PLDT extending free Internet scheme

PHILIPPINE Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) announced that its free mobile Internet promo has been extended anew, this time from Feb. 5 through Feb. 28.

The telco, whose mobile units include Smart Communications, Sun Cellular and Talk ’N Text, said the extended promo will now include  video streaming.

The promo—first introduced late September last year—allows PLDT’s 69 million subscribers to use their data-enabled devices to access the Internet without data charges, for up to 30MB daily.

“We are excited to expand the Smart Free Internet promo to include video streaming, since we all know how much Filipinos enjoy watching videos online. This is still part of the formula at the core of our ‘Internet for All’ message—making the Internet fun, fast, and worry-free for our subscribers,” said Charles A. Lim, executive vice president and head of the wireless consumer business of both Smart Communications and Sun Cellular.

Subscribers can access the Internet either through data-capable feature phones or smartphones running on Android, iOS and Windows operating systems.

It is available across all network platforms—from 2G to 4G speeds in the country.

Because PLDT is now allowing streaming videos for the promo, subscribers can use YouTube, Vimeo or Daily Motion on top of social media site Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts. They can also use navigation tools like Waze and Google Maps, book a cab or limo service via Easy Taxi and Uber, or use traffic info sites such as the MMDA’s and InterAksyon’s.

Smart claims to have the largest and most advanced network in the country today, with a total of 24,938 cellular/broadband base stations, supported by more than 90,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables around the country.