The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is moving to extend the validity of permits to op erate telecommunications towers from five years to at least 15 years. It is also teaming up with Converge ICT Solutions to combat online scams and harmful digital content.
DICT Secretary Henry Rhoel Aguda said the new department order (DO) on tower licenses will be will be finalized within the week, after a final consultation with the tower companies.
“The telco companies like the plan,” Aguda revealed at the pre-event briefing for the 51st
Philippine Business Conference and Expo 2025, organized by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI). “They are even organizing themselves into a business group.
Once that’s done, we may arrange something for them,” Aguda noted.
Aguda said longer permits would better reflect the 25 to 50-year lifespan of telecom towers and provide investors more certainty.
“When companies invest in towers, the infrastructure can last 25 to 50 years. But the license to operate is only for five years. This has to change. We told the tower firms that while we will extend the license period, they should also expedite the deployment of new towers,” he explained.
Converge ICT CEO Dennis Uy welcomed the move, stressing that shared infrastructure would reduce costs, improve efficiency, and benefit consumers.
“If you build three separate facilities, you triple the capital expense,” he averred. “But if you Share infrastructure, capex is lower, and services become more affordable.
Efficiency and redundancy protect the consumer.”
Uy also tied the reform to the broader goals of the proposed Konektadong Pinoy law, which enshrines consumer rights to affordable and reliable connectivity.
Aguda said that the DICT is intensifying its cooperation with Converge to address the growing volume of online scams and malicious websites.
The agency and Converge are set to sign a new agreement focused on financial scams, with advanced mechanisms for site blocking and filtering, targeting to wipe out online scammers by yearend.
Uy said Converge is also tackling other harmful content, including child pornography sites, through global cooperation.
