Third telco to have first subscribers by October — DICT

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s third telecommunications player is expected the have its first subscribers in Metro Manila by October this year, a government official said Wednesday.

Speaking in a press conference, Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Acting Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. said that Mindanao Islamic Telephone Company Inc. (Mislatel) is starting to build its service infrastructure.

“Makapag-operate lang nung third telco kung meron na silang infrastructure. Sa ngayon zero. Wala sila ‘no? Sa ngayon, nag-uumpisa na sila na magtayo ng cell sites, mag-partner dun sa small telcos, mga cable TV operators,” he said.

“Pero I can say that even maybe on the fourth quarter of this year, they’ll be able to get their first subscribers, especially dito sa Metro Manila. Baka siguro pagka-october, may service, pero hindi pa actually nationwide,” he added.

Mislatel consortium, a venture of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy’s Udenna Corp. and state-run China Telecom, was named as the country’s new telco player to break the duopoly of Globe and Smart in the telecommunications industry and is expected to improve telecommunications services. /cbb