The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC; ) is the telecommunications regulator of the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. It is an attached agency of the

Department of Information and Communications Technology The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) () is the Executive departments of the Philippines, executive department of the Government of the Philippines, Philippine government responsible for the planning, development a ...

responsible for the supervision, adjudication and control over all telecommunications services and radio and television networks throughout the country.

History

The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) was created under Executive Order No. 546 promulgated on July 23, 1979, and conferred with regulatory and quasi-judicial functions taken over from the Board of Communications and the Telecommunications Control Bureau, which were abolished in the same Order. Primarily, the NTC is the sole body that exercises jurisdiction over the supervision, adjudication and control over all telecommunications services and television networks throughout the country. For the effective enforcement of this responsibility, it adopts and promotes guidelines, rules, and regulations on the establishment, operation, and maintenance of various telecommunications facilities and services nationwide. Although independent as its regulatory and quasi-judicial functions are concerned, the NTC remains under the administrative supervision of the Department of Information and Communication Technology as an attached agency. However, with respect to its quasi-judicial functions, NTC's decisions are appealable only and directly to the

Supreme Court of the Philippines The Supreme Court (; colloquially referred to as the ' (also used in formal writing), is the highest court in the Philippines. It was established by the Taft Commission on June 11, 1901, through the enactment of Act No. 136, which abolished th ...

Timeline

* 1927
Act No. 3396
known as the Ship Radio Station Law was enacted. The Radio Construction and Maintenance Section, the first radio regulatory office was charged to enforce the said law. * 1931: Act No. 3846 known as the Radio Control Law was enacted. The Radio Control Division in the Bureau of Post was created under the jurisdiction of the then Secretary of Commerce and Communications. * 1939: The Radio Control Division was transferred to the

Department of National Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

which was organized pursuant t
Executive Order No. 230
* 1947: The Radio Control Division was again transferred to the

Department of Commerce and Industry Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

which was created pursuant t
Executive Order No. 230
* 1951

was enacted abolishing the Radio Control Board. * 1962: Department Order 51 was issued changing the name of the Radio Control Division to the Radio Control Office. * 1972: The Board of Communications (BOC) was created under the Integrated Reorganization Law. It was the first quasi-judicial body with adjudicatory powers on matters involving telecommunications services. * 1974: The Radio Control Office was renamed the Telecommunications Control Bureau. * 1979: By virtue o
Executive Order No. 546
the TCB and the BOC were integrated into a single entity now known as the National Telecommunications Commission. The Ministry of Transportation and Communications, which was created under the same Order has administrative jurisdiction over the NTC. * 1987: President

Corazon Aquino María Corazón "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipino politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines and the first woman president in the country, from Presidency of Corazon ...

issue
Executive Order 125-A
making the NTC an attached agency of the

Department of Transportation and Communications The Department of Transportation (DOTr; ) is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for the maintenance and expansion of viable, efficient, and dependable transportation systems as effective instruments for national re ...

(DOTC). * 2004: President

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from Presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001 to 2010 ...

issue
Executive Order No. 269
creating the

Commission on Information and Communications Technology The Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) () was the primary policy, planning, coordinating, implementing, regulating, and administrative entity of the executive branch of the Philippine Government that would promote, ...

(CICT) and transferring the NTC from the DOTC to the CICT. * 2005: President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issue
Executive Order No. 454
transferring the NTC back to the DOTC. * 2008: President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issued Executive Order No. 648 transferring the NTC back to the CICT. * 2011: President

Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Aquino III (; born Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines ...

issue
Executive Order No. 47
which retains the NTC under the Office of the President as part of the Other Executive Offices (OEO) * 2016: President Benigno Aquino III signe
Republic Act No. 10844
creating the

(DICT) and making the NTC an attached agency of the newly created executive department. * 2020: The National Telecommunications Commission issued a

cease and desist order A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the other ...

to permanently close down the entire

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...

broadcast, including Sports and Action,

Movie Central Movie Central (occasionally abbreviated as "MC", mostly in program guides) was a Canadian English language Category A premium cable and satellite television channel that was owned by Corus Entertainment. Movie Central was designated to operat ...

and

DZMM DZMM (630 AM) Radyo Patrol is a radio station owned by Philippine Collective Media Corporation and operated conjointly with ABS-CBN Corporation under Media Serbisyo Production Corporation. The station's studios is located at the ABS-CBN Broad ...

. The legislative franchise expired on May 4 without renewal.

Effectiveness

The National Telecommunications Commission has been "hands off" since 1995 with the passage of Republic Act No. 7925, which deregulated and privatized the telecom industry. It is argued, that the "hands off" approach resulted in the Philippines having one of the slowest Internet in Asia. The NTC itself stated the said law is the "reason why the government has difficulty in regulating internet service today."

Head

The NTC is headed by a commissioner appointed by the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

List of commissioners

References

External links

* * {{Authority control

Telecom Regulation in the Philippines Government agencies established in 1979 1979 establishments in the Philippines Establishments by Philippine executive order