SINGAPORE–As usual, being in Singapore has reminded me how unfortunate we Filipinos are when it comes to our information technology infrastructure.
Frankly, I don’t know how our telcos do it. I don’t how, year after year, they can get away with providing us with lousy service while still raking in money. While the availability and affordability of broadband has, to be fair, improved over the years, it doesn’t change the fact that what passes for broadband in the Philippines is laughable by the standards of other countries, such as Singapore. And forget quality of service — if all the horror stories we hear about the quality of broadband in certain areas are anything to go by, even when we part with our hard-earned money, we’re never really sure just what kind of service we’ll get, depending on which area we happen to reside.
So why do telcos get away with providing broadband services that are sometimes much slower than dial-up connections? Why are we consumers expected to grin and bear it if the service in our area is horrible due to some technical problem or lack of adequate coverage?
And to think of all the money they spend on glowing ads that tout how cutting-edge their technology is and how much they’re improving the lives of Filipinos. How many Smart Bro users out there feel like puking whenever they see those ads claiming that this service is the “broadband ng bayan”? Where exactly are these areas where Smart Bro actually has speeds that qualify as broadband? And if you’re one of those users who doesn’t get to enjoy these speeds, sorry ka na lang ba. tiis na lang?
You hear horror stories about all broadband services in the Philippines, whether it’s from PLDT, Globe, Destiny, whatever, that you start wondering if availing of these services in the Philippines is a crapshoot, a game of chance, only we keep ending up with crap.
So what’s the solution to finally ensuring that Filipinos won’t have to put up with shitty service? Is it finally time to get rid of the service area scheme, because quite frankly, I’d like to have as many choices as I can — if only to get the lesser evil. How much are telcos actually investing in their infrastructure?
It’s a pity, because we Filipinos do have world-class talents and skills. We can compete with the best of them when it comes to creativity. But unlike Singapore and countries more blessed than we are, we’re held back by private companies that keep dropping the ball when it comes to infrastructure — and a government that keeps letting them get away with it.
So tell me, who’s your broadband provider, and what’s your horror story?
June 26th, 2007 at 10:50 am
Ayos lang kung may disclaimer. Problema, sa advertising pa lang niloloko na ang mga tao. Like they would advertise that you’ll get, say, 1Mbps, but in fact you’ll just get 512kbps. now, talking about truthful advertising, eh.
June 26th, 2007 at 10:39 am
What I want to know is how accurate are bandwidth meters. One moment it reads something like this and other time it’s much lower.
I suggest that internet providers at least give their subscribers a week ,or longer, for free trial and give back money if not satisfied. We feel ’shortchanged’ whenever we don’t enjoy the full benefits they provide.
June 26th, 2007 at 10:34 am
a part of it has something to do with economics. Given the high costs of rolling out and implementing infrastructure: local lease lines, outside plant, networking equipment, Internet port in the US and the submarine cables from the pinas to the US and you’ll see the idea behind it all.
add to the über-pricey charges of the telcos themselves on smaller ISPs in their int’l lease lines
telcos need to defray those fixed cost while maintaining the (bad )service.
add to all that marketing and operational costs
note that the peso lags so much behind the dollar (where cost of equipment, IP port and submarine cables are paid) and tell you P1000 is just about $22 a month.
$22/month is a paltry compared to the cost of the infrastructure alone.
oversubscription makes up for it. that’s why if you really need broadband, you need to pay for a premium service where the bandwidth is reserved for you.
about bad customer service and false advertisements, file a complaint at the DTI
stop whining about Singapore. They have the money to pay for the bandwidth
I used to work in a telco/ISP where I managed an Internet gateway
June 26th, 2007 at 10:25 am
We can”t also blame internet providers. Some of us tend to be stubborn and insist on getting a connection far from the need. If you’re in a business say internet cafe or a corporate establishment, you”re supposed to get one that suits your immediate needs and that of customers of your customers and rather than going for the most cheapest plan. We are talking now of a network connection , that is, many PCs are sharing the bandwidth.
June 26th, 2007 at 7:45 am
internet connection here is a big lie,not only the service, but the charging,they claim that it was only 999 but when the bill comes it was P1500…what do you call that?