Smart completes 150-km underwater fiber optic cable

Smart Communications Inc., a unit of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.,  is strengthening its mobile broadband after it finished installing 150 kilometers of underwater fiber optic cables in the Visayas and Mindanao, a statement over the weekend showed.

The newly completed undersea fiber links—which run from Mactan in Cebu to Loon in Bohol and from Garcia Hernandez in Bohol to Kinoguitan in Cagayan de Oro—are expected to enhance Smart’s high-speed mobile broadband in Southern Philippines with expanded capacity for high-bandwidth services.

“Smart is further expanding its network of reliable and high-speed mobile broadband sites around the country to meet the skyrocketing demand for mobile data from our users,” said Rolando Peña, technology group head at Smart and PLDT.

At least 16 towns in Bohol are expected to benefit from the expanded fiber footprint, including Tagbilaran and Panglao, aside from countless others in Southern Philippines.

“With the proliferation of smartphones and the popularity of online services, we are seeing even more of our subscribers making the shift to data,” Peña added. “With this growing demand, a resilient and reliable network is required to maintain a seamless mobile broadband experience.”

The new fiber-optic facilities, the first time for Bohol to have such high-speed data infrastructure, will also complement the rollout of Smart’s high-speed mobile internet LTE service in Visayas and Mindanao. This will allow subscribers to experience up to 42 Mbps of broadband Internet in their area.

“As we see Bohol, Cebu, Leyte and other provinces rise from the ashes of the twin disasters that hit the region last year, Smart is also reinforcing its mobile network in these areas to ensure continuity of service especially in critical times of natural disasters,” Ramon Isberto, public affairs head at Smart and PLDT, said in the same statement.

The undersea fiber cable that runs through Bohol is the third of such kind that connects Visayas and Mindanao.

Smart’s robust mobile network is backed by  a total of 78,000 kilometers of fiber footprint.