barriers for internet service providers and lure investments in digital infrastructure, was ratified by Congress last week and is now awaiting the President’s signature.

While consumer advocates and some officials lauded its passage, the group representing the country’s leading telcos warned that the version approved by the bicameral committee could “lead to national security vulnerabilities, weaken regulatory oversight and destabilize the telecommunications sector in the long run.”

Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said the measure has yet to be transmitted to the Office of the President.

Castro gave assurance that the President would act promptly on the bill after reviewing all its provisions.

‘Unresolved risks’

While the Philippine Chamber of Telecommunications Operators (PCTO) supports the bill’s overarching goal of expanding digital access, the group raised alarm over what it described as “unresolved risks” in the proposed bill.

The chamber cited that under the proposed measure, new data transmission players would no longer be required to secure a legislative franchise or a certificate of public convenience and necessity.

The group argued that this removes key filters historically used to evaluate legal, financial, technical and cybersecurity readiness.

“This creates a two-tier system. Existing players remain subject to full regulation, while new entrants operate with fewer checks. That’s a national security concern and a fairness issue,” PCTO president and Globe general counsel Froilan Castelo said.

The group also raised concern about the bill’s exemption for satellite direct access services from any form of registration or authorization from the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) or the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), saying the move contradicts the bill’s own principle of technology neutrality.

“You cannot claim to be technology-neutral and at the same time give one technology a free pass. The provision requiring satellite services to apply for NTC spectrum use was removed in the final version. That opens a dangerous backdoor,” Castelo said.

PCTO further criticized a provision allowing new players a two-year grace period to comply with national and international security standards, calling such a delay “unacceptable” in an era of escalating cyber threats.

It also flagged the absence of a mandate requiring new players to serve geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas.

Due to these, the group urged the Marcos administration to carefully review the bill to ensure that its implementing rules would establish clear and enforceable guardrails, promote true digital inclusion, safeguard national security and maintain a fair and future-ready telecommunications industry.

Internet cost cut

The government is banking on the approval of the Konektadong Pinoy Act to help reduce internet prices by as much as 50 percent through the entry of more service providers.

At a forum hosted by the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines, DICT Secretary Henry Aguda said the proposed law would allow more data transmission providers to offer connectivity services, thereby increasing competition and lowering costs.

“That’s one (of the factors) because it would result in the entry of third-party providers that go straight to internet services. We will harmonize them with the current telcos,” Aguda said.

The DICT, under Aguda, is targeting a 30 to 50 percent reduction in internet prices before the end of the Marcos administration in 2028.

Based on data from the International Telecommunication Union, the Philippines has among the most expensive broadband and mobile internet costs in Southeast Asia as of 2022. – Elijah Felice Rosales