Editor’s note: DITO Telecommunity, the country’s third telco, says its commercial launch in Visayas and Mindanao is its way of showing its intent to contribute to nation-building. Below is their press release.

DITO Telecommunity Corporation, the country’s third major player in the telecommunications industry, heralded its entry into the market by announcing that it will be providing free call and text as well as broadband services to 3,000 frontliners. This free service will be available in 10 areas in Visayas and Mindanao, with the help of the local government units, as a way of strengthening its commitment of nation-building and partnership with the Filipino people.

This announcement was the highlight of the virtual press conference of the commercial launch held last March 8, 2021. The event was capped by a ceremonial turn-over to Davao City Mayor Sarah Duterte Carpio and Davao City Vice Mayor Sebastian Duterte, as the first beneficiaries are 300 frontliners of from their city.

Key DITO executives were present in the ceremony: Dennis A. Uy, chairman and chief executive officer, retired Major General Rodolfo Santiago, chief technology officer, and lawyer Adel Tamano, chief administrative officer. Secretary Gregorio Honasan II of the Department of Information and Communications Technology and Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba of the National Telecommunications Commission also gave special messages.

An insurmountable task

In his opening statement, Santiago recounted how in the beginning, critics of the initiative said that building a network in more than a year could not be done, especially as the pandemic hit at a crucial juncture in the network roll-out.

However, just a few weeks before the commercial launch, DITO’s services exceeded the required benchmarks of the first government mandated audit. The audit findings showed that DITO demonstrated an average speed of 85.9 Mbps for 4G and 507.5 Mbps for 5G, with a population coverage of more than 37%. These are important indicators that point to the brand’s readiness to fulfill its mandate of bringing world-class connectivity to every Filipino.

Not resting on this achievement, the DITO CTO stressed, “As we begin our commercial launch, all I can say is that there is more work to be done and together, we will succeed and make a difference in transforming the landscape of Philippine telecommunications.”

Public and private cooperation: a triumph of the Filipino people

Messages from the two main regulating bodies recognized the spirit of partnership that DITO has demonstrated to become a true partner in nation-building and in bringing better access to communications technology to the Filipino people.

Honasan reiterated the importance of having the telecommunications industry to be on par with the rest of the world. He also noted how the entry of DITO, through a transparent and fair bidding, has spurred an increase in investments and infrastructure spending in the telecom sector, that in the long term will benefit the entire nation.

Cordoba further stressed that the successful launch of DITO is an example of how cooperation and active collaboration of government and private corporations will be key in bringing true recovery. He pointed out the advancements in the realm of communications and connectivity, and that for him is a triumph of the Filipino people.

Motivated by nation-building

“DITO was born out of a spirit of nation-building,” said Tamano.

He said that the rationale for a third telco was to serve the underserved and to provide Filipinos with a better option. He recalled how national leaders said the Philippines will never reach its full potential without the right ICT infrastructure and without real competition.

“This is the genesis of this project, the origins of why DITO was born. This is our why and DITO’s DNA.”

He ended by saying, “We are here to serve our consumers and to provide world-class telecommunications services to Filipinos. In short, to do whatever it takes, whatever diskarte that we need to do, to deliver our promise of weaving Filipino communities together with stronger and better connectivity.”

Tamano said DITO’s first commercial act is one that demonstrates the commitment of DITO to build the nation – a provision of free service to 3,000 Filipino frontliners.

DITO na tayo

“In the following weeks you will see us rise in various areas of the country. But today, March 8, we first give back to where it all began,” said Uy.

To close the event, the DITO chairman and CEO had this to say about their launch, “With this gesture, as a partner in nation-building, we send the message to the people of the Philippines wherever they may be, that DITO is more than just a telco. We are here to serve, and, in this manner, we want the entire country to know na ‘DITO na kami, DITO na tayo‘ (We’re here) and magkita-kita tayo diyan (We’ll see each other) very soon.”

For more information on the points of sale, the welcome plan and other details about DITO Telecommunity, you can visit the official Facebook page of DITO at www.facebook.com/DITOphofficial or the website at www.dito.ph. – Rappler.com