Makati City representative Luis Campos Jr. Campos has played down concerns of potential security risks with China Telecom as the foreign partner of the country?s third telecommunications player.
?Risks are everywhere, but we have regulators precisely to manage those risks,? Campos said. ?Besides, both PLDT and Globe are already at least 40 percent owned by foreign entities.?
First Pacific of Hong Kong and NTT Docomo, the dominant mobile phone operator in Japan, have large direct equity stakes in PLDT. Singapore Telecommunications, the largest mobile network operator in Singapore, also has a substantial stake in Globe.
Following a bidding process, regulators on Wednesday, Nov. 7, declared the Mislatel consortium as the provisional third player in a market ruled by PLDT and Globe Telecom.
The consortium is composed of local tycoon Dennis Uy?s Udenna Corp. and subsidiary Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp., in partnership with China Telecom and Mindanao Islamic Telephone Co. Inc.
?We are absolutely convinced that the consortium is in a solid position to compete with the two well-entrenched players in the market. The group has all the wherewithal needed,? Campos said.
The Mislatel consortium has committed to invest up to P257 billion over the next five years, and to deliver a minimum average broadband speed of 27 Megabits per second (Mbps) in its first year of operation and 55 Mbps by the fifth year. It expects to provide network coverage to 84.01 percent of the population by the fifth year.
?We are counting on the newcomer to compete with the nation?s two dominant players in delivering faster mobile Internet connection speeds at a lower price,? Campos said.
