With the House of Representatives already clearing the measure lifting the expiration periods on the data or loads offered by internet service providers (ISPs) to their subscribers, Camarines Sur lawmakers are hoping for timely action by the Senate on a counterpart measure so the Congress can provide relief this 2026 to Filipino consumers by enabling them to enjoy the full value of the internet services that they pay for in their prepaid or postpaid packages.
Rep. Migz Villafuerte, chairman of the House committee on information and communications technology (ICT), and Deputy Majority Leader Luigi Villafuerte are looking forward to the senators’ approval this year of their version of the House-approved Roll-Over Internet Data bill that aims to enable prepaid and postpaid ISP subscribers to still use or carry over their remaining or unused data to the next billing cycle or until such loads are consumed.
House Bill (HB) No. 87, which extends the expiry dates of subscribers’ data by allowing users to convert all of their unused and accumulated data into rebates, was one of the bills that the House passed on third and reading last December.
Migz Villafuerte described HB 87 as “an essential piece of legislation that will empower consumers and promote affordability in the telecommunications industry.
The ICT panel chaired by Rep. Migz Villafuerte had approved and endorsed for plenary approval this measure, which was later on passed by a 222-0 vote.
HB 87, or the Roll-Over Internet bill, mandates internet service providers (ISPs) to convert all unused and accumulated data of users into rebates that the internet consumer may use for rebates and other purposes, extending thereby the expiration period of internet data purchased.
This bill was endorsed last year by the Migz-chaired panel through Committee Report (CR) No. 9, which had consolidated HB 87 with HB 650 and HB 708.
HB 87 was introduced by Reps. Ramon Jolo Revilla III, Lani Mercado-Revilla, Bryan Revilla, Noel Rivera and Javier Miguel Benitez; HB 650, by Reps. Tobias Tiangco and Rivera; and HB 708, by Rep. Benitez.
“To most of us in this increasingly connected world, access to reliable and affordable Internet service is no longer a luxury, but more of a necessity,” Migz said in his sponsorship speech at the committee. “However, for many consumers, the cost of monthly data plans remains a significant burden for them.”
Migz Villafuerte described HB 87 as “an essential piece of legislation that will empower consumers and promote affordability in the telecommunications industry. To most of us in this increasingly connected world, access to reliable and affordable internet service is no longer a luxury but more of a necessity.”
With the advent of the digital age, Luigi noted that the internet has become an indispensable tool for work, education, healthcare, social connection and more.
Luigi said that this bill aims to address this issue by assuring all ISP subscribers of the full use of their data internet packages by enabling them to roll-over their unused data.
The ICT panel chaired by Rep. Migz Villafuerte had approved and endorsed for plenary approval this measure, which was later on passed by a 222-0 vote.
This would thus allow consumers to accumulate data, reduce waste and save money on their monthly connectivity bills, Luigi said.
Migz and Luigi said that lifting the expiration periods of ISP data packages would mean “goodbye” to the currently unfair, anti-consumer practice of ISPs to have their subscribers, whether with prepaid or postpaid data packages, forfeit their unused data when their particular subscriptions end after a day, three days, a week, 15 days or one month.
A similar bill requiring ISPs to adopt a roll-over data scheme was passed by the House of Representatives in the 18th Congress after the measure was refined by a technical working group (TWG) co-chaired by Negros Occidental Rep. Francisco Benitez and then-Cavite Rep. and now Bacoor Mayor Strike Revilla.
However, the Senate was not able to act on a counterpart bill.
According to a House report, “the unused data allocation of subscribers who avail of internet data package promo offers shall be rolled over and accumulated until the end of the year, on the condition that the subscriber renews the subscription right after the lapse of the offer duration. The bill further provides that unused data allocation for a year may be converted as rebates, which may be used as payment for internet service in the succeeding year.”
This report further said that, “Users who still have unused data allocation but do not renew their subscriptions within five days from the lapse of the promo period shall result to 20% reduction until the subscription is renewed. After five days and the user fails to renew his/ her subscription, the unused data allocation shall be considered consumed.”
