Consumer group urges NTC to favor public in PLDT-Digitel deal

A newly formed consumer group has called on the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to rule in favor of consumers in the share-swap deal between Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) and Digital Telecommunications Philippines Inc. (Digitel). Contrary to what PLDT is purportedly saying, the deal is not merely a business transaction but an eventual monopoly of the telecom firm, should it be approved, Samahan Laban sa Monopolyo (SLaM) said in a statement Wednesday. "We urge the members of the Commission to be true to their mandate and rule with the interest of the consumers in mind," said Jess Sandow, convenor of SLaM. The deal is of public concern and should not be relegated to talks only among the telecom firms and the NTC, Sandow said "We are talking about the impact of this trend that will bring us back to the monopoly regime that made us consumers at the mercy of a single telephone company giant," he explained. PLDT earlier downplayed allegations that the deal is anti-competition, insisting that they intend to keep Digitel and all its services as a separate company. “We will make a formal commitment to the government for the benefit of consumers," PLDT chairman Manuel Pangilinan said. Should the deal be approved, the PLDT group will hold a commanding 70 percent of the telecommunications market, leaving second-ranked player Globe Telecom with only 30 percent. Globe had urged the NTC to redistribute the frequencies PLDT will eventually hold, saying it could potentially kill their business — given the scarcity of the resource — and have a negative impact on consumers. "All we want here is a level playing field. [The PLDT-Digitel deal], to our mind, is dangerous. When a carrier exercises so much clout, you are endangering the welfare of the public," Globe corporate counsel Rodolfo Salalima said. As of Wednesday, the joint application of PLDT and Digitel is on its third hearing before the NTC. The commission has already set the dates of the succeeding hearings on the first week of July, where PLDT and Digitel will present a third and fourth witness who will testify for the compliance of the application with the requirements set by the NTC. It has also set July 12, 13 and 14 as the dates when oppositors to the deal can present their own witnesses. After the presentation of witnesses, the case will then be elevated to the commission en banc for resolution. PLDT had earlier signified willingness to extend the June 30 deadline for completing the deal, should the commission fail to release a resolution before the said date. — JM Tuazon/VS, GMA News