Smart chides Sun for network congestion

Leading mobile phone service provider Smart Communications has ‘advised’ the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) that it can no longer sit on the complaints against competitor Sun Cellular following the latter’s unwitting admission that its network has become overly congested.

"Sun has all but confirmed the validity of the complaints against it – that it has utterly failed to meet the service performance standards set by the NTC for telecommunication companies," Smart legal services head Rogelio Quevedo said.

Smart and another wireless phone firm Globe Telecom earlier filed separate complaints with the NTC against Digital Mobile Phils., the corporate entity that operates Sun Cellular, for the failure of its 24/7 call and text unlimited offering to meet quality of service standards set by government.

Quevedo noted that the accusation by Sun that Smart is hindering Sun-to-Smart interconnection is just a "smokescreen" to divert attention away from the state of Sun’s network, which has been overburdened by its 24/7 scheme.

"Smart, however, will not allow itself to be used by Sun as a scapegoat for Sun’s network problems which are of its own doing," Quevedo stressed.

Quevedo pointed out that Sun cannot go around the fact that its network has a horrendous 38 percent connection rate, whether for Sun-to-Sun or Sun to other networks. "Surely, if Sun is having a problem connecting with our network, that problem emanates from their side, not ours."

Complaints filed at the NTC charged that Sun’s 38-percent connection rate violates the NTC requirement of a successful call rate of at least 93 percent on the first attempt or a grade of service (GOS) of seven percent.

The complainants have asked the NTC to firmly apply to all telecommunication companies the service performance standards to protect subscribers from substandard mobile phone service.

On the request of Sun for Smart to install additional interconnection links between the two networks, Quevedo said Smart turned down the request since the present interconnection between Smart and Sun can already support Sun’s 1.7 million subscribers.