Smart strengthens broadband service

MANILA, Philippines - Wireless giant Smart Communications Inc. has strengthened its mobile broadband service foothold after parent firm Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) completed the P400-million submarine fiber optic cables providing critical resiliency for its network in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Rolando Peña, Technology Group head at Smart and PLDT, said the newly completed 150-kilometer undersea fiber links are expected to enhance Smart’s high-speed mobile broadband in Southern Philippines with expanded capacity for high-bandwidth services.

 â€œSmart is further expanding its network of reliable and high-speed mobile broadband sites around the country to meet the skyrocketing demand for mobile data from our users,” Peña said.

He pointed out that the submarine cable runs from Mactan in Cebu to Loon in Bohol and from Garcia Hernandez in Bohol to Kinoguitan in Cagayan de Oro.

“With the proliferation of smartphones and the popularity of online services, we are seeing even more of our subscribers making the shift to data. With this growing demand, a resilient and reliable network is required to maintain a seamless mobile broadband experience,” he added.

The new fiber-optic facilities, the first time for Bohol province to have such high-speed data infrastructure, would also complement the rollout of Smart’s ultra-fast mobile long term evolution (LTE) service in Visayas and Mindanao allowing subscribers to experience firsthand up to 42 Mbps of broadband internet.

With a high-speed LTE connection, subscribers could experience tomorrow’s Internet through high-definition video streaming, low-latency file transfers, and seamless access to online services on their phones, tablets and laptops even while on the go.

Peña added that at least 16 towns in Bohol are expected to benefit from the expanded fiber footprint, including the towns of Tagbilaran and Panglao, aside from countless others in Southern Philippines.

Smart and PLDT public affairs head Ramon Isberto, for his part, said the recent development presents an opportunity for Smart strengthen its infrastructure in the region, especially those affected by the recent earthquake in Bohol and by the onslaught of super typhoon Yolanda in Central Visayas.

“As we see Bohol, Cebu, Leyte and other provinces rise from the ashes of the twin disasters that hit the region last year, Smart is also reinforcing its mobile network in these areas to ensure continuity of service especially in critical times of natural disasters,” Isberto explained.

The undersea fiber cable that runs through Bohol is the third of such kind that connects Visayas and Mindanao, which means subscribers can expect even more reliable service from Smart with a two-link resiliency backup running in the area.

Smart has been aggressively pushing its high-speed mobile broadband services around the country with the continuous rollout of 4G-capable (HSPA+/Wimax, LTE and LTE-Advanced) sites nationwide, which now number to about 10,000 sites.

Smart’s robust mobile network is backed by four times more fiber power-a total of 78,000 kilometers of fiber footprint allowing the company to offer the best and most reliable high-speed mobile broadband service to subscribers nationwide.