FIBER broadband and technology provider Converge ICT Solutions Inc. is eyeing to enhance the delivery of its full suite of fiber internet services on the back of heightened demand for fiber connectivity.
The listed company registered net additional residential subscribers of 284,000 for its fiber plans last year, “the biggest fiber net adds in the industry during the period” and 32 percent higher compared to its year-ago level.
“In 2023, we have consistently upheld momentum for our newly launched products Surf2Sawa (S2S) and Bida Fiber, supported by the consistent growth in our flagship brand FiberX, especially in the fourth quarter,” said Converge chief executive officer and co-founder Dennis Anthony Uy.
In the fourth quarter of 2023, prepaid fiber internet S2S and the affordable postpaid plan Bida Fiber both saw a record increase in new subscribers. This pushed the total subscriber count to almost 175,000 by the end of 2023, surpassing the company’s target of 120,000 subscribers for these products.
The flagship FiberX brand sustained its strong growth with total subscribers now reaching 1.8 million. As a token of appreciation to Converge customers, a promotional speed boost to 300Mbps for the base plan of P1,500 was given to FiberX subscribers recently.
With this strong performance, Converge gained almost 80,000 new subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2023, accounting for 31.8 percent of its total new subscribers for the year.
“This year, we are looking to enhance the delivery of our full suite of fiber internet services by expanding our sales partner network and employing various strategies to reach our customers more effectively,” Converge executive vice president and chief commercial officer Benjamin Azada said.
By the end of December 2023, Converge had over 2.1 million subscribers, with over two million being postpaid and over 114,000 being prepaid.
Converge ended 2023 on a steady growth trajectory as its consolidated revenues hit P35.4 billion, up by five percent year-on-year.
Its net income rose by 22 percent to reach P9 billion on the back of strong demand for its fiber internet services.
The company said it is looking at increasing its total revenues by seven percent to eight percent this year.
It is also earmarking P17 billion to P19 billion in capital expenditure this year, of which a portion of the budget will go to the company’s international subsea cable projects—Bifrost Cable System and the South-East Asia Hainan-Hong Kong Express Cable System (SEA-H2X)—which are set to go live this year.
“At Converge, we hold ourselves to a high standard when it comes to providing exceptional service. We always strive to stay ahead of the game by continuously innovating and presenting new solutions for the changing needs of customers. We want to ensure our customers can always depend on us for an unparalleled and amazing internet experience,” said Converge senior executive vice president and chief operations officer Jesus Romero.
The 15,000-kilometer Bifrost cable system is a new trans-Pacific cable system connecting Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines, to the West Coast of North America.
The SEA-H2X is a 5,000-kilometer submarine cable system that will be online by 2024. SEA-H2X will connect Hong Kong SAR China, Hainan China, Philippines, Thailand, East Malaysia and Singapore.
Submarine cables and their connections to terrestrial networks enable real-time access to business and consumer applications, social media, streaming video, websites, and many other bandwidth-intensive services. / KOC