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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
‘Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No._ 2580

Introduced by Representatives
DIOSDADO MACAPAGAL ARROYO and GLORIA MACAPAGAL ARROYO

THE
WIRELESS TELEPHONE
CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT OF 2013

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Since 1997, wireless telephone service has expanded immensely. Considered a
luxury decade ago, now more than thirty five million Filipinos use wireless telephone
service in the conduct of their business and daily routine. But despite its many
advantages, a handful of consumer systematic abuses have surfaced ranging from the
terms and conditions of wireless telephone service, poor service quality, billing errors,
termination of service, and lack of effective procedures for redress of consumer
grievances.

Most consumers buy wireless phones for business and personal use.
Competition among telecommunications companies throughout the country has helped
bring down the prices of wireless phones and more accessible. The use of wireless
phones has become so integral in people's lives that the mere mention of being
separated from their wireless devices is unacceptable. Some consumers have opted to
keep a wireless phone as their primary phone line for ease of accessibility. Although
many consumers are content with their wireless phones and its corresponding contract
of service, consumer complaints have continued to increase which reflects that wireless
telephone service in the country still needs improving

The proposed legislation is a step towards that direction. It realizes the growing
importance of wireless telephone service and establishes basic consumer rights and

1


remedies that will apply equally to all providers, so that there will be a level playing field
amongst providers to promote healthy competition to benefit Filipino consumers.

In view of the importance of this bill, it expeditious passage into law is earnestly
requested

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[ACAPAGAL ARROYO GLO} MACAPAGAL ARROYO.
Second District, Camarines Sur Sécond District, Pampanga


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

26890

House Bill No.

Introduced by Representatives
DIOSDADO MACAPAGAL ARROYO and GLORIA MACAPAGAL ARROYO

THE
WIRELESS TELEPHONE
CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT OF 2013

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

SECTION 1. Title. .- This Act shall be known as the "Wireless Telephone
Consumer Protection Act of 2013.”

SECTION 2. Definitions. — For purposes of this Act, the following definitions shall
apply:

a) "Commission" — means the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

b) "Internet" — means the shared global computing network. A network based on
standards including Internet Protocol (IP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) and
the Domain Name System (DNS), which enables global communications between all

connected computing devices. It provides the platform for web services and the World
Wide Web.

¢) "Wireless telephone service" — means commercial mobile radio service

d) "Wireless telephone service provider" or "provider" — means any entity that
provides wireless telephone service in the country.


€) "Wireless telephone number information" — means the telephone number,
electronic address and any other identifying information by which a calling party
may reach a subscriber to commercial mobile services, and which is assigned by
a wireless telephone service provider to such subscriber.

SECTION 3. Information Requirement. — Within 180 days following the effective
date of this act, the Commission shall adopt rules and regulations requiring that any
publication, including publication on the Internet, of a wireless telephone service
provider concerning the terms of its plans or contracts for wireless telephone service
shall set forth, in a plain and conspicuous manner, the following information

(1) Information on charges, including the originating location of the call,
monthly base charge, per-minute charges for minutes not included in the
plan, and the method of calculating minutes charged;

(2) Information on the minutes included in the plan, including allowable
minutes during daytime on weekdays, allowable minutes during nights and
weekends, or any other differing charges for long-distance, roaming,
incoming and directory assistance;

(3) Information on plan or contract terms, including length of contract,
early or other termination fees, trial periods, and start-up fees;

(4) Information on taxes to be collected by the provider for, and paid to the
national, local, or other governmental agency;

(5) Information on surcharges imposed by the provider for the costs of
compliance with regulations or for other purposes, and

(6) Any other information that the Commission considers appropriate to
ensure that consumers of wireless telephone service are fully informed of
the terms of the plan or contract.

The Wireless telephone service providers shall provide the information required
by this section to a consumer prior to entering into any contract with a consumer for
wireless telephone service.

SECTION 4. Information on Service Coverage. - Each wireless telephone
service provider shall make available maps showing the wireless telephone service area
of such provider and the wireless telephone service area of such provider within the
country. Such maps shall contain the maximum practicable level of granularity and
shall be updated quarterly.

Each map of a service area required under subsection a. of this section shall be
provided to a consumer:


(1) upon the request of the consumer; and
(2) whenever a plan or contract for the service is entered into.

Each map of a service area required under subsection a. of this section shall be
available:

(1) on the Internet website of the provider concerned: and
(2) on the Internet website of the Commission

SECTION 5. Monitoring. The Commission shall monitor the quality of wireless
telephone service providers based on the following standards:

(1) dropped calls;

(2) blocked calls;

(3) known coverage gaps (including average signal strength) or dead zones;
(4) predicted street level signal strength; and

(5) any other matters the Commission considers appropriate.

In monitoring the quality of wireless telephone service under subsection a. of this
section, the Commission shall establish an Internet website which allows the public to
submit their comments and views to the Commission on the quality of such service.
The Commission shall also accept written complaints by mail

SECTION 6. Availability, of Information. — The Commission shall make
information available to wireless telephone service providers and the public on a
semiannual basis concerning the quality of wireless telephone service of the provider.

SECTION 7. Extension of Contract. — An extension of a contract for wireless
telephone service shall not be valid unless the extension of the contract is in writing and
is signed by the subscriber, or confirmed in writing and signed by the subscriber within
seven days of receipt by the subscriber.

SECTION 8. Notice on Change of Terms. — A wireless telephone service
provider shall provide subscribers with written notice of any change in rates, terms, or
conditions of service at least 30 days before the change is to take effect. If any such
change will result in higher rates or more restrictions on service or otherwise will result
in a material, adverse change for such subscriber, the subscriber may, within such 30-
day period, terminate the service without penalty and receive a pro rata refund of the
charges, if any, paid for the handset used for the service. The notice of change shall


inform the subscriber of the right to terminate the contract, the right to a handset refund,
and the steps to take to implement such a termination.

SECTION 9. Cancellation of Contract. — A contract for wireless service may be
canceled upon the request of the subscriber for any reason during the first 30 days.
There shall be no penalty or other costs to the subscriber for any cancellation during
these 30 days, except that the subscriber shall be responsible for the cost of the service
used during the time period that the contract was in effect.

SECTION 10. Billing. — A wireless telephone service provider shall provide bills
for wireless telephone services that are clearly organized and clearly describe in plain
language the products and services for which charges are imposed, and that conform to
format standards established by the Commission.

SECTION 11. Taxes. - Taxes and fees which are required by the law, or local
ordinance or regulation to be collected from the subscriber shall be set forth in a
separate section of the bill and shall be itemized separately. This section of the bill shall
only contain charges that the provider is required to be recovered from subscribers
pursuant to law.

SECTION 12. Roaming charges. - Roaming or off-network charges shall be
itemized on the subscriber's bill within 60 days of the call being placed, and such
roaming or off-network charges shall identify the date and originating location of the call.

SECTION 13. Request for Billing Statement. — Upon the request of a subscriber,
a wireless telephone service provider shall provide an itemized bill to the subscriber at
no cost to the subscriber.

SECTION 14. Charges on Unauthorized Use. — Charges associated with the use
of wireless telephone equipment or services shall not be the liability of the subscriber if
such use was unauthorized by the subscriber due to loss or theft, provided that such
loss or theft is promptly reported to the wireless telephone service provider.

SECTION 15. Rules and Regulations on Complaints. - The Commission shall
adopt rules and regulations as may be necessary to allow subscribers to file complaints
with the Commission with regard to billing disputes between wireless telephone service
providers and subscribers

SECTION 16. Non-termination of Service. - A wireless telephone service
provider shall refrain from terminating a subscriber's service for nonpayment so long as
the subscriber's billing complaint is pending before the Commission and for 15 days
thereafter, or for such period as the Commission for good cause shall establish,
provided that as a condition of continued service during the pendency of any such
dispute, the subscriber shall pay the undisputed portions of any bill for service and any
amounts the Commission determines are necessary to fairly compensate the wireless


telephone provider for services rendered while the complaint is pending and 15 days
thereafter.

SECTION 17. Publication of Information. — A wireless telephone service provider,
or any direct or indirect affiliate or agent of a provider, providing the name and wireless
telephone number information of a subscriber for inclusion in any directory of any form,
or selling, leasing, licensing or sharing the contents of any directory database, or any
portion or segment thereof, shalll not include the wireless telephone number information
of any subscriber without first obtaining the express consent of that subscriber. The
provider's form for obtaining the subscriber's express consent shall meet all of the
following requirements:

(1) it shall be a separate document that is not attached to any other document;
(2) it shall be signed and dated by the subscriber;

(3) it shall be unambiguous and legible, and shall conspicuously disclose that, by
signing the form, the subscriber consents to having the subscriber's wireless
telephone number information sold or licensed as part of a list of subscribers and
having the subscriber's wireless telephone number information included in a
publicly available directory; and

(4) if under the subscriber's calling plan the subscriber may be billed for receiving
uitsolicited calls or text messaging from a telemarketer, the provider's form shall
be unambiguous and legible, and shall conspicuously disclose that, by
consenting to have the subscriber's wireless telephone number information sold
or licensed as part of a list of subscribers or to be included in a publicly available
directory, the subscriber may incur additional charges for receiving unsolicited
calls or text messages,

SECTION 18. Revocation of Consent. — A subscriber who provides express prior
consent pursuant to the preceding section may revoke that consent at any time. A
wireless telephone service provider shall comply with the subscriber's request to opt out
within a reasonable period of time, not to exceed 60 days.

SECTION 19. Exceptions. — The provisions of Section 17 shall not apply to the
following parties for the purposes indicated:

(1) To a collection agency, to the extent disclosures made by the provider are
exclusively for the collection of the subscriber's unpaid debt to the provider;

(2) To any law enforcement agency;

(3) To a lawful process issued by the court under the law;


(4) To a telephone company providing service between service areas for the
provision to the subscriber of telephone service between service areas, or to third
Parties for the limited purpose of providing billing services;

(5) To a telephone company to effectuate a subscriber's request to transfer the
customer's assigned telephone number from the customer's existing provider of
telecommunications services to a new provider of telecommunications services;
and

(6) To the Commission pursuant to its jurisdiction and control over wireless
telephone providers.

SECTION 20. Penalties. — Any director, officer or agent of a corporation who
shall authorize, order or perform any of the acts or practices constituting in whole or in
part a violation of Section 3, and who has knowledge or notice of noncompliance
received by the corporation from the Commission, shall upon conviction, be subject to a
fine of not less than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00) but not more than
One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) or imprisonment of not less than six (6) years but
not more than twelve (12) years, or both upon the discretion of the court.

In case the violation is committed by, or in the interest of a juridical person duly
licensed to engage in business in the Philippines, such license to engage in business
shall also be immediately revoked.

SECTION 21. Authority of The Commission - The Commission shall enforce this
Act in the same manner and by the same means as though all applicable terms and
provisions of the Public Telecommunications Policy Act of the Philippines were
incorporated into and made part hereof. The Commission may prescribe regulations to
carry out this Act.

SECTION 22. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part thereof, is held
invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise
affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

SECTION 23. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance,
executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to,
or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended
accordingly.

SECTION 24. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,