Our hopes for a third telco was dashed when San Miguel Corporation threw in the towel and sold their telecommunication assets to both PLDT and Globe earlier this year. But like our dreams of Olympic gold, the desire for a third player to break the Smart-Globe duopoly just won’t die and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) is providing that extra push to make that dream into a reality.
In a report in the Inqurier, NTC commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba openly expressed the comission’s desire for a third telco to enter the PH, and is willing to launch a multibillion-peso auction for both 3G and 4G frequencies during the term of President Duterte for it to happen. The NTC will also bar both existing telcos from participating in the bid, since it’s supposed to be for a new player.
Spectrums, like the 700MHz one that both Smart and Globe acquired after SMC’s sale of its assets, are vital in any telco business. They are the highways that voice and data travel through, and not all are made equal.
SMC’s talks with Australian telco collapsed earlier this year, even after the public’s obvious interest in a third player. Will we finally get that third player that we’ve always been longing for?
