Globe among telcos with highest investment in network infrastructure

MANILA, Philippines – Ayala-led Globe Telecom Inc. is among the telecommunications companies with the highest investments on network infrastructure in the region to provide enhanced services to subscribers.

In a statement, Globe said it posted one of the highest capex-to-revenue ratio in the last two years, indicating its strong commitment to upgrade and enhance its network infrastructure.

The telco had a capex-to-revenue ratio of 28 percent last year and 27 percent in 2014, higher than the 23 percent average in the local industry.

Among the region, China was the only country which beat Globe’s performance as it had a capex-to-revenue ratio of 36 percent in 2015 and 33 percent in 2014.

Other economies in Asia registered lower ratios in 2015 and 2014 with Singapore at 26 percent and 22 percent; Indonesia with 24 percent and 26 percent; Thailand with 23 percent and 21 percent; India with 17 percent and 16 percent; Taiwan with 14 percent and 16 percent; Hong Kong with 13 percent and 14 percent; and Malaysia with 13 percent and 12 percent.

“Over the past several years, we have invested in our network to enable our customers to enjoy their digital lifestyle and empower businesses with digital capabilities, enhance their productivity and make them globally competitive,” Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu said.

He said the move is meant to enhance the Internet experience of the subscribers and make information communications technology (ICT) a major development contributor in the Philippines.

In 2014, Globe completed its $700 million network modernization program which it started to implement in 2011, to adopt the latest telecommunication technologies for seamless customer experience and increased data capacities.

Last year, Globe also entered into a five-year agreement with Huawei Technologies to further enhance and expand the provider’s mobile network.

The partnership with Huawei involves planning and design of a mobile broadband network utilizing latest state of the art technology trends and creation of a mobile innovation center to come up with products and solutions to enable Globe to address the needs of subscribers.

Aside from investments to upgrade its network infrastructure, Globe has also been active in pushing for measures promoting improvement in services.

The company is urging the government to approve an Open Access Law for the telecommunications industry to help mitigate bureaucratic red tape and other political hurdles that stand in the way in the deployment of telecommunication and broadband infrastructure.

Cu said the rationalization of permitting processes to deploy ICT-related infrastructure is needed for better Internet services.

Globe is also calling for the equitable distribution of the 700 Megahertz (MHz) frequency spectrum which enables mobile operators to reduce capital and network costs while accelerating the rollout of services at lower prices, so service providers can address the rapidly increasing data traffic amid growing smartphone use in the country.

A large chunk of the 700 MHz is currently assigned to San Miguel Corp. through wi-Tribe Telecoms Inc.’s 80 Mhz and High Frequency Telecommunications Inc.’s 10 Mhz, while the 10 Mhz balance is assigned to New Century Telecommunications.