Saying that everyone should support the third telco player

Following the selection of Mislatel as the third provisional Telco, NOW Corporation President Mel Velarde held a press conference to shed light on developments of the New Media Player (NMP).

In his statement, Velarde said that everyone should support Mislatel in being the third telco competitor. However, he emphasized that the country should not be limited to just three telco players. “Let us grow this business with multiple players,” Velarde said, stating that the country can support as much as six players.

While it did not submit its bid last November 7, NOW Corporation is in talks with other foreign telcos for possible partnerships—Viettel being one of them.

NOW Corporation’s other proposal is with Network ng Mamayang Pilipino—an initiative to improve the state of telecommunications in the country. Part of this initiative is helping municipalities in developing their own cell towers using the 2 terabits per second internet spectrum donated by Facebook.

As for Sen. Gringo Honasan accepting his appointment as DICT Secretary, Velarde welcomes the decision. “It’s about time we had a full-fledged and fair Secretary who will look out for security and push for reforms,” Velarde said.