Globe upgrades 4G LTE infra in VisMin areas

Ayala-led Globe Telecom Inc. has disclosed that it is upgrading its 4G LTE infrastructure in several cities in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Globe said on Monday that upgrades provide better connectivity to customers in the region because of faster and more advanced technologies.

Globe replaces its old 3G equipment with 5G-ready 4G LTE infrastructure in the cities of Bacolod, Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu in the Visayas, and Davao and Cagayan de Oro in Mindanao.

“We want our customers to make the most of the opportunities that are now available to them through better connectivity,” Globe SVP for program development Joel Agustin said.

According to him, Globe is aggressively pushing to migrate millions of subscribers still using the outdated 3G network technology that “drags down” the company’s network expansion and modernization plans.

Just recently, Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu has disclosed that over 45 million users are still “using 3G sims or using a 4G sim but using 3G devices.” Globe had ceased production of 3G sim cards last year.

“One cannot have a meaningful data experience in 3G phone and having that many 3G users drag down the speed of the network. There’s an ongoing campaign to move to 4G so that people can enjoy their smartphones,” Cu told reporters.

However, in its 2021 Outlook for AsiaPacific Telecoms, credit rating firm Fitch Ratings noted that the rollout of newer technology is seen pacing slower despite massive investments.

We want our customers to make the most of the opportunities that are now available to them through better connectivity.

Fitch pointed out that the extent of network rollouts will primarily depend on the affordability of capable devices.

In the Philippines, subscribers may have difficulty switching to 4G and 5G devices due to the economic slump brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.