By Ashley Erika O. Jose, Reporter
THE KONEKTADONG PINOY bill, which goals to extend web access by relaxing regulations and allowing more entrants into the info transmission industry, has lapsed into law on Sunday.
“It has lapsed right into a law,” Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Henry Rhoel R. Aguda told BusinessWorld on Sunday.
This was also confirmed by Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire B. Castro in a Viber message, without giving details.
Mr. Aguda said the DICT is now working on the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Konektadong Pinoy Act, also often known as the Open Access in Data Transmission Act.
He said the DICT has invited the country’s major telecommunication firms for his or her inputs.
“We’re finalizing the draft IRR. It would be finalized until the general public consultation. I even have prolonged personal invitations to PLDT, Globe, Converge, and DITO that they’re welcome to take part in the IRR,” Mr. Aguda said.
He said the ultimate IRR is anticipated to be released inside 60 days.
The Konektadong Pinoy Act adopts an open-access policy to create a more accessible and competitive environment for all qualified participants across all the data transmission network, while also encouraging investments in digital infrastructure to support reliable and reasonably priced data services.
“We welcome the passage of the Konektadong Pinoy. We hope this measure paves the best way for more efficient, stable, and reasonably priced web service across the Philippines,” Ronald B. Gustilo, a national campaigner for Digital Pinoys group, said in a Viber message.
The law is anticipated to entice more players to enter the industry, Mr. Gustilo said, adding that this could encourage fairer competition and will improve customer experience.
“We also urge the drafters of the implementing rules and regulations to introduce clear safeguards that may protect consumers and ensure these are effectively mapped out,” Mr. Gustilo said.
Telecommunications firms through the Philippine Chamber of Telecommunications Operators (PCTO) have previously asked President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. to veto the measure and have it returned to the Congress.
PCTO has said that provisions of the Konektadong Pinoy Act could undermine regulatory oversight and pose risks to national security and threaten fair competition.
“There could also be cyberthreats that may arise from this recent telco order, but these will be mitigated by a proactive IRR, crafted by various sectors, and constant monitoring by the regulators of this critical information infrastructure ecosystem,” Samuel V. Jacoba, founding president of the National Association of Data Protection Officers, said via Viber.
Under the law, recent data transmission entrants are not any longer required to secure a legislative franchise or a certificate of public convenience and necessity, which the PCTO described as the important thing filter historically used to evaluate legal, financial, technical, and cybersecurity readiness.
Specifically, the PCTO is objecting to the measure because it only mandates entrants to secure cybersecurity certification after two years of operations.
PLDT Inc. Chief Legal Counsel Joan de Venecia-Fabul said that the corporate is exploring all options to make sure that there’s a level playing field for current players once Konektadong Pinoy is enforced.
She said that while the IRR is not going to resolve issues raised by PLDT, the corporate continues to be willing to take part in the crafting of the Konektadong Pinoy’s IRR.
“An IRR cannot go against the law. It may well expound the law, it could make clear the law. It may well give contours and bounds to the law, but it surely cannot go against it,” Ms. De Venecia-Fabul told reporters last week.
PLDT Senior Legal Advisor to the Chairman Marilyn A. Victorio-Aquino has said previously that the corporate will mount a court challenge if the Konektadong Pinoy bill becomes a law.
Except for PLDT, fiber web provider Converge ICT Solutions, Inc. also said that it’s willing to supply its inputs within the crafting of the IRR.
US Cloud and mobile technology company CloudMosa said that the entire telecommunications industry is about to profit from the Konektadong Pinoy Act because the law presents opportunities for firms to deal with users who missed the migration to fourth-generation (4G) technology.
It said that it can help fast-track the phaseout of 2G and 3G, thereby providing a lift to reasonably priced connectivity.
Konektadong Pinoy Act also raises the prospect of more optimal use of the radio frequency spectrum and the reallocation of underutilized and unutilized spectrum.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of the PLDT Helpful Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., holds a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.