Globe Telecom says it wants to complete the infrastructure roll out and needs the support of local government units in the Philippines.
Globe Telecom said it has done the deployment of fiber optics, an important aspect in broadband technology, in about 300 sites against the target of deploying fiber optics in 1,000 sites before the end of 2016.
Early this year, Globe Telecom launched a plan to create an internet superhighway nationwide. The plan aims to deploy fiber optics in 20,000 barangay by 2020 to provide ultra-fast internet access to around 2 million homes nationwide.
Globe Telecom is seeking to rationalize the permitting process to mitigate bureaucratic red tape and other political hurdles to speed up the deployment of telecommunication infrastructure such as cell sites and fiber optic cables. If implemented, this would enable the company to improve data connectivity at lower rates.
“As internet connectivity is vital in enhancing our communities’ competitiveness in both the local and global arena, we would like to call on local government executives to partner with us in ushering the Philippines to become a digital nation,” said Globe Telecom Chief Commercial Officer Albert de Larrazabal.
He said that securing different permits at LGU level could be very challenging, from the number of permits to the different political personalities that mobile operators have to deal with. He added it takes at least 8 months to complete the permitting process, involving around 25 permits.
Globe Telecom’s annual investments for its network have increased over the years, reaching around $600 million in 2015, with the company allotting around 30 percent of its revenue for capital expenditure in the last two years.
The city government of Manila was the first to respond to Globe Telecom’s call for support, allowing the telecom operator to roll out fiber broadband technology in Binondo, providing internet experience with speeds of up to 1 GBps. The fiber project will be completed in the third quarter of the year.
