FRESH from the special briefing and update about the Globe network after the Bayanihan Act 2 and Arta JMC have been implemented, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque acknowledged the efforts of Globe and the telco industry in improving services to the Filipino people.
Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu said the company has made tremendous strides in its bid to improve its network and internet services. Cu reported that Globe has secured 1,857 permits enabling it to install 1,050 new towers plus an additional 250 towers by the end of 2020. Globe also made 10,876 site upgrades to 4G/LTE. With increased demand for better home connectivity, Globe is looking to roll out 600,000 broadband lines by the end of the year.
“These expansion efforts have resulted in improvements in calls texts and data services of our customers in 1,098 cities and municipalities in 80 provinces all over the country. Our 5G technology will soon cover 80 percent of NCR by 2020," explained Cu.
Likewise, NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba also acknowledged the improvements made by the telco industry. Citing the November 2020 report by Ookla, an independent analytics company, the country's average download speed is at 28.69Mbps on fixed broadband and 18.49Mbps on mobile. The NTC also reported the 590 percent increase in permits that Globe secured since July.
While Cordoba was quick to assure the public that improvements are happening, he added that the increased competition in the industry will be beneficial to consumers starting the first quarter of 2021. Cordoba also emphasized the need for the national government to spend on ICT infrastructure in order to fast-track service improvements.
“In most countries in Asia, governments are spending billions of dollars for their ICT infrastructure. Telcos merely lease from the government, unlike in the Philippines where all telco infrastructure are privately owned. In all countries with high speed internet, there is substantial government spending for their infrastructure,” Cordoba said. The NTC Commissioner gave several examples of Asian countries including South Korea which spent $24 billion, Vietnam $820 million, Thailand $343 million and China $289 billion, all of which are government-funded.
Secretary Roque ended the briefing asking the telco industry to provide world-class services to Filipino consumers.
Globe communicated its ambition to work towards a #FirstWorldNetwork, an aspiration that was shared by the NTC during the briefing.
Globe supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, specifically UN SDG No. 9 which emphasizes the roles of infrastructure and innovation as crucial drivers of economic growth and development. Globe is committed to upholding the 10 United Nations Global Compact principles and 10 UN SDGs. SPONSORED CONTENT