The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) is standing by its authority to penalize telecommunications companies for failing to meet mobile broadband standards, while saying operators will have an opportunity to challenge the regulator’s findings before enforcement cases are resolved.
The NTC’s position follows concerns raised by the Philippine Chamber of Telecommunication Operators (PCTO) over whether operators had sufficient opportunity to contest findings before sanctions were imposed.
The commission said the issuance of show cause orders (SCOs) is part of the administrative process, giving affected operators an opportunity to explain their side, submit evidence and challenge the findings, including the basis, reckoning point and duration of daily penalties.
“The issuance of Show Cause Order (SCO) ay bahagi ng proseso,” Deputy Commissioner Andres Castelar Jr. said.
The NTC also maintained that its authority to impose penalties is expressly provided by law. It said competing investment priorities and network expansion plans do not remove operators’ obligation to comply with prescribed service standards.
The commission said the standards under Memorandum Circular No. 001-01-2026 underwent the required public hearing, where operators were allowed to participate and submit comments. It also said companies had been repeatedly notified of identified service deficiencies and given opportunities to address them.
PCTO, however, has questioned whether testing methodologies, metrics and technical parameters were sufficiently disclosed. The group argued that gaps in the technical information could limit operators’ ability to independently verify or challenge the regulator’s results.
The NTC said it would consider operators’ submissions and defenses in accordance with applicable laws and procedures.
The dispute underscores a key issue for the telecommunications industry: how regulators can enforce service-quality requirements while giving operators sufficient technical information and procedural safeguards to contest findings.
The NTC said it would continue to pursue “evidence-based enforcement and transparency” in enforcing standards aimed at improving telecommunications service reliability.
