ALL INSIGHT
of the required documents.
Sear Telecom is a consortium of Chavit Singson’s LCS Group and internet provider Tier One Communications. According to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), Sear Telecom lacked a participation security document. Meanwhile, PT&T was declared
The third major telco player is required to provide 5G services to selected areas and ultimately to the whole coun-
What are these Gs?
G stands for generation. It pertains to the generation that a mobile network technology was developed. The first generation of wireless telecommunication technology was introduced in 1980. It was based on analog transmission techniques which were basically used for transmitting voice signals. This was retroactively labeled 1G when 2G technology was introduced 10 years later.
The 2G system is a network protocol that only allowed the most basic of what we would now call smartphone functionality. Most 2G networks handled phone calls, basic text messaging, and small amounts of data over a protocol called MMS (techopedia.com).
When 3G networks started rolling out, they replaced the 2G system. With the introduction of 3G connectivity, a number of larger data formats became much more accessible, including standard web pages, videos and music.
4G is the fourth generation of mobile
sector of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU-R). This standard was set in 2008 which requires that connection speeds for mobile use need to have a peak of at least 100 megabits per second, and for more stationary uses such as mobile hot spots, at least 1 gigabit per second. LTE stands for “long-term evolution” and applies more generally to the idea of improving wireless broadband speeds to meet increasing demand. This is the path that was followed to attain 4G speeds. Thus, the term 4G is used interchangeably, or in conjunct, with LTE.
5G is the term used to describe the next-generation of mobile networks beyond the 4G LTE mobile networks of today. It is assumed that 5G networks will not become commercially available until the 2020 timeframe (sdxcentral.com).
Towards a digital future
On the same day that Mislatel was “crowned” third major telco player, the Carlos P. Romulo Foundation, in collaboration with PLDT, sponsored “Towards A Digital Future,” an exclusive by-invitation-only conference. The primary aim of the conference was to “contribute to bringing forward ongoing conversations towards a blueprint for a digital future for the Philippines.”
The keynote speaker was the secretary of the Department of Science and Technology (DoST), Fortunato “Boy” T. de la Peña. Secretary Boy made a rather lengthy discussion of the DoST’s thrust for 2017 to 2022. He said that rapid technological development was disrupting the business models at an accelerated pace. The question is: Is the Philippines ready? I requested from him a copy of his presentation materials and he obliged. However, due to the limited space in this column, I will not be able to discuss it in detail.
The presentation of Mary Grace Mirandilla-Santos (lead convenor, Better Broadband Alliance), through video, was revealing.
speeds is the fourth slowest in the world. And, the Philippines has the poorest mobile video experience.
The need for 5G
I agree with the conference’s speakers that our lives “are becoming increasingly digital as information and communication technologies become increasingly pervasive in all aspects of human existence.” Mobile technologies, particularly the Internet of Things should be made, not only more affordable and accessible, but
Unless we have 5G in place, the Philippines will continue to lag behind its neighbors. To date, the country has no smart cities to boast of. Smart cities need a robust digital infrastructure to enable all their applications (e.g. health, educa-
connected. Four Asian cities even landed in the top 10 smart cities of the world.
Will any city in the Philippines be included in the list of smart cities in the
who have excluded digital technologydriven disruptors in their policymaking, whether by design or sheer ignorance, we can never attain smart-city status.
Having a fast, secure, and affordable 5G network technology available to everyone is a good start. Can the third telco live up to its promise of provid-
telephony, internet connectivity and seamless application integration for a fully connected Philippines? Or will it be just another player in the oligopoly?