Telcos agree on service speed appraisal, but ask NTC to keep metrics private

Telecommunications firms have agreed to have their Internet speed performance measured but drew the line on disclosing the results to the public, an IT website reported on Saturday.

A report on newsbytes.ph said the Philippine Chamber of Telecommunications Operators (PCTO) and Philippine Association of Private Telecommunications Companies (PAPTELCO) submitted a position paper conveying their stance to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

Internet Service Providers proposed that NTC should talk to underperforming ISPs in private and asked the agency to publish only the average speed of the entire local ISP industry.

An Ookla survey revealed that the Philippines has one of the slowest and most expensive internet service in the world, prompting Senate Committee on Trade, Commerce, and Entrepreneurship Paolo Benigno Aquino to initiate an investigation on ISPs' performance.

The NTC had conducted several Technical Working Group meetings with representatives from the telcos, the office of Senator Aquino, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Justice, private researchers, and subscribers to address the issue and draft a Memorandum Circular.

Stakeholders have yet to agree on a minimum speed requirement for ISPs to qualify as broadband, but ISPs finally consented to measuring their performance as a first step, the report said.

Aside from refusing to let the public know about the results, members of the PCTO also opposed the evaluation of metrics relating to service reliability such as jitter and packet loss. — Marisse Panaligan/LBG, GMA News