Smart named best mobile network in Central Visayas

SMART Communications Inc. (Smart) dominates in Central Visayas, sweeping all categories in the latest Philippines Mobile Network Experience Awards[1] by independent mobile analytics firm Opensignal.

The report, which covers the period Jan. 1 to March 31, 2021, showed Smart beating the competition across all metrics in three essential aspects of service: Coverage (4G Coverage Experience, 4G Availability), Speed (Download and Upload Speed) and Experience (Games, Video and Voice app).

"In this latest report and analysis, we analyzed 17 regions in the Philippines, and Smart was a winner in every award, in every category, in every one of the regions, which is truly outstanding, and demonstrates a lot of progress in that very unique and challenging year that we've been facing," said Andy Burns, Opensignal chief operating officer.

"Smart’s clean sweep on the national level is largely reflected in the regional results. Smart racked up a remarkable 91 outright wins out of a possible 102 awards across 17 regions," said Sam Fenwick, Opensignal senior analyst. Opensignal also noted that this is the first time an operator in the Philippines won decisively in all categories on the national level.

Best Experience in Central Visayas

In Central Visayas, Smart is the clear winner in Video Experience (61.2 points), Download Speed Experience (13.2 Mbps), Games Experience (43.9 points), Upload Speed Experience (3.5 Mbps), Voice App Experience (73.2 points) and 4G Availability (86.4 percent).

"Apart from the fact that we have been able to strengthen our brand equity via our Fastest Data Network proposition, what's even more important is that we are able to substantiate the claim with better experiences for our customers. We do a lot of data innovation, but those data innovations will only make sense if they are enabled by a powerful network and a better experience," said Jane Basas, Smart senior vice president and head of Consumer Wireless Business. "The work continues for us as we strive to deliver the best mobile data experience for our customers in Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental and Siquijor," Basas added.

Connectivity for Mental Health

For the mother-and-son tandem of Dr. Jorge Mario “Jomar” Oñate Jr. and Dr. Pureza “Purie” Oñate, who lead the Telepsychiatric Consultation initiatives at Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City, quality connectivity and mobile services are vital to their efforts toward destigmatizing psychiatric illness in the country and making psychiatric services more accessible, especially in the pandemic. Smart has supported their initiative in time for Mental Health Awareness Month by providing load for the mobile numbers involved in psychiatric consultations.

While face-to-face consultations are still discouraged to curb the spread of Covid-19, Dr Jomar said teleconsultation using Smart's mobile network provides their patients a necessary lifeline. “Through this, we are able to expand our reach to more people who are undergoing mental health problems, especially those triggered because of the pandemic," Dr Jomar said.

"We want to help them remotely through teleconsultations while face-to-face consultations are still discouraged. With this, we can reach out to them so we can make them feel better. We want to make sure that mental health is also given importance and should be acknowledged that it is a real and present problem,” says Dr. Jomar.

This is aligned with Smart's "Live Smarter for a Better World" campaign, which emphasizes how big and small efforts by individuals can contribute to generating lasting positive impact to society, highlighting the importance of Smart's network and long-running community partnership and corporate social responsibility programs in keeping Filipinos connected and empowered.

Supporting various passion points with ‘Double Giga’

To enable subscribers to enjoy more of their favorite online activities, Smart recently launched “Double Giga,” which offers twice the data for their passion apps.

For example, Double Giga Video 99 now comes with 2 GB per day for streaming on YouTube, Cignal Play, iWantTFC and NBA League Pass—plus 2 GB open access data for P99 valid for seven days.

Subscribers can also avail of Double Giga Stories for more sharing on social media; Double Giga Study and Double Giga Work for more online productivity; and Double Giga Games to enjoy more of today's top mobile games. Customers can register to Double Giga via the GigaLife App or by dialing *123#.

[1] Opensignal Awards-Philippines: Mobile Network Experience Report April 2021, based on independent analysis of mobile measurements recorded during the period Jan. 1 to March 31, 2021 © 2021 Opensignal Limited. SPONSORED CONTENT