Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Philippines

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
‘Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 7148

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE ALFRED VARGAS

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This bill seeks to reform the Philippine telecommunication sector,
introduce the concept of mobile number portability, and allow mobile users to
transfer telecommunications network providers or switch from postpaid to
prepaid subscription or vice versa while retaining their existing mobile numbers.

More often than not, mobile subscribers opt to tolerate and continue to pay
for the poor service of their network providers as they do not want the
inconvenience of changing their personal mobile numbers, their digital identity,
for fear of losing important contacts and opportunities.

Through this, we are giving back to the mobile subscribers the power of
consumer choice; the freedom to choose the network provider that would give the
best value for their money without having to lose or change their mobile numbers.
Furthermore, this measure will attract more telecommunications players to enter
the Philippine market, therefore encouraging competition.

In view of the foregoing, the approval of this measure is earnestly sought.

ALFRED VARGAS


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Philippines

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. _'2148

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE ALFRED VARGAS

AN ACT
REQUIRING PUBLIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS ENTITIES TO PROVIDE
NATIONWIDE MOBILE NUMBER PORTABILITY TO SUBSCRIBERS

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines
in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Lifetime Cellphone
Number Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. It is hereby declared the policy of the State to
recognize the primary role of the private sector as engine of economic growth and
guarantees the right of individuals and private groups, including corporations, to
own, establish, and operate economic enterprises. Along with this recognition, the
1987 Constitution under its provisions on National Economy and Patrimony states
that the use of property bears a social function where all economic agents shall
contribute to the common good. The right of corporations to own, establish and
operate economic enterprises is therefore subject to the duty of the State to
intervene when the common good so demands - including the duty to regulate the
acquisition, ownership, use, and disposition of private property through the
regulation or prohibition of monopolies and combinations in restraint of trade or
unfair competition.

SEC. 3. Guiding Principles for Implementation. - This Act declares the
following as guiding principles:

a. The basic premise behind a nationwide mobile number portability
system is to promote competition between and among public
telecommunications entities by giving consumers the freedom to
choose and to respond to quality, price, and other relevant
considerations without changing their mobile numbers whenever they
change service providers.

b. Inaddition to promoting consumer welfare, mobile number portability
will stimulate public telecommunications entities to provide consumers
with the best overall value that they can offer. It will also foster


technological innovation that will lead to even greater demand for
telecommunications products and services and lead to virtuous cycle of
economic growth.

SEC. 4.Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act:

a. Donor Provider refers to the public telecommunications entity to whose
network the mobile number belongs at the time the subscriber makes
and application for porting.

b. Mobile Number refers to the number series assigned by a public
telecommunications entity to its postpaid and/or prepaid subscribers.

¢. Mobile Number Portability or MNP refers to the ability of a postpaid
subscriber who has no existing financial obligation to the Donor
Provider arising from a subscription contract under a postpaid plan, or
a prepaid subscriber, to either retain an existing mobile number when
moving from one public telecommunications entity to another, or to
change subscription from postpaid to prepaid of from prepaid to
postpaid, without impairment of the standards of quality, reliability, or
convenience prescribed by the National Telecommunications
Commission.

d. Mobile Postpaid Subscriber refers to any person, natural or juridical, who
avails of the mobile telecommunications service under a prior
arrangement with a public telecommunications entity. The subscriber is
billed after the fact, according to the use of mobile services at the end of
the monthly billing cycle.

e. Mobile Prepaid Subscriber refers to any person, natural or juridical, who
avails of the mobile telecommunications entity by purchasing credit in
advance of service use. The purchased credit is used to pay for mobile
phone services at the point the service is accessed or consumed.

£. Porting Application refers to an application made by a mobile subscriber
to the Recipient Provided to move a mobile number from the Donor
Provider.

g. Porting Process refers to the process by which a subscriber moves a
mobile number from a Donor Provided to a Recipient Provider. In no
case shall the entire porting process take more than twenty-four (24)
hours.

h. Public Telecommunications Entity or PTE refers to any duly enfranchised
and authorized public telecommunications entity that offers voice, short
messaging system (SMS or text), mobile data, value-added services
(VAS) or any other telecommunications services to the public for a fee.


i, Recipient Provider refers to the public telecommunications entity that
will be providing mobile telecommunications service to the subscriber
after porting.

j. Subscriber refers to any person, natural or juridical, who avails of the
mobile telecommunications service from a public telecommunications
entity.

SEC. 5. Obligation of Public Telecommunications Entities to Provide
Mobile Number Portability; Limitation. - It shall be the obligation of every PTE
to provide nationwide MNP to all mobile subscribers, whether postpaid or prepaid.
In no case, under penalty of law as provided hereunder, shall the benefits of MNP
to a mobile subscriber who has decided to either switch from one PTE to another,
or to change subscription from postpaid to prepaid or from prepaid to postpaid, be
delayed, withheld, refused or otherwise not delivered by more than twenty-four
(24) hours from the time such mobile subscriber shall be allowed to port the same
number from one PTE to another only after the lapse of sixty (60) days from the
completion of the last porting process.

SEC. 6. Obligation of Public Telecommunications Entities to Set Up a
Mechanism for Mobile Number Portability. - Every PTE shall, within six (6)
months from the promulgation of the implementing rules and regulations of this
Act, set up a mechanism for the purpose of implementing MNP. It shall
interconnect directly or indirectly with the infrastructure, facilities, systems, or
equipment of other PTEs and not install network features, functions, or
capabilities that will impede the implementation of a nationwide MNP system. It
shall also provide subscribers sufficient and relevant information on MNP
including, but not limited to, its features, the porting application requirements,
and the porting process.

SEC. 7. Obligation of the Recipient Provider. - The Recipient Provider
shall complete the porting process within a period of twenty-four (24) hours from
the time of receipt of the mobile number porting application from the subscriber.
Within such 24-hour period, it must transmit the mobile number porting
application to the Donor Provider for the purpose of clearing the mobile number
for porting. Upon notification that the mobile number has been cleared for porting,
it shall immediately activate the subscriber’s ported number under its network.

SEC. 8. Obligation of the Donor Provider. - The Donor Provider shall,
within the same 24-hour period under Section 7 of this Act, clear the mobile
number for porting. It shall however continue to provide all subscribed
telecommunications services to the subscriber until the mobile number has been
completely ported to the Recipient Provider. The porting process shall be deemed
complete upon the subsequent activation of the mobile number under the
network of the Recipient Provider.


If the mobile number sought to be ported has any pre-existing obligation
arising from a subscription contract with the Donor Provider, such provider shall
give the subscriber a period of not more than three (3) days from the time of
receipt of mobile number porting application to settle the outstanding obligation.
Upon full payment, the Donor Provider shall immediately notify the Recipient
Provider that the mobile number is cleared for porting.

SEC. 9. Cost of Mobile Number Portability. - Every PTE shall provide
mobile number portability to subscribers completely free of charge.

SEC. 10. Privacy of Data. - PTEs and other third party entities to whom
mobile numbers, or other classes of personal information have been disclosed,
shall maintain the confidentiality of the information obtained, and shall not
monitor or disclose the contents of any usage transaction contained within the
databases under its control, except to the extent necessary for the purpose of
maintaining compliance with the provisions of this Act and its implementing rules
and regulations,

The information gathered by PTEs and other third party entities under the
provisions of this Act shall be subject to the provisions of Republic Act No. 10173,
otherwise known as the Data Privacy Act of 2012, and its implementing rules and
regulations.

SEC. 11. Penalties. - For every failure to comply with, or for every instance
of violation of any provision of this Act, the PTE shall pay a fine of not less than
One Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php100,000.00) up to Three Hundred Thousand
Pesos (Php300,000.00) for the first offense, and a fine of not less than Four
Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php400,000.00) up to Six Hundred Thousand Pesos
(Php600,000.00) for the second offense. In case of a subsequent offense, the
penalty shall be a fine of not less than Seven Hundred Thousand Pesos
(Php700,000.00) up to One Million Pesos (Php1,000,000.00) and revocation of the
PTE's franchise to operate.

SEC, 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within 90 days from the
effectivity of this Act, the National Telecommunications Commission, as the
government entity mandated to implement nationwide MNP, shall coordinate
with the Department of Information and Communications Technology, the
National Privacy Commission, the Philippine Competition Commission, and other
concerned agencies, and promulgate rules and regulations and other issuances as
may be necessary to ensure the effective implementation of this Act.

Within six (6) months from the promulgation of the rules and regulations,
the PTEs shall comply with the provisions of this Act and set up a mechanism for
the purpose of implementing nationwide MNP.

The rules and regulations shall provide an expeditious framework to
govern all relevant aspects of MNP including, but not limited to, the following
factors:

(1) the most appropriate, efficient, and cost-effective porting scheme to be
adopted;


(2) the specific rights and obligations of mobile subscribers, the Donor and
Recipient Providers, and other parties to the porting process;

(3) the coordinated procedure to be followed by each party in processing a
mobile number application, including the specific time limits given to
every party to complete the required steps in the entire porting process
which process shall, in no case, exceed twenty-four (24) hours; and,

(4) the measures to ensure the least amount of disruption of service to the
consumer when implementing mobile number portability.

SEC. 13. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is held invalid
or unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected thereby shall remain in full
force and effect.

SEC. 14. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders,
proclamations, rules and regulations, and issuances, or parts thereof which are
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are hereby repealed, amended, or
modified accordingly.

SEC. 15. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of
general circulation.

Approved,