Philippines to open gates for third telco player overseas

Rhosedel Grace P. Gabac | January 16, 2018

Photo from Inquirer.net

The third telecommunication slot in the Philippines is being eyed by four foreign telecommunication players according to Malacañang last Sunday.

A Taiwanese telco and KDDI, a company from Japan, were enthralled with a possible business trade with the Philippine telecommunications market as reported by Acting Information and Communications Technology Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. to Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar who said South Korea's LG Plus and China telecom were also in on the partnership.

According to Andanar, the next telco major player is expected to invest an amount ranging from 300 to 400 billion in the next five years with which Rio also quipped that this will result in a world competitive internet speed that the country currently lacks.

In an earlier statement, President Rodrigo Duterte aims to see to it that the third telco investor to start its operations by the first quarter of this year. This will radically break the duopoly of the country's paramount communications providers where PLDT and Smart has reinvested an amount of P50 billion and P48 billion by Globe, respectively.

Andanar added that in the agreement clause for the third telco player, the company will be deplored from selling its shares to any telco in the country to avoid the duopoly from recurring again.

The terms of reference will be released next month which will officially open the bidding by March for the third telco slot.