Tag Archives: National Telecommunications Commission

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Globe files complaint against Caritas Shield text spammers

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Globe subscribers, particularly those in postpaid, are being bombarded with text spams on a daily basis. Users have been constantly complaining about taking legal actions against spammers who leverage on unregistered prepaid SIMs and unlimited text promos. Recently, Globe officially files a complaint with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) against Caritas Shield whose agents are found to be abusing the text messaging service.

Last year, when the Ayala-led telco launched its online forum called Globe Community, one of the top threads are customer complaints against text spammers. To address the growing concern, Globe educated users on proper ways in dealing with these spammers which started early this year.

As of last month,  the network barred a total of 384 mobile numbers associated to text spams. The campaign to track these spammers are now made easy as customers can easily report it via Talk2Globe Chat, @Talk2Globe Twitter account using #StopSPAM or by filling out the Globe Contact Form. Globe users should include the number, the exact message, and the time and date the text spam was received. Prior to this, consumers complaining against text spammers had to directly contact NTC to make a formal report.

This move against Caritas Shield might just be a first from the numerous companies and/or organizations who are using the text messaging platform to spam mobile users. Globe should do the same with condo/real estate, loan and credit card companies/agents who have the same marketing strategy. The public is also encouraged to proactively report all text spams so the network can track and make a report against it. Hopefully, Smart and Sun Cellular will follow the same step to protect their subscribers as well.

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NTC asks ISPs to block porn sites

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The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) ordered all Internet service providers (ISPs) to “monitor and filter out cyber-pornography sites and content” in accordance to the memorandum circular issued January 30, 2014. Upon completion of the publication requirements, the memorandum will be enforced within this month.

The statement pertaining to this newest controversial topic was quoted to Samuel Sabile, NTC networks and facilities division officer-in-charge, at the  “Child Abuse and Exploitation in CyberSpace” forum last week organized by the Council on the Welfare of Children.

The said memorandum is supposed to stop the emerging webcam child sex tourism (WCST) in the country. Also, this is just one of the government’s initial moves to fight cyber pornography.

While the public has varying opinions on this memorandum, as of this writing, the concerned ISPs – PLDT, Globe, Bayan, wi-tribe – have not yet released any official statement pertaining to the government’s request.

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NTC orders Globe, Smart, Sun to refund P0.20 of SMS charges

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November 30 of last year when the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) ordered Globe Telecoms, Smart Communications and Sun Cellular to lower their short messaging service (SMS) rate from the standard PhP1.00 to 80 centavos via the Memorandum Circular 02-10-2011. Up to this date, these local telcos failed to follow the request which led to NTC’s new order to refund all the subscribers of the excess charge amounting to P0.20 since the supposed implementation last year.

“There was a savings of P0.20 but where did it go? Certainly, consumers did not benefit from it. So, that’s what we are demanding from the telcos,” said NTC legal head Dennis Babaran. S

Since last year, the three local telcos resorted to SMS promos to make the charges cheaper and consumer-friendly. However, regular SMS rate both for intra- and inter-network texts remains at P1.00.

The NTC also ordered all telcos to pay a fine of P200 per day from December 1 until they fully comply with the said order. Globe, Smart and Sun have 15 days from date of receipt of the NTC order to submit their records of those subscribers who were charged P1.00 of SMS transactions from the effectivity of the memorandum last year. They are also required to indicate how they are going to issue the refund to the said subscribers.

Per PLDT who both owns Smart and Sun, “Smart will reserve comment on this matter as we review our options for seeking remedies.”

“SMS is a deregulated service therefore the telcos can impose charges or set the retail price,” said Globe senior vice president Froilan Castelo.

This post was first published at KabayanTech.

Photo Credit: wiserbuddy

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New scam targets Globe Postpaid Users via Zong

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The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and local service providers issued statements before on how to avoid mobile phone-related scams. While there are still a number of bogus SMS scams, NTC together with our local telcos, informed the public that verifying legitimate promotions always starts with an official call from the network’s representatives and an SMS usually sent by a four-digit sender. Looks like this process has been covered up by this new modus operandi.

When In Manila blogger Cheryl Golangco shares her experience with a guy who called and introduced himself as a Globe Telecom’s representative using a prepaid number 09152993827.
Like any other bogus transactions, the call went on smoothly saying that Globe is giving away P500 worth of SM gift certificates to the network’s postpaid subscribers. The caller then told the blogger that she’ll receive a PIN to verify their conversation. A text message coming from 2800 came in next containing the said PIN. She was then told that there will be a total of five text messages each containing different PINs that she’ll have to dictate to the caller for further verification. All these messages came from 2800, the access line of Zong.

I personally made a research as I am not familiar with Zong, the company behind this 2800 access number. Per checking, ‘Zong is a mobile payments service for online games and social networks.’ It’s a ‘payment platform [that] lets you buy goods from games and social networks through your mobile phone – stuff you buy is added to your phone bill or deducted from your prepaid plan.’

The blogger soon found out that it’s indeed a scam after the caller asked her to write down the reference number: 29152993827. Notice that it is similar with the caller’s mobile number. For Globe users, you know what’s bound to happen – sharing a load. Golangco hang up and immediately reported the incident with Globe. That’s where she confirmed that she was just scammed.

This scam may not be targetting only Globe postpaid users as the Zong’s mobile payment service may be available as well in Smart and Sun’s network. Zong may not be directly involved as well in this modus operandi as the culprits are only using their service to get money from their poor victims. But the point here is, these evil-minded people are getting smarter and creative. We, consumers, should be more vigilant and keen in avoiding similar and future ways of scams. And for our government? They should really act on these scams more than informing the public on how to avoid it. Maybe the SIM card registration should be put into action? What do you think?

Photo and News Credit: WhenInManila.com

This post was first published at KabayanTech.com.

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Local SMS rate down to 80 centavos effective today

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The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) via its Memorandum Circular 02-10-2011 asked the three local telcos to lower the short messaging service (SMS) rate from the standard PhP1.00 to 80 centavos effective today, November 30, 2011.

According to the NTC deputy commissioner Delilah Deles, Smart Communications, Globe Telecom and Sun Cellular furnished NTC a letter to inform them that they are following the circular.

The said circular also directed the local telcos to ‘provide interconnection links or circuits required to efficiently and effectively handle their respective SMS traffic.’

The circular, as per NTC, is in line with the provision found in Republic Act 7925, the Public Telecommunications Policy Act of the Philippines. RA7925 ‘seeks the establishment of fair and reasonable interconnection among public operators and other telecommunications services providers at reasonable and fair cost.’

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NTC clears PLDT-Digitel merger

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The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) cleared on October 26, Wednesday, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT)’s acquisition of the third-ranked Digitel Telecommunications Philippines Inc.

According to reports, NTC’s approval has certain terms and conditions in order not to monopolized the telecoms industry.

with the merging, PLDT acquires 51.55 percent of Digitel from JG Summit Holdings Inc. for PhP69.2 billion.

As with regard to the conditions, NTC ordered PLDT to divest 10 Mhz of its 3G frequency under Connectivity Unlimited Resource Inc. (CURE commercially known as Red Mobile). For businesses, it is important to know Cleod9 Voice: Reasons Why Your Business Needs A Unified Communication Strategy, so as to maintain stable communication between different domains, so as to maintain stable communication between different domains.

Another condition cited is the continuous offering of a nationwide “unlimited” type of mobile promos via Digitel’s Sun Cellular brand.

On the other hand, consumer group TXTPower.org Inc. opposed NTC’s decision on PLDT-Digitel merger saying that the industry will just “return to a PLDT monopoly.”

According to TXTPower, NTC’s preconditions are just “consuelo de bobo against backdrop of one group now monopolizing telco industry.”

We may have different opinions on PLDT’s acquisition of Digitel but looking on the brighter side, let’s all hope that this move will perhaps improve the quality of our telecommunications services particularly in terms of mobile services.

Photo Credit: olivaglenn55.blogspot.com

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BayanTel sets broadband cap at 100GB: Generous or Not?

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Earlier, I posted about NTC’s proposal to cap broadband usage for each subscribers. Though the memo is yet to be re-drafted as the schedule for the public hearing this January 2011 is not yet announced, netizens are very much active in posting their opinions in various forum sites, blogs and social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. TxtPower convenor Tonyo Cruz, along with concerned Filipino netizens Cocoy, Rom and Noemi, even initiated an online petition versus the said broadband cap.

Globe Telecom may have earlier implemented this via their SuperSurf promo which is limited to a 1 GB per day per subscriber under their Fair Use Policy but it was only recently that reports show that BayanTel is also limiting the amount of bandwidth they’re offering per user.

It’s also interesting to know that BayanTel, a less popular broadband choice, is giving 100 GB bandwidth limitation per month per subscriber.

Though BayanTel’s attempt to cap our internet usage is generous as compared to a leading brand, netizens are still skeptical about NTC’s proposal. The fact remains still that the agency that supposed to protect the consumers’ interest is leading an anti-netizen campaign.

This NTC memo, as the institution claims, provides assurance to the public that everyone will have a minimum guaranteed level of service from their chosen provider. But this memo also reflects a negative face, that the proposal is limiting our right to information. Remember that internet is part of a fast pacing technology. In the future, a 100 GB cap may not even fit to our growing number of online needs.

I, for instance, believe that a 100 GB cap per month is more than enough for a regular user. But with a wide variety of stuff you can do online, it’s not surprising if our regular bandwidth consumption today would grow ten times more in the coming years.

Any thoughts you want to share on this? Do you support NTC’s campaign on capping our broadband usage to practice fairness to all internet users?

UPDATE: NTC Public Hearing & Consultation regarding the  Minimum Speed of Broadband Connection will be on January 11 at 2 PM 3rd Floor, NTC Bldg.

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NTC’s Memo on Minimum Speed of Broadband Connections

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With the growing number of Filipinos relying to the internet, National Telecommunications Commission’s (NTC) proposal to allow data volume caps is certainly unacceptable.

According to the reports, the recent NTC Memo includes a clause that allows our local telcos to limit our internet usage to avoid abusive users. But the report also shows that the number of the said abusers constitute to only one to two percent of the overall broadband users in the country. The memo merely punishes the general public by limiting our daily internet usage when in fact, as far as I know, our local telcos can easily pinpoint these abusive subscribers and warn them.

We need better internet connection and to do this, we must improve our infrastructures. Why focus on this area when they can exert more effort on providing us better service?

If the government can’t allow foreign companies to enter the country because they’re protecting our local telcos, then force them to improve their offers. I don’t think Pinoys would react more violently if Smart, Globe, PLDT etc are doing their best efforts to fully satisfy their customers whether on the quality of service we’re getting or on customer service, of which they both sucks.

UPDATE: NTC Public Hearing & Consultation regarding the  Minimum Speed of Broadband Connection will be on January 11 at 2 PM 3rd Floor, NTC Bldg. 

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Globe Telecoms’s Per Pulse Charging

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After the government exercised it’s power to study how the local telecommunications companies handle it’s business spearheaded by the senator who was in himself a victim of the ‘missing load,’ Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, the National Telecommunications Commission decided to change how the telecoms bill it’s customers.

In reply to the NTC Memorandum Circular No. 05-07-09 (Guidelines on Unit of Billing of Mobile Voice Service), Globe Telecoms announced it’s new voice call billing under the so-called Per Pulse Billing.

Under the Per Pulse Billing, the customers will benefit from calls they made that are less than the 1-minute duration which is usually billed the price of the whole 1-minute duration. To follow the NTC guidelines, Globe Telecoms released it’s Per Pulse Charging scheme starting December 6, 2009.

For all Globe and TM subscribers who want to avail of the Per Pulse Charging, they need to dial the following:

  • 232 plus the 10-digit Globe or TM number (for Globe subscribers)
  • 803 plus the 10-digit Globe or TM number (for TM subscribers)
The new Per Pulse Rates are as follows:

  • PhP0.10/second for all calls within the Globe/TM network from Monday to Saturday
  • PhP0.05/second for all calls within the Globe/TM network on Sunday
The service is available to all Globe subscribers – Globe Prepaid, Postpaid, Tattoo Prepaid and TM. PhP7.50 balance should be maintain to avail the service for Globe subscribers while TM should maintain at least PhP6.50.

Photo Credit: GlobeTattoo.multiply.com

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