Telecom firms more focus on increasing data capacity

CEBU, Philippines - More than preparing to beat other players in the industry, telecom companies are  instead focusing their investments on increasing capacity in data usage.

Philippine Telephone Long Distance Company (PLDT) vows to put its foot forward in putting significant investments on technology that will support the fast adoption of digital services, said company's head for public affairs Ramon Isberto.

In an interview, Isberto said that the telecom industry in the Philippines is not threatened by the entry of other foreign telecom players, like the Australian telecom firm Telstra, but the industry is now rattling off to improve its capacity to serve the fast growing demand for data bandwidth.

Traditional services like SMS, voice calls are shrinking, what is in demand now, is data services like video calls, video streaming, among others, which require higher bandwidth capacity.

While this digital phenomenon is giving another revenue stream for telecom service providers, Isberto said it also needs expensive investments to upgrade the existing capacity.

"The signals are clear, networks have to prepare for the enormous demand for data services. As technology improves, the question now is to put necessary investments to support the higher-end level of service," said Isberto.

Last year, PLDT, including its subsidiary Smart Communications, spent P43 billion in capital expenditure to upgrade its network capacity. This year and 2017, the company poses to spend similar or higher amount of investments.

"We have to elevate our level of investments, to fortify and increase the capacity of network and support the demand for data services," he emphasized.

In 2015, smartphone penetration in the Philippines stood at 40 percent. This is expected to grow much faster as prices for smartphone gadgets continue to dive.

Unlike other countries though, the Philippines being an archipelago requires more expensive investment in putting sophisticated infrastructure, explaining that some installations have to be put underwater–and this is expensive to install and maintain.

"Being an archipelago poses a bigger challenge for us. But we just have to keep on investing," he said. (FREEMAN)