Telcos back Marcos’ push to expand internet access

MANILA, Philippines — The largest Philippine telcos have thrown their support behind President Marcos in his campaign to connect as many Filipinos as possible to the internet, promising to pursue projects that would improve connectivity across the archipelago.

PLDT chairman, president and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan yesterday pledged his support for the President’s call to bridge the digital gap by building up telco assets, especially in remote areas.

“We at PLDT Group support the President’s vision for a digitally empowered Philippines, where technology uplifts Filipinos’ lives, helps foster meaningful connections, enables livelihoods and businesses of all sizes, transforms government service and ultimately drives economic progress,” he said.

Pangilinan said PLDT is linking the Philippines to multiple submarine cables such as the $80 million Apricot Cable System and the $75 million Asia Direct Cable. These projects seek to speed up the flow of data exchange between countries.

PLDT recently finished construction for VITRO Sta. Rosa, its 11th and biggest data center, gaining an additional 50 megawatts in capacity. PLDT is building data centers where tech giants like Amazon, Google and Meta can store applications and information, bringing in investments.

Wireless leader Smart Communications Inc., a unit of PLDT, is reducing the cost of switching to 5G by teaming up with banks for financing options in acquiring 5G handsets.

When compared, 5G offers subscribers faster speeds and lower latency than 4G, allowing them to open websites quicker, run apps smoother, among others.

Meanwhile, Globe Telecom Inc. president and CEO Ernest Cu said the telco is trying to reach as many geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDA) as possible in pursuit of universal access.

To date, Cu said Globe has covered more than 500 GIDAs across the Philippines. On top of this, the telco has penetrated the low-cost segment through GFiber Prepaid, its budget product with no monthly bills and no lock-up period.

However, Cu said more reforms have to be pursued to improve internet quality in the Philippines. For one, Globe wants lawmakers to amend the National Building Code of the Philippines to provide automatic allocation of space for telco assets in real estate projects

The President, in his third State of the Nation Address, called for public and private collaboration to broaden internet availability around the country.

Marcos deplored that the internet penetration as of 2022 of 77 percent, translating to about 20.6 million families, is “much too low,” promising telcos that the government will adjust policies and rework processes to support connectivity projects.