Gov't to regulate sale of cellphones

Government will regulate the sale of mobile phones by requiring that cellphones bear National Telecommunications Commission stickers. The commission will require that all mobile phone sold in the domestic market bear the tamper-proof stickers only the NTC can issue, according to a draft circular posted by the agency on its website. The commission is introducing regulation to protect and assure buyers products come from legitimate sources. “This shall also serve as instrument to discourage suppliers from under-declaring the number of units they import," reads the circular, which is slated for public hearing February 27. The circulate provides that undocumented handsets can be registered for P75. All dealers and sellers will have 180 days from the time the new rules take effect to secure stickers. Violators will be fined P5,000.00 per unit. Cellular subscribers are not required to comply, unless they sell to mobile phone resellers and dealers. “For second-hand phones, owners intending to sell their phones to authorized dealers and resellers shall secure the NTC sticker by presenting the box of the handset with the IMEI sticker intact, official receipt by authorized dealers, and affidavit attesting that the person selling the unit is the owner and the unit was purchased from a legitimate source," the circular reads. An individual will only be allowed an accumulated number of five cellular phones to be registered with the NTC within a year. -GMANews.TV