Ayala-owned operator Globe on Tuesday, April 11, called on the government to extend the deadline for SIM registration as it noted that subscriber take-up is not picking up pace despite the approaching deadline.
Globe said it has registered 27.85 million subscribers in its network, representing just about 32 percent of its total mobile customer base.
“With just two weeks to go before the April 26 deadline, we have yet to touch at least 50% of total registrations – other telcos similarly situated based on the latest available data,” the company said.
The country’s two other telcos — Smart Communications and Dito Telecommunity – have reported 32.48 million and 4.9 million SIM registrations, respectively, according to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).
Since the issuance of the IRR (implementing rules and regulations), Globe said it has done all awareness and educational campaigns for subscribers to sign up but came up with dismal results.
“Despite these efforts, we have seen a low registration count primarily due to the lack of valid government IDs, and challenged digital literacy,” it said.
“Given these issues, we appeal to the government to extend the SIM registration process to give our customers more time to get their required government IDs and input the required information on our site,” it added.
To speed up and encourage SIM registration, Globe sought the government’s support on the following suggestions:
- Alternative forms of identification: Consider allowing alternative forms of identification such as company IDs, school IDs, and barangay certificates, for those who do not have a valid government-issued IDs.
- Allow conditional registration: Provide conditional registration options that allow individuals to continue using their telecommunication services while they work to obtain a valid ID within a reasonable period. They can either have a post-verification or update their details once they have the appropriate government ID
- Create always-on government-handled assisted registration centers: Use government offices as hubs for SIM Registration through volunteers and LGU employees, complemented by ID issuance services.
Globe said deactivating the SIMs would be very disruptive to its customers, noting that their basic right to communication will be curtailed.
“This will impact several aspects of their daily life including banking (ayuda is distributed via e-wallets), e-commerce, transportation (ride-hailing apps, food delivery, etc), healthcare, education (online learning), entertainment and more,” it said.
