Tech groups back Konektadong Pinoy bill

MANILA, Philippines — Six technology-based groups expressed support for the Konektadong Pinoy bill but warned against its localization provisions, which require data to be stored or processed only within the country’s territory.

Global AI Council Philippines, the Blockchain Council of the Philippines, the Cybersecurity Council of the Philippines, the Data Center Association of the Philippines, the Fintech Philippines Association, and Go Digital Philippines issued a joint statement on Saturday backing the bill with some reservations.

The Konektadong Pinoy bill seeks to streamline the registration process to build and operate data transmission infrastructure by no longer requiring a legislative franchise.

“These changes will lower the cost of internet services, accelerate network rollout, and expand access, especially in underserved areas,” the groups maintained.

However, they also urged Congress to ensure that data localization or sovereignty is not included in the final version of the law.

“Requiring that data be stored or processed only within Philippine territory will drive up business costs, disrupt operations and limit access to technologies such as cloud computing and AI (artificial intelligence),” the group stressed.

“This would hurt SMEs (small and medium enterprises), deter investment and weaken the competitiveness of the Philippine IT-BPM (information technology and business process management) and digital sectors,” they added.

The Konektadong Pinoy bill was ratified by both houses of Congress on June 9.

However, bicameral committee discussions added a provision related to data localization, according to the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines in a June 30 statement.

READ: Marcos told to veto ‘Konektadong Pinoy’ bill due to security risks

After the bill was ratified by Congress, consumer group CitizenWatch Philippines called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to veto the bill but for a different reason.

CitizenWatch maintained that removing the legislative franchise requirement for data transmission providers may lead to unvetted players, including potentially foreign-controlled entities, operating critical infrastructure without oversight.

It further stressed that removing the requirement may cause “serious security vulnerabilities and even a national crisis situation.” /das