PLDT’s broadband subscriber base tops 4 M

The broadband subscriber base of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) topped the four million level last year amid the sustained expansion of the number of fixed and wireless broadband subscribers.

Orlando Vea, chief wireless adviser of PLDT’s Smart Communications Inc., traced the 19- percent increase in broadband subscribers to 4.07 million last year from 3.41 million in 2013 to the Free Internet promo launched by the PLDT Group last Sept. 26.

“We have seen a significant jump in our wireless broadband subscrib- ers following the Free Internet offer in the last quarter of 2014. This is part of the suite of services under our Internet for All advocacy which is expanding rapidly,” Vea said.

PLDT reported that its fixed broadband subscribers went up by 13.2 percent to 1.1 million last year from 962,000, cornering a market share of over 70 percent while its wireless broadband subscribers rose 21.6 percent to reach 2.98 million from 2.45 million for a 56-percent market share.

The broadband subscribers of Smart surged 21 percent to 2.3 million from 1.91 million while that of Sun Cellular rose 24 percent to over 676,000 from 545,000.

The PLDT Group including PLDT ALPHA Enterprise, PLDT SME Nation, and PLDT HOME as well as Smart and Sun Cellular cornered almost 60 percent of total broadband subscribers in the country.

PLDT president and chief executive officer Napoleon Nazareno said the company is able to offer a variety of broadband plans available at different price points depending on the speed and volume needed by the customer because of its formidable integrated network.

“We are pleased to see that the PLDT Group remains the preferred broadband provider in the country, whether among corporates, at home, or on the go, as we continuously strive to bring the most innovative products and services to our subscribers that allow them to live connected,” he said.

Nazareo pointed out that the PLDT Group is spending P39 billion for its capital expenditures this year in anticipation of greater data usage.

Last year, PLDT spent P34.8 billion to expand its fiber network to nearly 100,000 kilometers, making it the most extensive, robust and resilient network in the country.

Such network is needed for reliable broadband services that can simultaneously deliver voice, video, and data offerings at faster speeds and larger capacities through various devices from computers, tablets, and cellphones, to television sets.