FURTHER AMENDING MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR (MC) NO. 03-03-2005A (RULES AND REGULATIONS ON BROADCAST MESSAGING SERVICE)

WHEREAS, the 1987 Constitution fully recognizes the vital role of
communications in nation building and provides for the emergence of
communications structures suitable to the needs and aspirations of the
nation;

WHEREAS, the promotion of competition in the telecommunications
market is a key objective of Republic Act No. 7925 (RA 7925, for
brevity), otherwise known as The Public Telecommunications Policy Act of
the Philippines, which mandates that “a healthy competitive environment
shall be fostered, one in which telecommunications carriers are free to
make business decisions and interact with one another in providing
telecommunications services, with the end in view of encouraging their
financial viability while maintaining affordable rates”;

WHEREAS, Sec. 20 of RA 7925 provides that subscribers/end-users are
entitled to thorough and prompt investigation of, and action upon
complaints. Public Telecommunications Entities (PTEs) shall allow
complaints to be received over the telephone and shall keep a record of
all written or phoned-in complaints.

WHEREAS, one of the major reasons for “disappearing and/or vanishing
load/s” is the act of “opting-in” by subscribers to unsolicited content
and/or information services offered by the content and/or information
service providers and/or PTEs.

WHEREAS, MC No. 03-03-2005A allows the content and/or information
providers to solicit subscriptions through “opting-in” by subscribers to
content and/or information services through push messages;

WHEREAS, such practice of soliciting subscriptions through push
messages has been the source of disputes between the subscribers and the
content and/or information service providers and PTEs;

NOW, THEREFORE, pursuant to RA 7925, Executive Order (EO) No. 546,
series of 1979, and in order to protect and promote the interest of
subscribers/end-users of PTEs and content and/or information service,
the Commission hereby promulgates the following amendments to MC No.
03-03-2005A:

1. Content and/or information providers shall not be allowed to
send and/or initiate push messages as defined under MC No. 03-03-2005;

2. A subscriber who wants to avail the service/s offered by content
and/or information providers and/or PTEs may avail of such service/s
only through his/her operative act of communicating with the content
and/or information providers and/or PTEs through written correspondence,
text messaging, internet or other similar means of communication;

3. Commercial and promotional advertisements, surveys and other
broadcast messages shall be allowed only upon prior written consent by
the subscribers;

4. Contents and any form of information for a fee shall only be
delivered to subscribers who requested for such content and/or
information on a per request basis as provided for in paragraph (2) of
this MC. PTEs shall keep records of all requests for contents and/or
information from the subscribers for the delivery of content and/or
information by the content and/or information providers for a period of
at least two (2) months. Records related to complaints filed by
consumers shall not be disposed of until such complaints are finally
resolved. Records that are subject of complaints shall be forwarded to
the Commission upon its request.

5. All subscriptions for the delivery of contents and/or
information made prior to the effectivity of this Circular shall
continue to be honored until the expiration of the subscription. PTEs
and/or content and/or information providers shall be allowed to notify
existing subscribers of the option to continue with the service only
once or to immediately terminate the same prior to its expiration.

6. PTE s and content and/or information service providers shall
follow a common platform to ensure that information/data required under
MC No. 04-06-2007 are captured.

7. The Commission may direct the disconnection of the content
and/or information providers’ access to the networks, systems or
facilities of PTEs pending the investigation of a complaint filed by a
subscriber/user if the Commission finds that there is strong evidence
against the contents and/or information provider.

8. Violation of any of the provisions of this Circular shall be a
ground for the revocation or cancellation of the registration as
contents and/or information provider and/or imposition of fines in
accordance with law.

9. Any circular, order, memoranda or parts thereof inconsistent herewith are deemed repealed or amended accordingly.

10. This Circular shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
publication in a newspaper of general circulation and three (3)
certified true copies are furnished the UP Law Center.

Adopted: 07 July 2009

(SGD.) RUEL V. CANOBAS Commissioner
(SGD.) JAIME M. FORTES, JR. Deputy Commissioner	(SGD.) DOUGLAS MICHAEL N. MALLILLIN Deputy Commissioner