Globe banking on mobile Internet to sustain growth momentum

MANILA, Philippines - With the rapid penetration of social media and availability of more affordable smartphones, Globe Telecom said it is banking on its mobile data business to sustain momentum after the segment posted substantial growth in revenues in the third quarter of 2011.

As of end-September this year, the company’s mobile browsing revenues rose to over P1.4 billion, a 64 percent increase from last year’s levels on the back of the company’s strong portfolio of new services that promote the use of mobile internet for social networking, search engine, e-mail services as well as entertainment through the use of mobile applications or apps.

Opening up its mobile data services to a wider market, Globe launched the widest range of mobile Internet plans available for every need or lifestyle. Both its PowerSurf and SuperSurf packages offer different variants depending on amount of mobile browsing usage. BlackBerry users can also avail of tailor-fit plans providing users easy access to their favorite sites. Just recently, subscribers can also choose to avail megabyte (MB)-based charging scheme, a plan ideal for users who don’t surf as much, but would like to be connected all the time for on-time notifications or updates.

During the third quarter, Globe also launched m.globe, an all-in- one mobile portal that allows users to enjoy the best of the mobile web in a single platform without the need for an expensive and sophisticated Internet-capable phone. Through m.globe, subscribers are able to access load information such as load balances for prepaid customers and unbilled charges for postpaid subscribers, get the latest updates from Facebook and Twitter, send and receive e-mails via their web mail accounts using the e-mail feature, and pull content from various online information sites through its news and entertainment function.

Globe also made available some of today’s most affordable Android devices in CloudFone Ice and CloudFone Temptation to give more users access to mobile data without spending too much. Both devices allow users to personalize their smartphone experience through a wide range of applications and features that they offer. On top of CloudFone, a wide range of smartphones such as iPhone, BlackBerry and Samsung devices are offered under the company’s customizable postpaid plans with a package that combines unlimited mobile surfing and bundled text and call services.

“Mobile browsing has definitely revolutionized the Philippine telecommunications industry with the growing demand for an easier and more accessible way to be connected to the World Wide Web. We are very pleased with how our mobile data business has grown over the last year, and this drives us further to make our mobile browsing services more accessible, affordable, and widely available to Filipinos wherever they are, through offers that are customizable, relevant and always affordable,” Globe president and CEO Ernest Cu said.

To support the suite of mobile browsing services that Globe offers, the company earlier announced that it will embark on a $790-million network modernization program to prepare its network for more bandwidth-heavy services such as broadband and data. The massive modern network rollout is expected to provide subscribers with a more stable and reliable network coverage nationwide, giving them an unparalleled service experience when they text, call or surf on their mobile phones.