The third telco Dito Telecommunity Corporation won’t start its commercial operations in March 2021.
This developed after Dito chief administrative officer Adel Tamano announced that the third telco will be ready to operate and render services to subscribers in July 2021.
Tamano made the announcement after Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) officials, headed by Sec. Gringo Honasan, inspected the DITO tower in Quezon City recently.
Dito said that its rollout may be delayed due to the coronavirus 2019 or COVID-19 outbreak.
Dito chief technology officer Rodolfo Santiago explained that the company gets some of its steel and fiber cable requirements from Hubei, China where the viral disease originated.
“‘Yun kasing naapektuhan ‘yung Hubei province and that is one of the manufacturing hubs of China. ‘Yung impact sa rollout namin is ‘yung steel or tower components and fiber cable,” sabi Santiago.
Dito, a joint venture between Udenna Corp. of Davao-based businessman Uy and China Telecoms, had earlier promised to start operations this coming July.
However, Dito admitted that it could not be able to start services in July and had to defer its commercial rollout in March 2021.
Contrary to the promise of the Duterte administration of a good, fast and cheap telco service this July, Dito bared in a press conference recently that its Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity states that the third telco will start servicing the public in March 2021.
DICT’s alleged statement regarding the July 2020 commercial rollout was intended merely for the so-called ‘technical launch’ and not for the formal opening of telco services to public subscribers.
“March 2021 is really the mandated date by the NTC [National Telecommunications Commission],” said Tamano.
During the said technical launch, Tamano said the NTC will scrutinize and monitor if Dito will fulfill its promise to provide services to 37% of the country’s population at 27 megabits per second (mbps).
This means that the government will check if the Dito network is ready to set up 1,600 towers by July this year.