P365 Million Annual Fine for Telcos Pushed for Failing to Provide Fast Internet

A new bill in Congress wants to fine Philippine telcos P1 million a day or P365 million a year if they fail to provide cheap, fast, and reliable Internet service that is at par with global standards.

Studies show the Philippines has one of the most expensive internet services in the world but consistently rank among the slowest when it comes to broadband and mobile internet speeds. 

Makati City Rep. Luis Campos Jr. filed House Bill 7479, which seeks to authorize the National Telecommunications Commission to impose a P1 million per day or P365 million per year fine on internet service providers who are found to "have violated, violating, or those which have failed or are failing... to comply with any order decision or regulation of the commission."

In November 2020, the Philippines was again the consistent global laggard as it ranked 110 in mobile internet speed, and 103rd in fixed broadband internet speed in the Speedtest Global Index. 

Ethiopia, Nigeria, Cambodia, Have Faster Internet Than the Philippines

In the 2020 Speedtest Global Index, a number of developing countries scored higher than the Philippines in mobile and broadband internet speed. 

For mobile internet, the Philippines (110th) was outperformed by Kazakhstan (107th), Cambodia (102nd), Ethiopia (99th), Laos (81st),  and Vietnam (63rd). Singapore ranked 16th, Thailand 44th, and Malaysia 88th. 

For broadband, the Philippines (103rd) lagged behind Laos (101st), Bangladesh (97th), Kazakhstan (65th), Vietnam (59th), and Malaysia (43rd). The country was slightly ahead of Iraq (105th), Sri Lanka (112th), and Cambodia (113th).