Government urged to redirect regulation on broadband service quality over speed

The Philippine Star

January 23, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines —  Consumer advocacy group CitizenWatch Philippines has urged regulators and internet providers to shift regulatory focus from headline speed figures to broadband quality of service, saying Filipinos care more about reliable connections than impressive numbers on speed tests.

In a statement, the group said complaints about internet service point to instability rather than raw speed — connections that drop during online meetings, mobile data that don’t work in crowded places, failed digital payments and signal outages during bad weather.

“When we are online, we don’t have an internet speedometer in our face to constantly show us the connection speeds of our ISP,” said Orlando Oxales, lead convenor of CitizenWatch Philippines.

“People notice it when calls are dropped, when data service suddenly slows or vanishes or when transactions don’t push through. That’s what disrupts our daily internet life.”

Oxales said the growing reliance on digital services — ranging from remote work and online classes to e-wallets and government platforms — makes reliability and consistency more critical than ever.

This position is supported by a 2025 study from the Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) titled “Toward Better Mobile Quality of Service in Asia Pacific: Assessing the Role of Regulation.” The report argues that improving network performance requires coordinated action by operators and policymakers, and warns that an excessive focus on speed targets can miss what users actually experience.

According to Oxales, the study shows that most everyday online activities work well at 10 Mbps. “What matters to users is whether the connection is steady and dependable, especially during peak hours,” he said.

The GSMA report distinguishes between “quality of service,” which refers to a network’s technical capability, and “quality of experience,” which reflects how users perceive performance. Oxales said this distinction is especially relevant in the Philippines.

“We have dense cities, remote islands, challenging terrain and frequent typhoons,” he said. “Service quality is affected by power interruptions, fiber cable theft, right-of-way issues and slow permitting of broadband infrastructure projects. These realities shape user experience but are not captured by speed metrics.”

The GSMA study also notes that rigid regulations centered narrowly on speed have shown limited success in improving real-world performance, and can divert resources from network upgrades to mere regulatory compliance.

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