Tuesday, June 27, 2006 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
News
Countryside offers VoIP promise
With the needed infrastructure already in place, voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) providers should start setting their sights in areas outside of Metro Manila for services other than voice calls.
Popularly known as the technology that can transmit voice calls over Internet Protocol (IP), VoIP has the potential to provide additional services other than the cheaper voice call offer, according to industry players interviewed yesterday.
With VoIP, one can make international calls from the Philippines to anywhere abroad at $2 cents to $10 cents per minute rates, so much lower than the traditional rate being offered by telecom companies at $40 cents per minute.
"We are now changing the notion that VoIP is only for those who want to call their relatives abroad. What we want is two-way communication on a number of applications. With VoIP, you can change many things," industry group Philippine Internet Services Organization (PISO) president William Torres said.
Mr. Torres is also the president of Internet service provider (ISP) Mosaic Communications (Mozcom). In the Philippines, Mr. Torres said priorities should be in basic needs such as education and health care. For one, he said a small town in the province bereft of fixed-line connection can leverage wireless broadband plus VoIP to jump-start an interactive and Web-based educational program.
Even Malacañang made an announcement late last year that it is interested to tap VoIP in connecting far-flung government agencies and cutting down telecommunication expenses.
Simeon I. Kintanar, chairman of Committee on Information and Communications Technology of the House of Representatives, said infrastructure is not a problem even in areas outside of Metro Manila.
In fact, Mr. Kintanar said some privately owned companies, which he did not name, are now keen on partnering with electric cooperatives and cable providers in the provinces to use their existing wired infrastructure in offering VoIP services.
This collocation model is already happening in the United States, saving VoIP providers significant amount in capital expenses.
At face value, the amount needed to start a VoIP business is already cheap.
According to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) rules, non-telco providers and resellers are allowed to ride on the infrastructure of the existing telcos.
VoIP service providers are only required to pay P10 million in paid-up capital, pay an annual registration fee of P50,000, and post performance bonds worth P5 million. For VoIP resellers, the NTC requires posting of performance bonds worth P1 million and an annual registration fee of P5,000.
Still, the spread of VoIP in the countryside will be a "function of the market," similar to the growth of the mobile phone business, said Mr. Torres.
"VoIP calls can even be offered for free. How then can we make the cost of VoIP lower? The parameter should be there are more and more users. The cost of infrastructure will be shared to a number of users," Mr. Torres said. -- Maricel E. Estavillo
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