Just a Touch (Mobile) away

It was a hot and sunny Saturday last Sept. 21 when Touch Mobile took its Mall Blitz to Pampanga in celebration of its first year anniversary.

"Pampagana sa Pampanga" was Touch Mobile’s event for the day and if we were to judge by the number of people who showed up for the press briefing that Saturday noon, it was indeed an appetizing feast Touch Mobile had in store for Pampanguenos.

The event began with the ceremonial firing up of the cell site in Sta. Ana, Pampanga at 10 a.m., and yes, Aga and Charlene Muhlach, the endorsers of Touch Mobile, were there to share the happy occasion with the Pampanga folk. So, too were San Fernando Mayor Rey Aquino, Vice-Mayor Tiger Lagman, and Congressman Oca Rodriguez.

Of course, Ana Singson, vice-president for Touch Mobile, was there with other representatives from the National Telecommunications Commission, Touch Mobile business partners and Globe Telecom executives.

And although the variety show was scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at SM in San Fernando, Arnel Ignacio, Geneva Cruz and John Prats who hosted the show joined us at the noontime press briefing.

Touch Mobile, which is Globe Telecom’s prepaid GSM service, is looking to strengthen its hold in the northern Luzon area. And it could not have been more fitting to kick off this effort by launching a new cell sites in Pampanga.

"Based on our research, eight percent of Pampanguenos use cell phones and the number is growing because of northern Luzon’s large population. The new cell cites will enable us to meet their communication needs," said Singson during the groundbreaking ceremony.

The launch of the cell site is actually part of a series of regional marketing efforts, which should complement Touch Mobile’s network and service expansion in Northern Luzon. To date, Touch Mobile has a total of 42 cell sites in Pampanga alone and 2,238 cell sites in the country.

It is Touch Mobile’s affordability that has made it a hit among many of today’s cell phone users. "Touch Mobile is cheaper and more affordable, with only P6.50 per minute for all local and cell-to-cell calls," Singson added.

In this battle of cell phone service providers, Touch Mobile has services which are unique to it and which have made it touch the Filipino family’s heart.

There is the voice messaging service which allows the user to send a creative sound icon to another mobile subscriber, whether the recipient of the sound icon is a Touch mobile subscriber or not. They also have Voice Info service, an information-on-demand service where you can get the latest updates on news, weather, traffic, showbiz gossip, and horoscope.

‘Nuff said.

We proceeded to SM San Fernando for the variety show which was our last stop for the day.

As I sat and watched the show, I couldn’t help but remember my favorite Touch Mobile ad on TV. I guess it was because of the many fathers, mothers, teenagers and kids who gathered to watch the show.

Surely, you must have seen this one. The ad with the little girl whose father has to leave for the province to work. The dad hates to leave his daughter but he makes sure that he keeps in touch with her either through texting, sending her sound icons or calling her up. "Si Daddy na naman" is the last line that the daughter utters before she falls off to sleep after she gets a good night text from her dad.

At the end of the day, perhaps that’s what has made the cell phone such an indispensable tool for many Filipinos – its ability to keep families together no matter where they may be. The best part is that cell phone providers like Touch Mobile have made staying in touch very affordable.