Globe: Acquisition of Bayan key to becoming more competitive

MANILA, Philippines - Globe Telecom Inc., a joint venture between conglomerate Ayala Corp. and Singapore Telecommunications, said yesterday the takeover of cash-strapped Bayan Telecommunications Inc. (Bayan) from the Lopez Group is key to becoming a formidable player in the telecom industry.

Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu said in a statement that moves to acquire equity interest in Bayan would position the company for a strong performance this year.

Globe successfully completed a tender offer acquiring over 96 percent of all existing and outstanding debt of Bayan and its subsidiary RCPI last December.

It also announced that it had commenced separate discussions with controlling shareholders of Bayan which includes Globe’s plans to potentially acquire an equity interest in company under rehabilitation.

The Lopez-owned telco provider continued to improve its financial bottom line as it recently disclosed an eight percent increase in core revenues to P5.22 billion last year on the back of a substantial growth in data and voice businesses.

As a strategic initiative to ensure long-term business competitiveness, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has given Globe and Bayan the greenlight to jointly use the frequencies in the 1800 MHz band assigned to Bayan.

This would help Globe address the increasing demand for voice, short message and mobile data services.

Globe is set to complete its $700-million network modernization and transformation program in the first quarter of the year.

Cu reported that the first phase of the network upgrade is on track with an 88- percent completion in various cell sites all over the country. “Significant quality improvements are already being realized across all regions as well as business districts. We’re working to deliver a superior customer experience to our subscribers,” he stressed.

Globe also plans to join the bid for 3G spectrum of Connectivity Unlimited Resources Inc. (CURE) that was surrendered by dominant carrier Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) as a prerequisite for the approval of the P69.2-billion deal to acquire Digital Telecommunications of the Philippines Inc. (Digitel) in 2011.

 â€œOur ongoing network transformation program, coupled with the Bayan tender offer and our intention to bid for the 10MHz 3G frequency held by CURE, give us more than enough prospects to remain a formidable player in an increasingly competitive environment,” Cu stressed.