In an opposition paper filed on Thursday with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), Eastern Telecommunications Philippines Inc. (ETPI) said the related companies and affiliates of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) combined will be in a position to "restrict access" by competitors of the group to such telecom-related facilities.
ETPI is 40 percent owned by Vega Telecom Inc., a unit of SMC. The remaining 37.7 percent is owned by the Ongpin family, while 22 percent isowned by the Africa family, which is partly claimed by the government.
ETPI said the PLDT group owns Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) and its subsidiary eMeralco Ventures Inc., which owns and leases out significant fiber optic cables in areas where the electricity distributor operates as well as telecom-related assets such as poles.
ETPI said Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp., through Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), hold state infrastructure concessions such as the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx) and North Luzon Expressway.
State-run Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) is reviewing the 25-year contract of Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) to operate and maintain the SCTEx. MNTC is a unit of MPTC.
ETPI likewise is opposing PLDT's acquisition of a 51.5 percent stake in Digital Telecommunications Philippines Inc. (Digitel), the operator of Sun Cellular.
ETPI said PLDT's acquisition of Digitel will result in a commanding 70 percent market share of the entire suite of telecommunications services offered in the Philippine market, ranging from cellular mobile communications to local exchange carrier services, inter-exchange carrier services, international gateway facilities, fixed and wireless broadband services and value-added services.
"With such dominance of the entire telecommunications services market, the PLDT combine will be in a position to discriminatorily price its services, subsidize under performing units/brands with the income of dominant units/brands and leverage its assets and command of the market in interconnection dispute so as to delay interconnection and/or hinder the launch of services of other players," ETPI said.
As a result of its Digitel acquisition, PLDT will effectively control six out of the existing seven international cable systems that carry outbound voice and data traffic and four out of the current five cable landing stations where such undersea cable systems terminate on Philippine soil, ETPI said.
"As a result, PLDT combine will be in a position to discriminatorily price the capacities of its international cable landing stations and, even assuming that other telecommunications companies have indefeasible rights of users in such international cable systems, restrict access to the landing stations or charge discriminatory prices such as access," ETPI said.
PLDT submits SPA Amid growing opposition to its Digitel acquisition, PLDT said it voluntarily submitted to the NTC on Thursday the sales and purchase agreement (SPA) dated March 29, 2011 covering its investment in Digitel.
Rival Globe Telecom Inc. and other telcos and consumer groups had been clamoring for transparency with regards the SPA.
"We are submitting the SPA to the NTC voluntarily to dispel malicious statements made by some parties that PLDT and Digitel have something to hide," Ray Espinosa, PLDT director and head for regulatory and policy affairs said.
"We have been very transparent about this transaction from the outset and have previously disclosed all material information about the transaction to the NTC, Securities and Exchange Commission and Philippine Stock Exchange in separate filings," he said.
Espinosa said the transaction is pro-consumer and will bring about substantial benefits to the general public.
"With this investment, Digitel customers and the public will be assured that Digitel will have the financial resources need to continue and sustain its popular unlimited services under the Sun Cellular brand. The PLDT Group is committed to support and continue these unlimited services," he said.
"Globe's vigorous opposition to the transaction reveals its dark objective -- to 'kill' Sun Cellular. Globe has been the hardest hit by Sun Cellular's popular unlimited services and has lost many subscribers to Sun Cellular. Sun Cellular has also outpaced Globe in terms of postpaid subscribers. Globe knows that with the PLDT investment Digitel will now have the much needed financial resources to sustain and continue the Sun Cellular unlimited services. This is what Globe dreads," Espinosa said.
