Globe sets sights on 3G license surrendered by CURE

MANILA, Philippines - Ayala-controlled Globe Telecom intends to participate in the auction of the 3G license of Connectivity Unlimited Resources Enterprises (CURE) surrendered by dominant carrier Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) to the government regulator.

Froilan Castelo, head for Corporate and Legal Services of Globe, said in a statement that the telecom provider has been gearing up to bid for additional network bandwidth after CURE formally surrendered one of its 3G frequencies to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).

“We’ve been vocal about our interest to bid for CURE’s 3G spectrum as part of our drive to provide our subscribers with a better network, especially with the growth of smartphones and the explosion of mobile data use,” Castelo said.

The divestment of CURE’s 10 megahertz 3G frequency was one of the conditions set by the NTC in approving the sale of the 51.55-percent stake in Digital Telecommunications Philippines Inc. previously owned by taipan John Gokongwei to the PLDT group for P69.2 billion last year.

PLDT said the other day that it wants to recover P2.215 billion from the sale of its 3G frequency held by mobile phone arm Smart Communications Inc. in CURE. It would be recalled that Smart acquired CURE from former trade minister Roberto Ongpin in 2008 for a total consideration of P419.54 million.

CURE and all its remaining assets, including its congressional franchise and 10 megahertz 3G license, has been surrendered to the NTC for bidding.

NTC is set to auction CURE’s license within the next six months of until January next year wherein PLDT is barred from participating in the bidding.

“We thank the NTC for closely monitoring post-merger activities and ensuring that all agreements have been fulfilled,” he added.

Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu looks at the divestment of 3G frequencies as a welcome move.

“The availability of more 3G frequency is an opportunity for Globe. This won’t be easy given the players involved but we’ll go for it,” Cu said.

Believing that it can serve customers better than its competition especially in light of the ongoing $700 million network modernization and transformation initiatives, Cu said Globe is gearing up for the anticipated auction.

Globe sustained its growth momentum for seven consecutive quarters with subscribers now reaching over 31 million. It is the leader in the postpaid segment and its Tattoo brand is the number one broadband in the country.