MANILA, Philippines - Smart Communications Inc. is again helping to spur local tourism as it powers the first in a series of Google Map Summits in the Philippines.
Touted by Google as “an event in which a group of people get together to map their world,” a Map Summit organizes volunteer cartographers who go into unchartered — and often remote — areas to help document roads, establishments, and other places of interest on Google Maps, the company’s free global map service.
“Smart is very happy to be working with Google on the Philippine leg of the Map Summit,” said Smart chief wireless advisor Orlando Vea.
“Not only are we providing tourists with more accessible and more comprehensive information about our country, but we are also able to provide them with the best wireless services wherever they wish to go,” he added.
Participants of the whole-day workshops which took place in the cities of Baguio, Bacolod and General Santos were taught the basics of using Google Map Maker (http://mapmaker.google.com).
The activities relied heavily on Internet connectivity which Smart addressed by providing mobile broadband Plug-It and Pocket Wi-Fi devices to more than 200 attendees.
“As the only resilient and reliable network in the country, we have always been open to participating in challenging activities such as this,” Vea said.
“Others may claim that they have similar capabilities, but only Smart has the guts to prove it,” Vea added.