Last April 23, the majority of Globe subscribers were caught by surprise when Globe used the Emergency Cell Broadcast feature to remind them about SIM Registration. While it has annoyed a number of people–with some thinking if Globe is allowed to use Emergency Cell Broadcast (ECB) for such a reminder–the telco spoke up about this move.

In a statement, Globe explained that the NDRMMC “has given no objections on the use of ECB after prior notice.” For those not familiar, the Emergency Cell Broadcast is part of the Free Mobile Disaster Alerts Act, where the NDRRMC and other relevant government agencies can make use of the telco network to blast warnings during disasters and emergencies.

While the Emergency Cell Broadcast was supposed to be for those who haven’t registered their SIM, those who registered also received the same message.

“We apologize to our registered customers who have received the emergency alerts and expressed their irritation online. Globe sees the low registration numbers as needing urgent public service because the lack of mobile services is in itself an emergency, severely impacting daily life, from financial transactions and e-commerce to transport and education, among many others,” Globe Corporate Communications Officer Yoly Crisanto said.

In Globe’s case, the use of Emergency Cell Broadcast to remind its subscriber to register their SIM is crucial, as missing the April 26 deadline could mean the deactivation of mobile services–even if there’s a provision where users have five days to reactivate it.

“We are at a critical time as the deadline draws near, and we want to ensure that our customers are compliant with the law to avoid SIM deactivation. This way, they will continue to enjoy our call, text, and data services for their day-to-day needs,” Globe Group President and CEO Ernest Cu said.

As of April 22, Globe has logged over 35.8 million SIM registrations out of its 86.7 million subscribers, which translates to around 41.3% of their subscribers having registered their SIM. With this, Globe continues to urge its remaining customers to register their SIMs and asks the DICT to extend the registration deadline beyond April 26.