NOW Telecom to join 5G bandwagon

MANILA, Philippines — NOW Telecom of businessman Mel Velarde will be joining the 5G bandwagon as it unveiled plans to offer 5G wireless technology.

The company in its recent board meeting approved plans to adopt 5G technologies that will allow the delivery of up to 20 gigabit per second speed to enterprises and homes.

“The Decentralized Gigabit Era is upon us now. 5G will allow high wireless bandwidth in low latency scenarios, allowing for further complex technologies to exist. 5G is necessary for the Internet of Things to thrive. With cloud computing, you can now decentralize the business of telecommunications,” NOW Telecom’s newly elected president Rodolfo Pantoja said.

NOW Telecom said it has brought in telecommunications expertise to its management by electing Pantojo, former Indonesian telecommunications firm Smartfren CEO, as its new president and chief operating officer.

Pantojo, who spent 28 years in Indonesia, is expected to add valuable experience for NOW Telecom as it enters the 5G space.

NOW Telecom holds a license from National Telecommunications Commission to operate cellular mobile telephony system, with frequency assignment of 5G mid band channels.

In order to strengthen its portfolio to seize greater opportunities from 5G, NOW Telecom’s board of directors also approved to offer to publicly listed NOW Corp. an additional 11 percent for share swap with NOW Telecom.

This will result in NOW Corp. owning 30 percent of NOW Telecom and will satisfy the congressional franchise requirement for NOW Telecom to have the public own at least 30 percent of the company.

“NOW Telecom stands true to its commitment in its franchise. We are a compliant telecommunications company. By being compliant with the terms of our congressional franchise, we boost the confidence of our Investors, both foreign and local,” Velarde said.