Boxing association nets quality fighters in Subic tournament

SUBIC—With one of its area tournaments about to conclude, the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines has identified young, but quality fighters, who may soon be part of the national youth squad.

Philippine Team coaching staff member Elmer Pamisa saw at least five boxers currently competing in the PLDT-ABAP Luzon Area Boxing Tournament here as potential youth members.

“’Yung kailangan natin ngayon, hindi lang basta pumupuntos. Importante na ‘yung may laman ang suntok, kasi ganu’n na ngayon ang scoring sa international at ‘yun ang nakita ko ngayon sa mga bata,” said Pamisa, who is also a former national team boxer.

Among those spotted by Pamisa were pinweights John Mark Pajareto and Fernando Tacuyan, and the flyweight pair of Neco Magliquian and Michael Dasmarinas.

Pajareto and Tacuyan entered the finals by decisioning Jerson Magliquian and Dexter Dimaculangan, respectively.

Dasmarinas, meanwhile, also made it into the finals by scoring a Referee Stopped Contest in the third round over Magliquian. The Bicolano Dasmarinas battles Romblon B’s Reymark De Capiz for the gold.

The finals of every division of this Clusivol-backed tournament were set Thursday night at the Subic Gym.

Other finalists were La Union B’s Jovani Dulce, who won over La Union A’s Joseph Casil in the cotton weight division; Sorsogon’s Norman Estradura is the other cotton weight finalists after winning over Jonji Maritana; and Nueva Ecija’s Ariel Tibayan meets La Union’s Jerusalem Galvez, who both scored RSC wins over Sorsogon’s Jason Hilia and Zambales’ Elmon Carino in their respective mosquito weight assignments.

Olongapo’s Carlo John Espartero and La Union’s Alvin Jay Dulce face off for the paper weight gold as they both decisioned Sorsogon’s Jomaric Deliarte and Joshua Sapaden, respectively; La Union’s Ricardo Dulce won on points over Olongapo’s Melchor Perez and will next face fellow pinweight Noel Pecking of Baguio, a second-round RSC winner over Nueva Ecija’s Alvin Bolante.

In an all-Olongapo featherweight finals match, Reggie Roque a second-round RSC winner over Zambales’ Juan Gabriel Fabay, tangles with Reymark Sanchez, a third-round RSC victor over Churchie Falcunaya.

Meantime, ABAP Executive Director Ed Picson exuded enthusiasm in seeing their drive for talent discovery to be heading in the right direction, especially with PLDT providing needed support.

PLDT to interconnect Clark, Subic telecoms

CLARK FREE PORT, Pampanga—The country’s biggest telecommunication firm has recently approved the interconnection of its two service areas in the Clark and Subic Bay free-port zones.

Lito Mercado, general manager of Clarktel, a subsidiary of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), said the approval of the interconnection of telecommunication between the two free-port zones is in conformity with the mandate of Subic and Clark as the country’s two best investment destinations that provide world-class infrastructure and utilities.

Although investors and locators from the two zones are expected to save on their long-distance telephone calls, Mercado said the Clark and Subic telecom firms will be losing about P2.5 million to P3 million per annum once the interconnection project is implemented.

The interconnection is expected to take effect by the middle of next month based on information provided to Mercado by Subic and Clark Telecom president Dennis Magbatoc.

However, despite the toll-free calls, Mercado said Clark and Subic will still have to use their respective area codes—045 for Clark (Pampanga) and 047 for Subic (Zambales).

“But definitely, calls for both free ports will be free of charge,” he said.

Mercado said Magbatoc was instrumental in the realization of the interconnection project through the initiative of the Subic Clark Alliance for Development Council, the influential Metro Clark Advisory Council, the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

“Doing business in Clark will be made easier with the toll-free calls between Clark and Subic, considering its impact on the day-to-day operations of the investors in both free-port zones,” he said.

He pointed out that the integration earlier of the telephone infrastructure in Pampanga has given Clark a competitive edge and with the same integration of the service lines between Subic and Clark, the competitiveness of both investment destinations is expected to improve further.

Although PLDT will shoulder the interconnection fees, including the losses in long-distance calls, investors in Clark expressed elation over the integration and interconnection of Clark and Subic because it will open more “windows of opportunities” not only for the two free-port zones, but for Central Luzon as well.

With the integration of Clarktel with all telecom providers in Pampanga in 2004, CDC was able to save about P100,000 a month (or P1.2 million annually) on long-distance calls since the interconnection was implemented.

The amount saved on local long-distance calls through the interconnection project will instead be used to finance other CDC projects as part of the social corporate responsibility of the state-owned firm. Written by Jacob Cunanan / Correspondent businessmirror.com.ph

SBMA eyes 17-ha. ICT hub in Subic free port

SUBIC BAY FREE PORT—The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is eyeing the establishment of a 17-hectare information and communications technology (ICT) park here to bring this free port at the front-line of the country’s knowledge-based sector.

SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza announced in a statement on Tuesday that the Subic agency has partnered with Philippine Long Distance Telephone Corp. (PLDT) to put up the 17-hectare park to showcase Subic’s ICT capability.

The project would highlight PLDT’s “ready-to-use” telecoms solutions and ICT infrastructure, including the firm’s Next Generation Network (NGN) fiber-optics cable network that now connects Subic to Manila and the entire Luzon grid.

“Capacity comes first before opportunity,” Arreza said, also pointing out that international players in the business-process outsourcing (BPO) industry have been prospecting for opportunities in Subic.

He added that PLDT also recognized SBMA’s vision for an expanded Subic-Clark economic corridor, “and they acted in accordance with that vision.”

Arreza said that with PLDT’s help, it is expected that the Subic Bay Free Port would become synonymous with BPO and IT-related services, like back-office outsourcing, software and games development, engineering design and digital animation.

Prior to this announcement, Arreza signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with officials of PLDT and its subsidiary, PLDT Subic Telecom (Subictel). The agreement, which would pave the way for tripartite collaborative projects, was signed by PLDT Subictel chairman and PLDT senior vice president Ernesto Alberto, PLDT first vice president Nerissa Ramos and PLDT Subictel president Dennis Magbatoc.

The MOU, Arreza said, basically calls for the promotion of Subic Bay Free Port’s IT capabilities through the SBMA-PLDT-Subictel caravan project, which will boast of some P40-million ICT investments that the PLDT has put up here recently.

He added that under the project, the P20-million Innovation Laboratory (Innolab) unveiled by Subictel in October 2009 will become an essential part of Subic’s investor tour program, serving as a one-stop showcase of Subic Bay’s ICT infrastructure and PLDT’s available and “futuristic” IT solutions for various industries.

During the recent MOU-signing ceremony, PLDT’s Alberto reaffirmed his company’s belief in the potentials of Subic Bay as an ICT hub, and pointed out PLDT’s “tremendous” investments in that sector at the Subic-Clark corridor in the past few years.

In particular, PLDT would like to partner with the SBMA “for globally competitive industries in the areas of cutting-edge health care, retail and trade, tourism, logistics and in the maritime industry,” he added.

“I put my money where my mouth is,” said Alberto, who revealed that he has established a second home in Subic because “in my view, [it] is the place to be in the Philippines.”

Alberto said his firm’s NGN technology, which has “fibered” both the Subic and Clark free ports, has helped increase network coverage and enabled new and innovative services to emerge in the market.

Likewise, Subictel’s Innolab would also allow the public to access “revolutionary business solutions and the latest ICT trends,” Alberto added.

With growing investments in the ICT sector and the entry of IT firms like Texas Instruments and Samsung, the Subic-Clark corridor “will be the more prominent, if not the most prominent, economic corridor this country will ever see in the next five to 10 years,” Alberto also said.

This was the reason PLDT has put up an “aggressive” bid for the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway after investing in the North Luzon Expressway, Alberto added.

Armand Arreza (second from right), administrator of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, seals an information-and-communications technology project agreement with Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) senior vice president and Subic Telephone (Subictel) chairman Ernesto Alberto, as PLDT first vice president Nerissa Ramos and PLDT Subictel president Dennis Magbatoc look on. Written by Henry Empeño / Correspondent businessmirror.com.ph

4:50

PLDT InnoLab - Olongapo City Subic Bay Freeport - Clients

Prof Danny Piano, Subic Bay Freeport Chamber of Commerce President, Councilor Ed Piano, Chairman of Olongapo City Telecom and IT Board, and Hon ...

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Olongapo City Subic PLDT SMART Innolab

LAUNCHING OF PLDT SMART INNOVATION LABORATORY AT SUBICOLONGAPO CITY

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PLDT InnoLab - Olongapo City Subic Bay Freeport - Trendsetter

PLDT SMART Innovation Laboratory in Olongapo City Subic Bay - Fully Loaded

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Subic Freeport eyed as top ICT center in RP

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — Seeing the potential of this premier Freeport becoming the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) flagship of the Philippines, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) is teaming up to make this vision into a reality.

PLDT Subictel President Dennis Magbatoc said the two corporations have agreed in principle in promoting Subic Bay’s ICT capabilities that would directly compete with the country's ICT leaders like Manila, Cebu, Davao, and Laguna.

The two companies, including the PLDT’s subsidiary Subic Telecom (Subictel) will be signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) next month to seal the deal.

Magbatoc said the agreement would pave the way for tripartite collaborative projects that would benefit the Subic Bay Freeport’s ICT industry.

PLDT’s most recent P40-million ICT investments here would be the prime projects that the group would develop. Among these projects are the fiber optics cable that connects Subic Bay to Manila and the rest of the Luzon grid, along with the P20-million Innovation Laboratory (InnoLab) that was unveiled last year by Subictel.

SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza said the P20-million Innolab will be included in the itinerary for potential investors visiting Subic Bay.

He said that Subic Bay’s IT and telecommunications infrastructure, available and soon-to-be-offered telecoms solutions that cater to business process outsourcing (BPO) operations, retail and manufacturing businesses, and even the hotel industry, will be staged at the Subic Innolab, the fifth such PLDT facility in the country.

“With this one-stop IT center, the SBMA will get to showcase the IT aspect of doing business in Subic, on top of its other strengths like strategic location, tax and duty-free perks, highly-skilled manpower, superb support industries and infrastructure, and a highly secured and tourist-friendly environment,” said Arreza.

“When it comes to IT support, we now have everything and anything you need,” Arreza added, referring to the “fully loaded” theme of Subictel’s Innolab. By JONAS REYES - Manila Bulletin

Prof Danny Piano, Subic Bay Freeport Chamber of Commerce President, Councilor Ed Piano, Chairman of Olongapo City Telecom and IT Board, and Hon. Armand Arreza talked about the latest in telecommunications in Olongapo City Subic Bay Freeport.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTT2jCWf7Lw

PLDT Olongapo Activated the New Generation System

As NTC gives nod for Clark, Subic phone interconnection

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has given the go-ahead signal to an initiative to interconnect the two telephone systems operating in Clark and Subic Freeports, saying the interconnection “are within NTC existing rules and regulations.”

The go-ahead signal is contained in a letter sent by NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba to Clark Development Corp.’s Angelo “Sonny” Lopez Jr. in response to the latter’s query on the legality of such interconnection.

Lopez, through the Metro Clark Advisory Council (MCAC), has requested a certificate or clearance showing that the proposed interconnection of phone lines has not violated NTC rules and regulations.

The Olongapo City Council on the other hand through the Olongapo Telecom Board headed by Councilor Ed Piano submitted resolution

2009 R - 29 - A RESOLUTION ENDORSING THE INTERCONNECTION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES OF SUBIC-CLARK-TARLAC GROWTH CORRIDOR

and 2009 R - 116 - A RESOLUTION ENJOINING ALL TELECOM SERVICE PROVIDERS IN OLONGAPO CITY, SUBIC BAY FREEPORT AND ZAMBALES TO IMMEDIATELY IMPLEMENT THE NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION COMMISSION MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR 09-07-2007 OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE INTERCONNECTION OF LOCAL EXCHANGE CARRIERS

It can be remembered that in 2005, the one-rate one-province policy was implemented after intensive lobbying by the Olongapo Telecom Board. This resulted in the removal of Extended Area Service (EAS) and National Distance Dialling charges for calls within Zambales, Olongapo City and Subic Freeport.

Resolution No. 11 (Series of 2005) A Resolution Requiring Imlementation and Enforcement of One Rate, One Province Policy as Mandated by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) Memorandum Circular No. 14-7-2000 to Public Telecommunication Entities Concerned.

With PLDT's migration to New Generation System and utilization of fibre-optic cables, such new features as caller ID and faster DSL can now be enjoyed by local consumers.

Additionally, calling to Bataan province has also been covered by the one-rate policy making calls to Bataan not any more requiring NDD.

With this development, the residents of Olongapo, Zambales, Bataan and Pampanga; and the locators and investors inside the Subic and Clark Freeport will now save at least P20 million yearly on long distance calls because of the project.

PLDT opens P20-M IT laboratory in Subic

SUBIC BAY FREE PORT— Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), the country’s biggest telecom-munications firm, has opened an innovation laboratory in this free port to showcase emerging business solutions in the field of information technology (IT).

The Subic Innolab, which is PLDT’S fifth such facility in the country, is a P20-million laboratory tucked into the corporate offices of PLDT subsidiary Subic Telecom (Subictel).

It is located near Subic’s Spanish Gate, the 18th-century landmark that has witnessed Subic’s metamorphosis from a Spanish fortification to a bustling free port.

The Innolab, according to PLDT, features “proofs of concept” of breakthrough technologies now being offered by the telecommunications giant.

These consist of various solutions or services for contact centers, business conferencing, residential connectivity, hotel and resort industry, manufacturing, and retailing and franchising.

The more familiar Innolab products include PLDT OnCall, for customers who require a “turn key” contact-center solution; Fixed Cellular Service, which provides voice, fax and data connectivity for areas without fixed (landline) facilities; Smart Bro Enterprise Edition, an access solution for reliable high-speed Internet connectivity, using an innovative technology called “fixed wireless”; and PLDT My DSL, a high-velocity Internet service that converts ordinary residential phones into ultra-fast dedicated access to the Internet.

Other PLDT services also available are PLDT Audiocon, PLDT Videocon and PLDT Telepresence, which all provide conferencing solutions; PLDT WeROAM, which provides mobile workers and remote offices with continuous, wireless high-speed data connectivity; Netcast, a Web-based service that allows regular and scheduled bulk messaging broadcast, information exchange, feedback and content management; and PLDT Watcher, a video monitoring solution designed for small and medium enterprises to check and oversee their business operations via the Internet.

“Soon, everyone will realize that Subic’s IT capability is as good as what is offered in Manila, Cebu, Clark and other renowned business-process outsourcing [BPO] destinations in the country,” said PLDT first vice president Nerissa Ramos, who expounded on the innovative PLDT solutions during the launching of the Subictel Innolab project.

The Internet, Ramos said, “is playing a huge role in today’s management of businesses. With PLDT solutions, people can monitor and make business decisions even from afar, and even generate cost savings as they employ these technologies that streamline business processes.”

The Subic Innolab, Ramos said, has a “dirty kitchen,” wherein technicians can simulate their clients’ technology and demonstrate how to hook it up with PLDT’s IT solutions.

The clients, she added, “can immediately see the results for themselves.”

Ramos also said PLDT Subictel will soon partner with schools within the Subic Bay Free Port for a joint academe-industry venture to address IT mismatch in the free-port area.

“Schools can make PLDT Innolab a destination for their field trips. We also propose tie-ups with tertiary schools so academe will get to have a hands-on update on the current gadgets, systems and trends in the IT sector,” she said.

Ramos also expressed optimism that Subic Bay can play a major role in the BPO industry, as this former US military base is a major connector to PLDT’s fiber-optics network.

“Soon, everyone will realize that the country is not lagging behind,” Ramos said, adding that the Philippines’ telecommunications infrastructure and road networks “are a lot better compared with India,” which is considered a prime destination in the global BPO scene.

Meanwhile, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Administrator Armand Arreza said the PLDT Innolab will showcase Subic’s capabilities in terms of IT support, and, to some extent, will eventually determine the direction taken by the IT sector in this free port.

“PLDT’s Innolab marks a new foundation for Subic Bay’s emergence in the knowledge economy,” said Arreza, who expressed hope that the facility will help realize Subic’s BPO potentials.

“With PLDT as partner, the Subic Bay Free Port can now shift from labor-intensive industries to knowledge-based industries, guided by the emerging trends in the IT sector,” Arreza said. Written by Henry Empeño / Business Mirror Correspondent

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HM1Hb9jg7s

PLDT SUBIC INNOLAB OPENED

as PLDT ‘innolabs’ target next-wave cities

By Alexander Villafania - INQUIRER.net

SUBIC Bay, Philippines – Telecoms giant Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) is aligning its IT outsourcing strategy with the government’s next-wave cities program.

PLDT recently opened its latest innovation lab, or “innolab”, here targeting the freeport’s huge shipping and related businesses.

These innolabs feature best-of-breed technologies targeted to address specific IT requirements.

PLDT First Vice President and Head of Corporate Business Group Nerisse Ramos said local industries are already looking at a “globalized” market for their products and service but they are unaware of the technological practices to enable their goals.

A recent study by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) noted that the telecoms industry will ride the global crisis as broadband services become even more relevant both for businesses and individual users.

Companies are seen to migrate requirements to cost-effective and reliable managed services pitched by telecom firms.

PLDT is looking to make this pitch even to small and medium businesses, which comprise majority of businesses in the country.

“That’s why the outsourcing model works in the Philippines because many of these companies are unable to maximize their IT investments; they spend a lot without realizing these investments,” Ramos said.

Ramos said that one of their targets is to look at other locations with a community of businesses that can use Innolab services.

“We’re following the “Next Wave Cities” project of the government if we’re going to put up Innolabs,” Ramos said.

The Next Wave Cities project is led by the Commission on Information and Communications Technology. It aims to build the necessary public works and telecommunications infrastructure in certain areas in the Philippines to entice potential investors from abroad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HM1Hb9jg7s

MPIC-San Miguel rivalry shifts to Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway

After a protracted battle for control of power utility giant Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), two of the country’s biggest conglomerates have both expressed interest in acquiring a stake in the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) from the state-run Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA).

BCDA sources told The STAR that the Metro Pacific Group – which have ownership ties with Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) – and San Miguel Corp. have proposed separate offers for the SCTEX stake.

BCDA financed the construction of the 93.77 kilometer toll road through a P22-billion loan from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JICA).

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan confirmed his group’s interest in acquiring government’s interest in the project, as well as his desire that the JICA concessional loan remain.

BCDA officials said they are always open to the possibility of the sale of SCTEX but added they are not sure how that would impact on the JICA loan.

Meanwhile, the San Miguel group reportedly offered to enter into a joint venture with the BCDA for SCTEX.

The Tollways Management Corp. (TMC), partly owned by MPTC, currently operates the SCTEX as well as the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).

The Lopez Group earlier sold its toll road business held in First Philippine Infrastructure Inc. (FPII) to Metro Pacific Investment Corp. (MPIC) for P12.2 billion. MPIC has renamed FPII into MPTC.

FPII owns 100 percent of First Philippine Infrastructure Development Corp. (FPIDC), which, in turn, owns 67.1 percent of NLEX concessionaire Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) and 46 percent of TMC.

SCTEX is the country’s longest toll road. A flagship project of BCDA, this four-lane expressway runs through the provinces of Bataan, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales, and interconnects three major economic zones in Central Luzon, namely Central Techno Park in Tarlac, Clark Freeport Zone and Subic Bay Freeport Zone.

BCDA has inaugurated early this yearthe Clark Logistics Interchange and Clark South Interchange, bringing to a total of nine the fully operational interchanges.

Two more interchanges, Floridablanca and Porac, are under construction and are scheduled to be finished soon. Supplemental loans from Japan would fund the construction of the Floridablanca and Porac interchanges.

Pangilinan said P2.1 billion would be spent for the construction of the NLEX-Segment 8.1, which will link it to the C-5 Road. The project is expected to be completed by April 2010.

Meanwhile, Pangilinan said around P20 billion would be spent on the road that will link the NLEX and South Luzon Expressway (SLEX).

MPTC and state-owned Philippine National Railways (PNR) earlier signed a deal to conduct a pre-feasibility study link the NLEX and SLEX by road and rail. The link will be an integrated rail and tollway project using the PNR’s right of way, which cuts across Metro Manila.

Initial discussions focused on the development of an 18-kilometer integrated rail and tollway project that will have “at-grade” and elevated roads over the existing PNR line.

The project is an alternative to various plans to link the two tollways. Other alternatives include the government’s P420-million plan of building a flyover that will connect the C-5 Road to Commonwealth Ave. in Quezon City, so that vehicles from the SLEX no longer have to deal with traffic on EDSA to get to the NLEX.

Another plan, worth P55 billion, is to extend the Skyway from Parañaque to Balintawak in Quezon City.

Aside from the two projects, Pangilinan said they hope to start with their Tarlac-La Union Toll Expressway project this year.

“It is still in the early stages of discussion. The objective is to start within the year even if [we would only able to secure] the right of way,” he added.

The project cost, he said, is about P15 billion, half of which would be raised by borrowing from the public.

The 10-member consortium, composed of big players in the local construction industry, will oversee the design, construction, financing and operations of the 88.5-kilometer expressway project.

The Tarlac-La Union Expressway will extend from La Paz, Tarlac to Rosario, La Union, and is expected to lessen the travel time between Central and Northern Luzon.

The Tarlac-La Union Expressway will have eight interchanges, nine toll plazas, two operating buildings, 20 bridges, two viaducts, 26 overpasses and three farm crossings.

Partial operations will start in January 2010 for the Tarlac-Carmen section, in January 2011 for the Carmen-Urdaneta stretch, and in March 2013 for the Urdaneta-Rosario segment.

BILLBOARD BAN IN SCTEX

Meanwhile, the move to ban commercial billboards along the SCTEx is gaining support from users of Facebook, a popular social-networking site online. To date, 157 Facebook users have joined the cause to preserve the scenery along the SCTEx and “save the virgin countryside from commercialism"

Follow link to join cause to ban billboards in SCTEX

http://apps.facebook.com/causes/causes/your?m=b09a3041

NEW PLDT SUBIC SERVICE

PLDT Subic Telecommunications Co. Inc., a subsidiary of Philippine Long Distance Company has launched its pre-paid wireless landline service at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone targeting about 100,000 residents in the area.

The new service, called PLDT Landline Plus, is a wireless and portable landline service that allows PLDT subscribers to bring their phones anywhere within their local area.

With PLDT Landline Plus, subscribers can make the same call types as a regular fixed landline service such as incoming and outgoing calls, NDD/IDD, plus SMS.

PLDT Subictel general manager Henry Abes said Subic Freeport area has now become more accessible to the surrounding provinces aside from affording its workers and residents a direct line to their loved ones.

“We would like to cater to the workforce and residents who frequently navigate the provinces of Zambales and Bataan,” said Abes.

He added the PLDT SubicTel’s PLP offering would make communication easier and more affordable.

--By. Roderick T. dela Cruz – Manila Standard

Innove takes on PLDT, seeks TRO on Bonifacio Global City tussle

Innove pointed out that PLDT has not learned from its “painful lessons,” citing the previous decisions of quasijudicial bodies and the Court of Appeals in a similar case between Innove and Subictel, a subsidiary of PLDT.

INNOVE Communications Inc. lashes back at Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) for seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO to stop regulators from implementing a 2002 circular, saying the phone giant’s move exhibits “monopolistic greed and criminal scheme.”

“The issue in the present case is PLDT’S monopolistic beliefs, practices and greed, on one hand, versus Innove’s right to render public telecommunications service in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) and public service itself, on the other. The choice for this Honorable Court in resolving the reliefs prayed for by PLDT is obvious. Public service cannot wait and it cannot be sacrificed because of PLDT’s monopolistic greed,” said Globe Telecom legal counsel Rodolfo Salalima. Innove is a wholly owned subsidiary of Globe.

PLDT wants the Quezon City regional trial court (QCRTC) to declare null and void the policy of the National Telecommunication Commission (NTC) declaring BGC as a “free zone” where all carriers can operate.

But the phone giant is asserting its rights and so is Bonifacio Communications Corp. (BCC), which filed a separate case against Innove and Fort Bonifacio Development Corp. (FBDC) before the Pasig regional trial court. PLDT and BCC claimed they have the exclusive rights to own, maintain and operate all telecommunications infrastructure in the BGC under an agreement they signed with FBDC. PLDT currently holds 75-percent equity in BCC.

In a separate case, FBDC is now being sued by BCC for breach of contract after the former declared it sided with Innove. Ayala Land Inc. and Evergreen Holdings Inc. are now the controlling shareholders of FBDC after they acquired the Metro Pacific Group’s shares in BCC.

Innove, which had sought NTC’s assistance to enforce its 2002 circular, wants the QCRTC to dismiss PLDT’s complaint, saying the court lacks jurisdiction.

“Because the Innove complaint was filed with the NTC ahead of the instant case, and because the NTC, under Republic Act 7925 and related statutes, is the ‘principal administrator’ and implementor of all telecommunications issues and matters stated in that law, primary jurisdiction over both the NTC/Innove complaint and the present case is thus lodged exclusively with the NTC to the exclusion of this court,” said Salalima.

Even if the so-called exclusivity agreement is binding, Innove said PLDT cannot claim service exclusivity in the BGC by resisting and preventing Innove from providing public telecommunications service because its authorization from the NTC to provide telecommunications service nationwide had long become final and executory, as well as valid and binding.

Innove pointed out that PLDT has not learned from its “painful lessons,” citing the previous decisions of quasijudicial bodies and the Court of Appeals in a similar case between Innove and Subictel, a subsidiary of PLDT.

The case involved Subictel’s claimed exclusivity of service agreement with Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) to be the only provider of telecommunications service in Subic. But SBMA allowed Innove to render telecommunications service in Subic. Subictel then questioned this grant of authorization to Innove going to the extent of forum shopping again. The SBMA, the NTC, the Regional Trial Court, and the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Innove and against Subictel on the main reason that public telecommunications service provisioning in any given area in the Philippines “is not and shall never be exclusive conformably with the law.” Written by Lenie Lectura - Business Mirror