Globe Telecom Inc. is ready to work with the government in establishing a national connectivity index rating, which sets a standard for internet quality in the country.
In a statement, Globe said it is backing the calls for the creation of a national connectivity index rating, which aims to establish a standard for the quality of internet connectivity in public and private buildings, contributing to the wider national effort towards comprehensive digitization.
“We are ready and eager to work with the government to establish a Connectivity Index Rating in the country. This will allow our consumers to choose which establishment or public place they would want to patronize because internet services are within standards. With this in place, we will cement the perception that the Philippines has internet services at par with other countries, just as external party surveys have been showing,” said Ernest Cu, Globe Group president and chief executive officer.
Globe, together with various industry players to the sector leaders of the Private Sector Advisory Council, proposed the creation of the connectivity index rating.
This rating will provide a benchmark for property owners and government institutions on the right level of connectivity vis-a-vis the volume of user traffic in a given building or area.
Currently, consumers have no way of assessing the quality of internet connectivity in public spaces such as airports, malls, hotels, libraries and coffee shops.
Tim Abejo, co-convenor of CitizenWatch Philippines, said the index should be as straightforward as the familiar 5-star system used to rate hotels.
It will affect the image of an institution and will force building owners to take steps to ensure high-quality digital connectivity for their users, Abejo added.
Globe said it has been working to provide fast and reliable internet connectivity to Filipinos.
Meanwhile, PLDT Inc. yesterday said it has started to re-accelerate its network rollout to address the growing demand for mobile traffic and home broadband.
“Following a deep-dive review of our internal processes in line with our transformation efforts, we are re-accelerating our network roll-out. Capex guidance for 2023 is P80-85 billion and includes investments in capacity to support growing mobile traffic and to support demand for home broadband,” said Eric Santiago, PLDT first vice president and Network head, in a statement.
As of end-March 2023, PLDT had expanded its total fiber footprint to over 1.1 million kilometers, consisting of over 231,000 kilometers of international fiber and over 874,000 kilometers of domestic fiber.
This fiber infrastructure also supports Smart’s network, which covers 97 percent of the country’s population.
Santiago added they remain focused on achieving the vision for PLDT’s network, summarized in the acronym “CIA” – Cloudified, or being cloud-native, Intelligent, and Automated.
