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Sen. Bam pushes daily load notifications to resolve ‘nakaw load’ issue

Sen. Bam Aquino, chairman of the Committee on Science and Technology, instructed telecommunications companies to provide free daily notifications to subscribers regarding their load balance.

“Bigyan na ng resibo araw-araw ang mga subscriber at bigyan ng pagkakataong mag-reklamo kapag mayroong nakitang mali” said Sen. Bam, who spearheaded the committee hearing on the complaints of subscribers regarding disappearing load.

According to Sen. Bam, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has committed to issue a memorandum circular that aims to address the problem of disappearing load or “nakaw load”, which will include his suggestion of daily notifications or receipts to subscribers.

“Bantayan natin para matiyak na maglalabas talaga ang NTC ng memorandum circular upang maipatupad ang pagbibigay ng digital na resibo o notification ang mga subscribers,” said Sen. Bam, referring to the NTC’s commitment to release the memorandum by June or July.

The NTC said that it also plans to include a minimum two-step process for subscribing to value-added services (VAS).

For their part, the telecommunications companies committed to the implementation of a three- or four-step verification process so clients are well-informed of the services they subscribe to.

“Ang hinahanap natin ay aksiyon. Solusyunan na natin agad itong isyu ng nawawalang prepaid load,” insisted Sen. Bam, the only senator in the hearing.

 The hearing was called by Sen. Bam through Senate Resolution No. 595, directing the committee to determine the capacity and readiness of relevant government agencies and regulators to implement rules that will protect prepaid mobile subscribers.

Sen. Bam to hear updates on ‘Nakaw Load’ fixes

Telecommunications companies are expected to present an update on their respective solutions when Senator Bam Aquino resumes the probe into consumer complaints about disappearance of prepaid loads or the so-called “nakaw load” on Monday (April 23).

“We identified specific solutions during the first hearing so that prepaid consumers no longer encounter dubious load deductions,” said Sen. Bam, who is spearheading the investigation as chairman of the Committee on Science and Technology.

“Mahigit isang buwan na mula noon kaya inaasahan nating naipatupad na ang mga solusyong ito,” Sen. Bam added.

During the committee’s initial hearing on March 5, Sen. Bam insisted that telecommunication companies must be transparent by issuing notifications to their subscribers when load is credited or deducted to their account

“Mahalagang agad na malaman ng subscribers kung may nadadagdag o nababawas na load sa kanilang account sa pamamagitan ng abiso mula sa telco,” said Sen. Bam.

Through notifications, subscribers will be able to monitor their load spending and will allow them to immediately cancel services they do not wish to avail.

Sen. Bam also called on telcos to implement an audit of all their value-added service (VAS) subscription, to protect consumers against unwarranted deductions from their prepaid load.

A telco also committed to implement a system refresh that will opt-out all of their subscribers to all VAS subscriptions and impose a stricter procedure when availing of these extra services.

The committee will resume its investigation on Monday (April 23), 10 a.m. at the Recto Room of the Senate of the Philippines.

The hearing was called by Sen. Bam through Senate Resolution No. 595, directing the committee to determine the capacity and readiness of relevant government agencies and regulators to implement rules that will protect prepaid mobile subscribers.

Sen. Bam: DTI should file nakaw load cases against fraudulent VAS providers

Unscrupulous value-added services (VAS) providers that deprive subscribers of their prepaid loads should be dealt the full force of the law, according to Sen. Bam Aquino.

In a radio interview, Sen. Bam said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and other concerned government agencies will work together to file criminal cases and punish these deceitful VAS providers.

“Lumalabas na may mga pasaway na VAS providers na nandadaya ng subscribers,” said Sen. Bam, chairman of the Committee on Science and Technology.

 During the committee hearing on the issue of the disappearance of prepaid loads, a resource person testified that clicking “X” on a pop-up resulted in an opt-in to the unwanted VAS.

 “Dapat habulin ng DTI ang mga manlolokong VAS provider. Hindi tama na pagpindot mo ng ‘x’ ay opt-in na pala iyon sa VAS. Panloloko ito sa mga subscriber,” stressed Sen. Bam.

One telecommunications provider signified its plan to conduct a system refresh where all of its subscribers will be opted-out of their VAS subscriptions and will have to register again through stricter means.

 Another telco said it is already implementing a two-step verification process to protect its subscribers.

 During the hearing, Sen. Bam emphasized that transparency is the first step to solving the sudden disappearance of prepaid mobile loads or “nakaw load”.

Sen. Bam said telcos should issue notifications to their subscribers when load is credited or deducted to their account. This way, Sen. Bam said subscribers will have a way monitor their load spending and will allow them to immediately cancel services they do not wish to avail.

 Instead of waiting for a legislation to be passed into law, Sen. Bam encouraged telcos to just comply with the proposed solution, which will help them address the problem of “nakaw load.”

“Ang batas, isang taon iyan bago mabuo. Mas maganda siguro kung uunahan na nila upang mabigyan na ng agarang solusyon ang matagal nang problemang ito,” said Sen. Bam.

Sen. Bam Aquino on the PLDT, Globe anti-trust issue

It’s unfortunate that a legal battle has ensued even before the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) has made a decision. Now we wait for the proper judicial process to take its course.

Ultimately, the landmark Philippine Competition Act was created to benefit our citizens. In the end, we need to make sure that Filipino consumers have access to improved internet services.

Bam​: Finally, IP Peering agreement between telcos inked

Sen. Bam Aquino ​welcomes the signing of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) for IP peering between PLDT and Globe, which was ironed out after months of talks between the two biggest telecommunication companies in the country.

 “I am very happy that it’s finally happening after months of ​talks. We started looking into this option more than a year ago in the Senate,” said Sen. Bam in his speech during the signing ceremony.

 Sen. Bam hopes that the MOA is “one of more milestones that we can put under our belts in terms of really increasing the speed, quality and access of Internet in the Philippines”.

The senator has been pushing for IP peering, among other solutions, during the Senate hearing on the country’s Internet conditions, which he initiated as chairman of the Committee on Trade, Commerce and Entrepreneurship.

Sen. Bam said the benefit of this agreement will be felt by ​n​early all Internet users in the Philippines, especially mobile subscribers who use data, when the IP peering is completed after 30 days.

“The good thing is, bibilis ang internet dahil hindi na kailangan lumabas ng bansa ang data,” Sen. Bam stressed.

Sen. Bam says they will be closely monitoring the developments over the next 30 days and will continue to work on solutions to improve the quality of Internet services in the Philippines.

 

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