Formerly
Type Mindanao Islamic Telephone Company, Inc. (1998—2019)
Industry Private
Founded Telecommunications
Headquarters April 19, 1998; 21 years ago
Key people Clark Global City, Clark Freeport Zone, Mabalacat, Pampanga Philippines
Owner Dennis Uy
Udenna Corporation (35%)
Chelsea Logistics Corporation (25%)
China Telecommunications Corporation (40%)
Dito Telecommunity Corporation (formerly known as Mindanao Islamic Telephone
Company, Inc. or Mislatel, is a telecommunications company in the Philippines. It is
a consortium of Davao businessman Dennis Uy's Udenna Corporation and its
subsidiary Chelsea Logistics Corporation, and Chinese state-owned China
Telecommunications Corporation, a parent company of China Telecom. The
consortium is known as the sole winner of the government-sanctioned bidding that
would allow the consortium to become the third major telecommunications provider in
the Philippines challenging the duopoly of PLDT and Globe Telecom.
Dito is expected to start its pilot-testing in November 2019 and plans to begin its
commercial operations on the second quarter of 2020.
History
Early years as Mislatel
The Dito Telecommunity's history can be traced back to the establishment of Mindanao
Islamic Telephone Company, Inc. (Mislatel), which is enacted
by Congressional legislation in April 19, 1998 under Republic Act 8627 allowing the
franchise to construct, install, establish, operate and maintain a telecommunication
system throughout the Philippines. However, Mislatel failed to start its operations
following the approval of its permit from the National Telecommunications Commission,
and the company's franchise was ipso facto.
Third major telecommunications provider bid
In 2018, it was announced that Mislatel was one of the telecommunication firms to join
the government-sanctioned bidding allowing the winner to become the third major telco
provider in the Philippines challenging the duopoly of PLDT and Globe. Mislatel
became a joint-consortium between Udenna Corporation, its subsidiary Chelsea
Logistics, and Chinese state-owned and a parent company of China Telecom, China
Telecommunications Corporation. The consortium was finally named as the
"provisional third major player" by the NTC, beating out two other firms, Sear Telecom
consortium and PT&T in the bidding.
The Senate and the House of Representatives approved the transfer of ownership of
Mislatel to the latter's consortium. In June 2019, the consortium's stakeholders
completed a share-purchase agreement with Mislatel, and were then awaiting their
permit to operate, tentatively by July 2019.
Relaunch as Dito
President Rodrigo Duterte awards the company its Certificate of Public
Convenience and Necessity.
On July 8, 2019, Mislatel was renamed as "Dito Telecommunity". Dito was derived
from the Filipino word for "here", which is a response to the stakeholders' question on
where they plan to set up a firm that would provide a "world class service" with "here"
referring to the Philippines, the country where Dito Telcommunity is based in.
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity of the company
At the same date of the announcement of the company's renaming, Dito
Telecommunity was granted its permit to operate after President Rodrigo Duterte
awarded the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity by the National
Telecommunications Commission to its owner Dennis Uy during a ceremony at the
Presidential Palace, Malacañang.
On September 6, 2019, Dito announced to build its own campus on an 8-hectare lot
at Clark Global City. The campus will house its own data center and it will hold Dito’s
operational departments, network operations center, servecall center, and regional
center. It will also serve as the hub for Dito’s research and development in the
telecommunications space.
Dito is expected to start its pilot-testing in November 2019 and plans to begin its
commercial operations on the second quarter of 2020.
Ownership
The company is led by Dennis A. Uy, a Davao-based businessman. As the country’s
third major network player, it’s comprised of three groups of businesses — Udenna,
China Telecom, and Chelsea. Although Udenna(based in Davao) has Chelsea
Logistics below its hierarchy, it’s still owned by Uy. As for China Telecom, it’s one of
the largest Chinese mobile telecom and fixed-line service provider. It’s also more than
likely for Dito to rely on network equipment from China Telecom.
Udenna Corporation - 35% was incorporated on March 19, 2002. The name
"Udenna" was derived from Uy's full name, Dennis Ang Uy.
Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp - 25% operates as a
holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides marine
shipping services; transports passengers, cargos, petroleum, oil, chemicals, and
other bulk products, for customers in Philippines.
China Telecommunications Corporation - 40% known as its trading
name China Telecom is a Chinese state-owned telecommunication company. It is
the largest fixed-line service and the third largest mobile
telecommunication provider in China.
Radio frequency summary
Frequencies used by Dito Telecommunity[16]
Frequency Protocol Class Band Number Duplex Mode
700 MHz LTE 4G 28 FDD
2000 MHz LTE 4G 34 TDD
2100 MHz LTE 4G 1 FDD
2500 MHz LTE 4G 41 TDD
3300 MHz LTE 4G 52 TDD
TDD
3500 MHz LTE 4G 42
The commitment
President Duterte said that if Dito could stay true to its promises and commitments, it
would be the start of a more affordable, reliable, and secure telco services for the
Philippines.
When Dito Telecommunity Spokesperson Adel Tamano was asked about their plans,
he said that they are very confident that they will be able to provide the country with a
5G connection.
“First thing is that what we’re rolling out is the 4G network — but a higher version of
4G. This is 4G VOLTE, or voice over LTE. So, this is 4G, high definition voice. Alright,
so that’s the first thing,” he said.
“We’re not rolling out 2G. We’re not rolling out 3G. We’re rolling out 4G VOLTE. But
it’s ready for 5G,” he added.
DITO Corporate Documents
SEC REGISTRATION
BUSINESS PERMIT
BIR CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION
