NTC sticker rule to hike prices - phone makers

Mobile phone makers and telecommunications companies warned on Tuesday that the prices of handsets would go up if the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) pushes through with requiring sellers to put the regulatory body’s registration stickers on units being sold. "We feel that it will increase the cost of the mobile phone unit, which will affect the consumers, and the gray market will proliferate," Nokia Philippines head of product marketing Rhomel Marcojos said at the NTC office in Quezon City. The NTC is drafting a memorandum circular requiring cell phones offered for sale, including second-hand units, to bear registration stickers that must be affixed by officials of the regulatory body. Marcojos said that the gap in prices between the legitimate and non-legitimate units sold would widen. "Our fear is that consumers will go to gray market," he said. Marcojos also said it would delay the release of products in the market. "We feel that the circular needs a re-study to be able to meet the real objective," he said. The Nokia official said that an earlier memorandum circular (MC 08-08-2004A) issued in 2001 is sufficient. This provides for the use of NTC stickers but has yet to be followed by mobile phone sellers, who can put these on the units themselves. Jessica Toe Hio, a representative of Sony Ericsson, agreed with Marcojos, saying that the current circular is enough to distinquish between legitimate and non-legitimate cell phone units. "Having another circular would not create more distinctions. It would cause a delay on the deployment of products," Hio said. Renato Lee, counsel for Samsung and First Asia Mobile, said manufacturers have already started putting the NTC stickers on units. "Implementation of the additional sticker would not solve the problem. Cell phones are overregulated...[the collection of the registration fee] is form of taxation," Lee stressed. The NTC circular imposes a one-time registration fee of P75 for each mobile phone regardless of make or model. Globe Telecom’s regulatory affairs head Froilan Castelo said the registration fee would increase the price of the handsets and it will affect the consumers. "The [proposed P75 registration fee] is expected to be passed on to consumers," Castelo said. "The fee is not consider a regulatory fee but it’s taxation and it will actually result in a tremendous increase in prices," the Globe counsel said. He added that the circular would prevent the consumers to have access on communications at a cheaper price. "It would prevent people in the provinces to have cell phones. How can the NTC monitor and put stickers to the 50 million phones nationwide with only 12 regional offices," he added. Egardo Cabarrios, NTC head for Common Carriers Authorization Division said that the agency wants to address the tampering of stickers while also addressing the gray market. "The registration fee would pay our administration costs," Cabarios said. NTC deputy commissioner Jorge Sarmiento added stressed that the P75 registration fee is only a proposal and could end up lower. The NTC said it had drafted the circular to enhance the existing regulatory measures and prevent market distortion by undocumented cellular phones that results in unprotected consumers and loss of revenue for government. Sarmiento ordered manufacturers and telecom companies to submit their written position 10 days after Tuesday. -GMANews.TV