By Estanislao Albanao Jr.
By now, I may have already made you sick and tired with my endless references to the non-compliance of the telcos to Memorandum Order No. 07-07-2011 which mandates them to set the minimum speeds of the Internet plans and properly inform the public thereof. What happened during the exit conference of the speed testing/validation in Tabuk City conducted by a joint team of engineers from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and Globe and Smart on September 5 and 6 somewhat justifies my fixation with the subject.
At the start of the presentation of the test results by Globe – the company took the floor first –, I was elated because the NTC and telco people agreed that 70 percent of contracted speed is the acceptable speed and therefore the passing mark. That was the understanding until after the presentation of Smart when all of a sudden, Engr. Renald Medel, the NTC team leader, said wait a minute but the real reference point should be 256 Kbps because that’s the “committed information rate based on contract.”
I commented that 256 Kbps minimum speed is absurd. First, in the case of the Globe, the 256 Kbps minimum speed appears in its flyers which offer Netflix among other entertainment sites and Netflix requires at least 3 Mpbs for satisfactory viewing experience. I also told them that if they maintain that the speed acceptability threshold is 256 Kbps, then the activity which brought them all to the city was pointless because the signal of the two telcos in the locality now exceed 256 Kbps.
NTC Region 2 OIC-Regional Director Nelson Daquioag would later back me up telling the team not to mention the 256 Kbps minimum speed in its report because just like I pointed out, it was absurd to talk about the speed in the same breath with Netflix and because if the intent is to improve the Internet services in the city, then 256 Kbps as minimum speed is out of the question. I expressed my profuse thanks to the official.
Regarding how the 256 Kbps minimum speed cropped up during the conference which triggered the attempt to change the 70 percent of contracted speed consensus, I suspect it came from one of the NTC personnel present who chose to keep quiet after I and Daquiaog commented on the ridiculousness of the speed in the current context.
It is really quite remarkable that an NTC team tasked to validate the Internet speed in a certain area is not even certain of the basis for declaring the strength of the signal acceptable or not and could not defend the figure it cites. It is an indication that even in the NTC itself, there is no clear and common understanding on the issue of the acceptable speeds for Internet plans.
And this brings us to the failure of the NTC to fulfil the promise it made during the July 27 meeting to provide us with proofs that the telcos have already complied with the Memorandum Order No. 07-07-2011 which states that they should set the minimum speeds of their plans in their advertisements. During that meeting, the telcos have claimed they have complied with the MO and the NTC had gone along with their allegation. I then asked for proof of the compliance and it was agreed that they would send the same on August 4. It’s been a month but there is yet no such information from them. I doubt if it will ever come because the data would only prove that something went wrong in the implementation. Just imagine mixing 256 Kbps minimum speed with a Netflix offer in the case of Globe.
Regarding the result of the validation, although 10 of the 18 lines tested passed the 70 percent threshold, I would still consider the results positive for the cause of improving Internet services in the city. I say that because obviously, Globe is now the main Internet service provider in the city. It is telling that their own engineer who conducted the test admitted that there are indications that their cell site for the Poblacion is overburdened. With five out of nine lines tested falling way below 70 percent of contracted speed and one which cannot be tested for lack of signal, Globe can never claim to be serving the city satisfactorily.
Let me end this column by expressing genuine gratitude to all those who cooperated so that the speed testing could be done and the current quality of service of the two telcos known. First, we have the volunteers. They have to stop whatever they were doing so that they could assist the team. Some of them showed their hospitality by offering snacks. Second, all those who helped in convincing users to have their connections tested like Dr. Nellie Alejandrino and Fred Reyes III. Last but not the least, the Office of the Mayor for assigning some employees to assist the team and represent the LGU in the activity as well as for providing the snacks and lunch of the testing team.**
