Globe secured a total of 1,857 permits this year that allowed it build more sites and complete more upgrades to 4G/LTE to improve its services even in the middle of a pandemic.
In a statement, the telco said that with more permits, it was able to build 1,050 new sites to date, well on its way to complete its target to build 1,300 new cell sites by the end of the year, with matching 10,876 upgrades to the more powerful 4G/LTE platform.
In building the new sites, prioritized were areas that needed connectivity the most, including Lanao del Sur, Sultan Kudarat, Antique, Iloilo, Leyte, Palawan, Aklan, Maguindanao, Cotabato, Misamis Oriental, and Davao del Oro.
Aside from improving its mobile services, Globe will build 600K broadband lines by the end of 2020, which is 55 percent more than what it accomplished last year, primarily due to the increased internet usage at home for learning, business, and work as an after effect of the pandemic. By making Fiber To The Home (FTTH) more pervasive, this allowed the country to catch up with its neighbors in terms of speed and total quality of connectivity.
The rollout of 5G is also on track, the statement said, where Globe now has 708 sites to make 5G connectivity available in 17 key cities in Metro Manila, Visayas and Mindanao. They expect to cover 80 percent of Metro Manila with 5G technology by the end of the year, the statement added.
The telco likewise thanked the support of the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, and the Joint Memorandum Circular 01 of the ARTA, DILG and other concerned agencies.
Globe also noted that the network upgrades of existing sites to 4G LTE resulted in improvements to its calls, texts and data services, coupled with positive customer feedback from over 1,098 cities, municipalities and 80 provinces, including Lucban, Quezon; Lobo, Batangas; Jolo, Sulu; Guinobatan, Albay; Limay, Bataan; Antipolo and Cainta in Rizal; Lapu-Lapu, Cebu; Legazpi City, Albay; Angeles City, Pampanga; Malolos City, Bulacan; Pontevedra, Capiz, Sta. Rosa City, Laguna; Quezon City, Valenzuela City, Paranaque City, Las Pinas City, Manila in Metro Manila; Ormoc City, Leyte; and San Francisco, Agusan Del Sur.
Several LGUs have likewise expressed the importance of connectivity in their areas. Some of these partner LGUs including those in remote areas, like Liloan in Cebu and Oriental Mindoro. Globe was the first to answer the call for connectivity in Liloan.
“It’s high time we bring development to the high mountainous parts of Liloan, which is one of the most beautiful and very rich in resources here in our town. Let’s bring equal opportunity to them, the same opportunities our lowland barangays enjoy,” Liloan Mayor Christina Frasco said.
Oriental Mindoro Governor Humerlito “Bonz” Dolor also extolled the cellsite erected in his area. “Because of the COVID19 pandemic, kinailangan ng probinsiya ngayon na mag adjust sa bagong normal, karamihan sa mga transaction ngayon ay ginagamitan ng online. Karamihan ng mga ginagawa natin ngayon ay through internet. Nung wala pa internet na ganun kaayos, putul-putol kailangan nakaganun sa bintana, kailangan naghahanap ka ng signal sa kabi-kabila. Pero ngayon with the very good signal that we are now starting to experience, kailangan natin ito,” Dolor explained.
Globe’s performance improvements also merited the attention of independent global analytics firms including UK-based Opensignal and Ookla.
Opensignal awarded the telco with the Global Rising Star Award for Most Improved Video Experience, based on user data covering the first half of 2019 vs. the first half of 2020, with an improvement score of 32.7 percent, which signifies impressive gains with the worldwide average at 14 percent. Other awards received by Globe include Best Voice App Experience, and Joint Winner in Games Experience.
Ookla® also verified that Globe has the most consistent 4G network in 13 out of 17 regions based on Q3 2020 data. These regions include Bicol, Cagayan Valley, Calabarzon, Caraga, Central Luzon, Central Visayas, Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Eastern Visayas, Ilocos Region, MIMAROPA, Northern Mindanao, Region 12 (SOCCSKSARGEN), and the Zamboanga Peninsula.
These service improvements were spurred by Globe’s increased investments for capex to upgrade the network. This was reported in the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2020 where the Philippines ranked top 10 globally in terms of telco investments. Over the last 6 years, Globe has invested P255.70 billion in capex.
In terms of internet pricing and affordability, relative to other countries in Asia, the cost of mobile prepaid internet access in the Philippines remains to be among the most affordable at Php11.25 per GB versus Thailand (with a comparable cost of Php190.59), Singapore (Php35.60) and Indonesia (Php32.76)[1]. More importantly, Globe’s Prepaid promos have bigger data allocations that can be used in all websites and apps. Similarly, the price of Globe Prepaid Broadband is now at Php 9 per gigabyte. With the reduced price of mobile broadband, it is expected that the country’s cost of internet as a percent of GNI per capita will be much lower than the global average. This benefits the Philippine market even more which is about 97% prepaid. Altogether, access to the internet by Filipinos has never been more affordable and pervasive as it is now.
“With the country’s improving state of overall internet service in terms of speed, affordability, and access to a more advanced 4G and 5G technology, coupled with the strengthened support from the government, we are optimistic that the country’s state of connectivity is well on its way to be at par with our Asian neighbors,” said Ernest Cu, Globe President and CEO.
Globe further added that being a strong advocate of quality education, it is doing its part to help the government implement online learning easier through multiple partnerships with both the public and private education institutions, such as the Department of Education (DepEd) for the Global Filipino Teachers program, the Globe eLibrary that is accessible for K-12 students with no data charges, donation of 1,000 Globe At Home Prepaid WiFi modems under the WiFi2Teach Program to provide connectivity to select public school teachers, support to DepEd’s Sulong Edukalidad program and its 6,000 teacher from 146 public schools nationwide, the provision of 11,000 LTE pocket mobile WiFi devices and free connectivity to the City of Manila’s public school teachers via BatangMaynilaSurf plans, providing strong connectivity, donating pre-owned laptops to disadvantaged public school teachers in the provinces who have no access to a computer, and assisting schools with prepaid WiFi kits with affordable packages and customizable suite of apps to aid in the learning process, among others.
By 2021, Globe’s ambition is to provide customers with 4G/LTE services everywhere and 5G where it matters. By making 4G/LTE the new mobile standard for the Philippines, more customers will experience better data and faster internet speed anywhere they are. Globe is ramping up investments, targeting more than 2.5x the number of fiber to homes in 2020. For mobile, the telco will build 2,000 sites including in-building solutions (IBS), partnerships with independent tower companies and new cell sites, with the vision of making the country a #FirstWorldNetwork by 2021.