Smarter News Now
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us
  • Email Whitelisting
No Result
View All Result
  • Top News
  • Economy News
  • Forex News
  • Investing News
  • Stock News
  • Politics News
  • Editor’s Pick
  • Top News
  • Economy News
  • Forex News
  • Investing News
  • Stock News
  • Politics News
  • Editor’s Pick
No Result
View All Result
Smarter News Now
No Result
View All Result
Home Investing News

DITO denies forum shopping, cites violation of laws

by
August 10, 2022
in Investing News
0
DITO denies forum shopping, cites violation of laws
0
SHARES
14
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

DITO Telecommunity Corp. has denied Smart Communications, Inc.’s accusation of “forum shopping” in its bid to increase interconnection capacity to allow phone calls from the customers of the third telco player.

“There is no forum shopping in this case as the petitions with the NTC (National Telecommunications Commission) are for violations of the Telecom Policy Act and the corresponding NTC Memorandum Circulars,” DITO Chief Administrative Officer Adel A. Tamano said in a statement released on Tuesday night.

Meanwhile, the complaints versus Smart and Globe Telecom, Inc. — filed with the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) — “are anchored on violations of the Philippine Competition Act for abuse of dominant position,” he also said.

“Two very different causes of action, with different tribunals, which have distinct jurisdictions.”

According to Smart, DITO has requested “additional” interconnection capacity and has taken the matter — through a petition — to the NTC, “where it is pending.”

“DITO’s filing of the PCC complaint on the same subject-matter is blatant forum shopping,” Roy Cecil D. Ibay, Smart Communications vice-president for regulatory affairs, said in an e-mailed statement.

“In the NTC petition, DITO asked for extra capacity for interconnection, citing congestion and overutilization of trunks,” he said.

Smart said, “Before asking for extra capacity, DITO should first clamp down on its subscribers who have abused the interconnection framework to make fraudulent international calls to Smart subscribers under local rates.”

Mr. Tamano said that such “calls are not made by DITO.”

“Rather, these are fraudulent calls made by third parties — and DITO is equally a victim of such calls,” he noted.

“We have the data and the facts to show the steps undertaken by DITO to minimize these… calls.”

Mr. Ibay pointed out that DITO “should have instead acknowledged that PLDT, Smart’s parent company, was instrumental in helping DITO fulfill its commitments to the NTC and Congress as a third telco, considering that PLDT built for DITO a big portion of its telco infrastructure.”

“This was paid for by DITO; it was not done gratis et amore,” Mr. Tamano said, responding to Mr. Ibay.

“The building of that infrastructure was done in compliance with the legal mandate for interconnection and not to help DITO fulfill its commitments to the NTC and Congress,” he added.

‘RIGHT TO REFUSE’In an e-mailed statement on Wednesday, Terry L. Ridon, a public investment analyst and convenor of think tank InfraWatch PH, said that the “failure of any telco to stop or limit ISR (international simple resale) gives other parties the right to refuse to deal with noncompliant contractual partners, as it compromises network security and integrity.”

“Interconnection, ISR, (and) network security are interrelated concerns, obligations and transactions of telecommunications companies,” he noted.

To show an abuse of dominant position, there needs to be a showing that “transactions are subject to other obligations that have no connection with specific transactions,” he also pointed out.

“In the case of interconnection and ISR, telcos should not be made to expand interconnection agreements with competitors who fail to stop or limit fraudulent calls to other networks, as expanding interconnection without curbing fraud will only increase the likelihood of more fraudulent calls at scale.”

He added that all telcos should instead focus on providing faster and reliable mobile internet.

“Government regulators should see through this litigation as serving very narrow commercial interests and not the public interest.”

According to DITO’s Mr. Tamano, the complaint filed with the PCC is part of its goal “to fulfill our mandate to provide true competition in the telecom industry and to ensure that the Filipino people are given world-class telco services that they rightfully deserve.”

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Arjay L. Balinbin

ShareTweetPin

Related Posts

Stocks decline on profit taking, recession fears
Investing News

Stocks decline on profit taking, recession fears

August 23, 2022
Peso climbs vs dollar as RTB offer starts
Investing News

Peso climbs vs dollar as RTB offer starts

August 23, 2022
PNR cancels bids for 3 projects after finding them ‘non-feasible’
Investing News

PNR cancels bids for 3 projects after finding them ‘non-feasible’

August 23, 2022
Senate grills Rodriguez on approval procedures for sugar import order
Investing News

Senate grills Rodriguez on approval procedures for sugar import order

August 23, 2022
Trade dep’t expecting sugar price monitoring report by Friday
Investing News

Trade dep’t expecting sugar price monitoring report by Friday

August 23, 2022
Fisherfolk seek halt to reclamation on municipal fisheries
Investing News

Fisherfolk seek halt to reclamation on municipal fisheries

August 23, 2022
Next Post
Monde Nissin net income rises 8.7% as sales climb

Monde Nissin net income rises 8.7% as sales climb

Get the daily email that makes reading the news actually enjoyable. Stay informed and entertained, for free.
Email Address *
Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!
 

Recommended

Regional court clears gun charges vs rights worker

Regional court clears gun charges vs rights worker

June 29, 2022
Shakey’s Pizza group rolls out plant-based menus

Shakey’s Pizza group rolls out plant-based menus

July 27, 2022
Fighting Philippine team out to improve ASEAN Para Games finish in Solo

Fighting Philippine team out to improve ASEAN Para Games finish in Solo

July 21, 2022
Marcos: PHL, China should not only talk about sea disputes

Marcos: PHL, China should not only talk about sea disputes

July 5, 2022
Wholesale price growth in May eases to 7.9% vs April

Wholesale price growth in May eases to 7.9% vs April

July 11, 2022
Suntory’s Sui gin isn’t a drink for mulling things over; it’s just too cheerful

Suntory’s Sui gin isn’t a drink for mulling things over; it’s just too cheerful

July 13, 2022
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us
  • Email Whitelisting

Copyright © 2022 SmarterNewsNow.
All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: SmarterNewsNow.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice.
The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

No Result
View All Result
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Email Whitelisting
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Thank You

Copyright © 2020 SmarterNewsNow. All Rights Reserved.