Smart, Digitel ask court to junk de Venecia’s case

MANILA, Philippines – Two more telecommunications firms now want a Quezon City court to junk Joey de Venecia’s damage suit over reduced interconnection rates for text messages albeit for different reasons.

Joey de Venecia stresses a point with Sen. Richard Gordon during the final hearing by the Blue Ribbon committee on the NBN-ZTE controversy. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

In its opposition, Digitel Telecommunications Phils. Inc. said it “utterly fails to comprehend why it was ever impleaded in the case” now pending before Judge Ralph Lee of Regional Trial Court Branch 83 when  it only offers landline and data services in Luzon, and not cellular mobile telephone services such as text messaging.

And since it offers landline and data services, Digitel then said de Venecia has no cause of action against them despite his claim that he enjoys text messaging services from Digitel.

“In other words, petitioner is barking at the wrong tree,” Digitel said in its opposition lodged Thursday last week.

The company was one of three telcos sued by de Venecia who asked to be awarded damages over the firms’ text messaging rate of P1, despite a National Telecommunications Commission circular directing telcos to implement a P 0.15 interconnection charge for texts.

The NTC was also sued along with the telcos Smart Telecommunications Inc, Globe Telecoms and Digitel.

De Venecia claimed the telcos should be charging not more than P 0.80 for text messages in light of the NTC directive.

Last week, Globe asked the court to dismiss the petition for mandamus and temporary restraining order or injunction.

Globe alleged that de Venecia, as a postpaid subscriber under Plan P 1799, only pays P 0.50 per text message and therefore could not claim damages since he pays a lower rate.

Digitel and Smart also made the same appeal to the court in separate pleadings.

Smart told the court that de Venecia was also their subscriber and was charged a P 0.51 rate for text messages.

In its opposition, Smart pointed out that the issue of reduced interconnection fees for texts is still being questioned at the NTC.

The firm explained that the issue before the NTC was whether the 2011 NTC circular mandates reduced retail rates, or merely reduced interconnection rates.

Thus, the petition must be dismissed for being premature, it said.

Like Globe, Smart said it has always implemented reduced pricing or bucket promos for texts and other services.

The telco added that de Venecia failed to exhaust administrative remedies first, such as seeking relief with the NTC for his complaint.

De Venecia, in another pleading, however maintained that the telcos’ refusal to lower their rates had caused injury to him and other cellphone subscribers.