Transco can provide Internet services, says solon

No need for new law if firm partners with telco

By Alexander Villafania INQ7

THE STATE-RUN National Transmission Corporation (Transco) will be able to provide Internet service to its customers nationwide without the need for a new law that will enable the electricity transmission firm to operate as an Internet service provider, a congressman has said.

To circumvent any laws that may prevent its distribution of Internet services, Transco can partner with a telecommunications company to provide either the last-mile connection or even the Internet-related consumer services, with Transco’s 21,000 circuit-kilometer transmission lines serving as backbone infrastructure, said Representative Simeon Kintanar.

“What I see here is that households will automatically have Internet access through their power lines, which is more cost effective than having a separate line installed to their homes,” Kintanar said.

Kintanar, who chairs the congressional information and communications technology committee, was earlier given a demonstration by Transco of its Internet-related services.

Transco, which is in the process or privatization, had previously announced that it had the capability to deliver broadband Internet through its electrical circuits, which are mostly high-density copper or fiber-optic cables.

it said, however, that legal impediments prevented the company from pursuing such plans.