Globe scores highest in LTE availability

MANILA, Philippines -  Globe Telecom Inc. scored the highest in terms of Long Term Evolution (LTE) availability in the country, the telco said.

“Our strategy to immediately use the dormant LTE spectrum from SMC is paying off.  Now more Globe customers especially here in National Capital Region (NCR) are experiencing the difference of a better and more seamless mobile internet from one area to another,” Joel Agustin, Globe senior vice president for program governance network technical group, said in a statement.

The latest report of OpenSignal, a company based in the United Kingdom specializing in crowdsourced mobile coverage mapping, showed Globe had the highest score of 55.3 percent in terms of LTE availability in the country, based on data gathered from Nov. 1, 2016 until Jan. 31, of this year.

Globe’s LTE availability nationwide had speeds of 7.42 Mbps, an improvement from 4 Mbps in February last year.

Agustin said Globe is deploying over 1,200 LTE sites with the 700 megahertz (MHz) spectrum and around 2,500 sites for both the 1800 MHz and 2600 MHz bands this year.

Globe is spending 70 percent of its $750 million capex this year to improve mobile, home broadband and corporate data.

“We need to continue deploying more LTE sites to fulfill the evolving digital lifestyle of our customers using our mobile network,” Agustin said.

Globe customers grew 12 percent, while data traffic reached 361 petabytes last year, an increase of 44 percent compared to 2015.

“Globe customers are now experiencing the benefit of a wider LTE coverage with the use of the 700 MHz and 2600 MHz frequencies.  Our plan to roll out more LTE sites this year is in line with our desire to make the nation admired through expanded coverage, enhanced capacities and improved overall internet experience of our customers,” Agustin said.

Last year, Globe rolled out 1,700 LTE sites including 500 sites for the 700 MHz band and 1,200 for the 2600 MHz band.

The deployments last year allowed Globe to achieve 38 percent of its commitment with the National Telecommunications Commission to use the spectrum in 4,500 sites following its purchase of half of the telco assets of San Miguel Corp.