NTC orders phone firms to correct billing inaccuracies

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has ordered mobile phone operators to immediately address mounting customer complaints over billing inaccuracies on prepaid cards.

NTC common carrier authorization division chief Edgardo Cabarios said those will hold a meeting tomorrow with Smart Communications Inc., Globe Telecom, Express Telecommunications Co., Isla Communications Co. and Pilipino Telephone Corp. to determine the cause of the problem.

"First and foremost, the carriers should admit the fact that there are complaints. It's the first step towards acknowledging that there is problem, other wise, there would be no solution," Cabarios said.

Even the NTC is being continuously bugged by irate subscribers over the unexplained depletion of the value of their prepaid cards.

"Some have informed us of having zero balance in their credit or having a few pesos left after verifying their account balances even if they did not use their phones. This is something we should closely look into," Cabarios pointed out.

A case in point is the Ayala-owned Globe Telecom where customers said they could not send text messages even if they still have more than the P50 minimum amount required by the company in their card balance.

A Globe official who requested anonymity said the problem lies on the prepaid network provided by global telecom supplier Nokia of Finland.

"We have been telling them (Nokia) about this since we started getting complaints," the source said even as he added that Globe and Nokia are already working together to solve the problem as soon as possible.

Globe has been offering prepaid services since last year.

Michael Buchholz, Nokia communications manager for Asia Pacific, however, refused to comment on the matter.

"Nokia is continually working with our partners such as Globe to deliver the best possible service to our end-users. At the same time, it is our policy not to make any comment either about our partners' networks or other vendors," he stressed.

Cabarios, warned though that if negligence is proven on the part of the carriers for introducing a service which inconveniences the customers, they will not only be asked to render corrective measures but may also face an administrative case before the commission.