MRC Allied’s telco venture debuts in NCR

MANILA, Philippines – Bitstar Telecom Inc., the telecommunications (telco) and broadband venture of MRC Allied Inc., has officially launched in the Philippines, where it plans to position itself as a lower-cost alternative in a market dominated by the country’s largest telco providers.

The initial rollout targets enterprise customers in the National Capital Region, although the company said it plans to expand to other parts of the country over time.

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Unlike traditional telcos, Bitstar said it would combine its own infrastructure with network assets from existing telco companies, effectively allowing it to roll out services without building an entirely new network.

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Its network partner is the listed Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (PT&T), the fiber internet provider founded in 1962 that previously sought to become the country’s third major telco player.

“Digital customer experience ought to be more common for service companies, which is an opportunity for Bitstar to cater to the evolving needs of the modern internet users,” Bitstar president and CEO Miguel Bitanga said in a statement.

“Affordability is also important for Bitstar customers because fiber internet is a relative commodity in other countries, but still a luxury for many businesses here,” Bitanga added.

Bitstar currently offers two enterprise services—a shared business broadband plan with speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second (Gbps) and dedicated internet lines ranging from 50 megabits per second to 1 Gbps.

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The company said its business model was enabled by the recently enacted Konektadong Pinoy Act, which allows greater use of shared telco infrastructure and network partnerships.

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“These strategic partnerships, combined with Bitstar’s digital-first customer approach and affordable internet plans, are intended to help build the brand with an increasingly savvy and modern client set, within Metro Manila and beyond,” the company said.

Bitstar was the result of MRC Allied’s expansion into the telecommunications space announced in 2024.

At the time, the listed holding company disclosed plans to invest an initial P75 million to acquire a controlling stake in Bitstar Prime Holdings Inc.

As part of the transaction, Bitstar Prime assumed MRC’s rights over the planned acquisition of Bitstar Telecom, as well as agreements involving PT&T. This included the purchase of shares in the listed telco company and a proposed subscription of up to P1 billion in its preferred shares.

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MRC had said the investment was part of its plans to “become a significant player in the fast-growing information and communication technology industry in the country.”