The Konektadong Pinoy Act, which turned into law in August, could open up more business opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), according to an expert.
“If we are able to ensure that every household has a stable connection, that increases economic activity,” said Mario C. Cerrils Jr., academic program director of the master's in international business law at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM). businessworld in an interview.
“Hopefully it will also spur growth in the country, and also for our business owners, especially small and medium enterprises, which are heavily dependent on the internet,” he said.
In the 2024 Internet Poverty Index by Austria-based data enterprise World Data Lab, the Philippines ranked 56th “Internet-poor” out of 169 countries.
The study revealed that more than 18.33 million Filipinos, or 15.9% of the total population, cannot afford a gigabyte (GB) internet package per month, the third highest in the region.
“The idea is really to help people, to make data sharing and data transfer more accessible,” said Mr. Cerrils, who is also co-founder and managing partner of Cerrils & Fernan Intellectual Property Law (CFIP Law).
“All the trade transactions we have now are cross-border in nature,” he said. “So, even a simple sale of goods involves a lot of import-export and many of these originate from contracts concluded through the Internet.”
Republic Act No. 12234 or “An Act Establishing a Comprehensive and Inclusive Data Transmission and Connectivity Framework for the Philippines,” known as the Konectadong Pinoy Act.
According to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), the Konektadong Pinoy Law aims to expand internet access and improve digital services nationwide by streamlining the licensing process and promoting infrastructure sharing.
The DICT said the law will enable new and smaller players to invest in data transmission infrastructure without the need for legislative franchise, which the agency described as an “outdated requirement”.
DICT Secretary Henry Roel R. Aguda said earlier this month that the agency was aiming to release the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the Konectadong Pinoy program during the first week of October, but decided to push it forward to accommodate feedback from key industry stakeholders. , Almira Louise S. Martinez
