SENATOR Sherwin T. Gatchalian said the proposed Network Freedom Act filed in the Senate may provide for a nine-month lock-in period for mobile devices before users are allowed to change telecommunications networks.
“The preferred lock-in period is around nine months. That is now the international norm to have a shorter lock-in period… Most likely, (the bill will provide) nine months,” he told reporters last week.
Senate Bill No. 1643 originally prohibited the locking of both prepaid and postpaid mobile devices. But it was later revised to allow phones to be locked in to a provider for only a limited time.
Mr. Gatchalian, author of the bill and chair of the Senate subcommittee on the Network Freedom Act, said the concept of the proposed measure was to have consumers change networks quickly and to have the telecommunications service provider do the unlocking.
He noted that under the current system, the consumers would have to get their mobile devices unlocked, subject to fees, when the lock-in period expires.
“The telco should unlock and it should be free of charge…. What this bill intends to do is to regulate. Within nine months, (the mobile device) will be automatically unlocked by the telco,” Mr. Gatchalian said.
The senator added that the bill will help the industry’s new entrant, the so-called third player, to sign up customers.
“When the third telco comes in, it will look for customers. It should be easy for them to look for customers so this (bill) is a way for us consumers to quickly get out of our old telco and to transfer to the new telco.” he said.
The bill remains pending at the committee level, but Mr. Gatchalian said it will be elevated to the plenary when Congress resumes session in November.
Sought for comment, Internet advocacy group Better Broadband Alliance Lead Convenor Grace Mirandilla-Santos said the proposed measure balances consumers’ rights and the commercial viability of mobile service plans.
She added that the nine-month lock-in period is “a good middle ground.”
“A nine-month lock-in period of a mobile device is reasonable because it allows the service provider to recoup its upfront cost on devices which subscribers can pay for on a staggered basis,” she said in a text message to BusinessWorld.
“But at the same time, the time period is long enough so as not to significantly increase the monthly payment of postpaid subscribers,” she added.
She also noted that: “The shortened period of nine months, compared to the usual 24 months, will give the consumers enough time to gauge whether they are satisfied with their mobile services or would like to shift to another network.” — Camille A. Aguinaldo
