It began in August of 2018. The administration of President Rodrigo Duterte initialized a bid for any business interest in the country to establish a new telecom provider to butt into the duopoly formed by PLDT-Smart Communications and Globe Telecom. Udenna Corporation from Davao City, under Dennis Uy, put forth a bid by forming a consortium with China Telecom. Their proposal was approved and the company, now named Dito Telecommunity, was given a timetable to erect infrastructure and begin developing services to customers. After more than a year and a half, this past Monday, Dito Telecommunity officially launched its operations.

According to CNN Philippines, the official launch of Dito Telecommunity as a new telecommunication services company in the country went off as planned this March 8. The virtual press launch in Davao City was attended by city officials and members of the Department of Information and Technology (DICT) and the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), as the third telco to stand against Globe and PLDT-Smart opened its network in 15 key areas in the Visayas and Mindanao. To spearhead the launch of their services, Dito has opted to eschew celebrity endorsers and have medical front-liners and police personnel pass the word.

To do that, 300 Dito SIM bundles were provided to selected Davao City medical workers, who will test the provider’s network speed and capabilities. Then they would tell others of their experiences so that more interested customers might try out Dito SIMs as they are rolled out in stores at the key Vis-Min areas, as well as purchasable online through the Dito.ph website. The company’s top offering is their 27Mbps speed, and as part of the initial launch period their mobile network will have unlimited Dito-to-Dito call and text, plus uncapped and unlimited data for a P199 load. Dito is also keeping its Metro Manila-Luzon launch schedule secret for now.

Dennis Uy remarked that he sees Dito Telecommunity as more than just a telco or an alternative to the established telecom giants of the Philippines, but also as a new component in future nation-building. “We are here to serve in this manner,” says Uy. “We want the country to know na DITO na kami, DITO na tayo and we will see each other very soon.”

Image courtesy of ClickTheCity.com