Where’s the Number – Part 2

Being a Globe subscriber I was able to procure a free copy of their telephone directory and as hinted at in the first Where’s the Number it lists only Globe subscribers. To the best of my knowledge there are a least 5 companies supplying telephone services to Metro Manila and with PLDT having 4 directories that means for a comprehensive listing of the telephone network 9 directories are required.

The service you are connected with will give you a directory free of charge and according to a bloke at the Philippines Directories Corp, the mob who print the directories, the others can be purchased at 1000 pesos a pop. Can’t see too many people shelling out the odd 8000 required.

Then there is the wonderful confusion of actually looking up a number. If the number is unknown it is a good bet that their service provider will be even less known. Perhaps one should ring them to find out which book they are in, mmmm not sure that is going to work.

Globe’s Yellow Pages are a joke, according to them there are only 2 photographers and 1 doctor in Metro Manila whilst according to PLDT there are 30 photographers and 72 doctors just in Makati. But being a Globe customer I would never know about the PLDT businesses and consequently never contact them by phone. Hello, who is shooting themselves in the foot?

One white pages directory for Metro Manila and one or two (depending on physical size) Yellow Pages is the way to go. Will cost the telephone companies less, will increase their revenue and make life a lot easier for the rest of us. As the old saying goes, less is more.