Telecommunications

Filipino consumers are not likely to buy new mobile-phone handset this year because of the global financial crisis, the International Data Corp. (IDC) said Thursday. In its Asia/Pacific Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, IDC said that mobile-phone shipments in the Philippines fell 20 percent in the fourth quarter of last year and expected to continue in…

Nathan Burley, Ovum analyst for the Asia Pacific, said the reduction in remittance values would damage the entire economy, the telecom industry included.

AMID rising consumer complaints, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) plans to amend the rules on service performance standards for Internet access of telecom companies.

Worldwide sales of hi-tech “smartphones” grew at their slowest pace yet in the fourth quarter of 2008 as the financial crisis hit demand, a research firm said.

Mobile phone penetration rate in the Philippines hit 75 percent as of end-2008, as the number of subscriber identity module, or SIM cards, sold by the country’s top three operators reached 67.9 million.

MANILA, Philippines – The telecommunication sector is up for a difficult year if IDC’s latest Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker report is any indication.

The country’s mobile phone service sector is projected to post a low to mid-single digit growth rate this year compared to last year in terms of revenues, in step with the expected growth for the economy.

AMID a tight competition and the economic slowdown, Smart Communications Inc. reported a double-digit growth in subscriber base, boosted by cheap promotional offerings.

Despite stiff competition and an economic slowdown, leading wireless services provider Smart Communications Inc. increased its subscriber base to 35 million as of end-2008, up 16 percent from end-2007.

The year 2008 provided a great challenge for the country’s telecommunications and information technology sector.

Telecommunication companies will suspend next week their promotional offerings because of the expected surge in text and call traffic, as well as to prevent network abuse during Christmas and New Year’s, the government said.