Operator plans LTE-A deployment, $600M investment in Philippines
Philippine operator Globe Telecom expects to more than double its current base of 4G LTE subscribers by the end of the year, Joel Agustin, Globe Telecom SVP and head of the service management division in the network technical group, told RCR Wireless News.
The executive said that Globe currently has more than 2 million customers using LTE technology.
Globe Telecom had approximately 46.1 million subscribers in the mobile telephony segment by the end of the first quarter of 2015, according to the company’s latest quarterly results. The telco had initially launched its LTE network in September 2012 through spectrum in the 1,800 MHz band.
Globe Telecom expects to invest nearly $600 million during 2015, mainly for the expansion of its broadband capacity and coverage. According to Agustin, part of the investment will be used for the deployment of a nationwide TDD-LTE network to support its fixed-broadband wireless business, mainly in areas where the deployment of fixed broadband is difficult or not cost-efficient.
Globe has already deployed approximately 1,300 LTE-FDD sites nationwide and has recently activated 1,000 TDD-LTE sites, the executive said.
“The telco recently disclosed that the growing expansion of its LTE coverage will enhance and strengthen its mobile data service in major metropolitan areas such as Manila, Cebu, Davao and other key cities as well as tourist destinations in the Philippines,” Agustin added.
The operator completed trials of LTE-Advanced late last year and is currently planning the deployment of the technology before the end of 2015.
“We will start with the deployments in the central business districts, in metropolitan Manila and in areas where the demand for bandwidth can benefit from LTE-Advanced,” Agustin said. “This includes the deployment of LTE broadcast or eMBMS [multimedia broadcast multicast service] in two major CBDs toward the fourth quarter of 2015.”
The other two mobile operators in the country are Smart Communications and Sun Cellular, both owned by telecommunications group PLDT.
