Philippine Senator Bam Aquino revealed during a press statement on Tuesday, that he sought an investigation into the slow and expensive internet service in the county. According to the Senator, the investigation should determine if consumers are getting their money’s worth from internet service.
Photo Credit: ASEAN DNA FB Page
The probe call was issued in response to a report that the Philippines is at the bottom of a list of countries in Southeast Asia (ASEAN) in terms of Internet speeds. The report was posted by ASEAN DNA, based upon their report, the Philippines internet speeds is at 3.6 megabytes per second which lags behind Laos (4.0 Mbps), Indonesia (4.1 Mbps), Myanmar & Brunei (4.9 Mbps), while Malaysia has 5.5 Mbps and Cambodia has 5.7 Mbps.
Aside from the slow internet connection in the Philippines, the Senator also wants to know why other Southeast Asian countries enjoy faster Internet speeds at a cheaper price.
The Senator noted that on average, Filipino consumers shell out around P1,000 a month for Internet service with speeds of up to 2 Mbps, while a speed of up to 5 Mbps is worth P2,000 a month.
When Philippines’ Internet speed is compared to Singapore it lags behind, in Singapore Singtel offers 15 Mbps for SGD 36.90, or around P1,312 a month. Thailand’s True Internet also provides 12 Mbps for about P799 baht or P1,100.
The 36-year-old Bam Aquino did not elaborate further on which government body should undertake the investigation. Investigations can be conducted by the Senate, in aid of legislation; Congress, which controls telco franchise; the NTC, which regulates telcos; or the DTI, which is tasked to protect consumer rights.
