Globe expands Wimax sites

GLOBE Telecom announced Wednesday the expansion of the company’s Wimax network with the addition of 85 sites in Cebu province this year.

In a press conference, Globe regional sales head for Central Eastern Visayas Cleo Celeste Santos said 35 of the sites were projected to be set up in the first quarter of this year.

Click here for Election 2010 updates

“These sites will be built on areas with high demand,” she said.

Cebu province currently has almost 200 Wimax sites, particularly in areas like Danao, Minglanilla, Talisay and Carcar.

Wimax or the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access is wireless broadband access that presents a cost-efficient alternative to setting up Internet access via cable and DSL.

The technology can cover distances greater than those covered by wireless technologies like WiFi, CDMA or 3G.

Globe tested Wimax as early as 2005 and began the rollout in 2008.

The Wimax network was launched in February last year in Cebu, making it the first city in the Philippines to experience the Wimax service of Globe.

Santos reported that since the continued rollout of Wimax sites nationwide, Wimax subscribers have reached 93,965 users.

Some 4,000 subscribers are in Central and Eastern Visayas, with 90 percent of the subscribers coming from Cebu.

The company is also rolling out Wimax sites in Bohol and Leyte.

Globe’s capital expenditure (capex) of P24.7 billion last year was 21 percent higher than the 2008 capex of P20.4 billion.

This included carry-over spending related to the company’s participation in the TGN-IA international cable system, FOBN2 or Globe’s second fiber optic backbone network, domestic transmission loops, as well as the expansion and upgrades of its broadband and mobile services.

Last year, it increased its base stations by 22 percent to 10,333 and cell sites by seven percent to 6,226 to support its 2G, 3G and Wimax services.

This year, Globe is allocating $500 million (about P23 billion) in capital expenditures, of which $170 million is intended for the mobile telephony business and $230 million for the broadband business.

The 2010 capex also includes about $50 million for the company’s fixed-line data networks that primarily cater to the corporate and enterprise sector.