Globe Telecom’s mobile data traffic grew 44% in 2016 to 361 petabytes (PB) from 252 PB a year earlier as smartphone penetration reached 61% last year, indicating that more and more Filipinos are now accessing the internet through their mobile devices amid continuing shift to a digital lifestyle.
The significant increase in mobile data traffic follows the company’s aggressive network enhancement build in a bid to boost capacities and expand coverage. “This validates Globe Telecom’s position as the country’s top mobile company and as the network of choice by smartphone users,” said Globe President & CEO Ernest Cu. According to him, the data also reflects the company’s endeavor to continue improving the state of internet in the country.
“Our efforts are bearing fruit and we expect mobile internet experience to improve further moving forward as we continue with the aggressive deployment of LTE sites in major cities, thereby, providing better indoor signal and larger capacity,” Cu added.
Burgeoning mobile data traffic also corroborates a special report released by social media management platform Hootsuite and a UK-based consultancy firm We are Social that more and more Filipinos are accessing the internet through their mobile devices. According to the report, total mobile subscription is now at 129.4 million as of January 2017, a 9% increase from a year earlier based on a total country population of 103 million. The report said 60 million or 58% of total population have access to the internet, a 27% increase from a year earlier while 54 million are active mobile social users, up 32% from a year earlier.
Likewise, it disclosed that the share of web traffic by device indicates that the number of Filipinos accessing the internet thru their mobile devices are steadily growing. The breakdown is as follows: laptops & desktops, 56%, down 13% from a year earlier; mobile phones, 38%, up 31% from a year earlier; and tablet devices, 6%, lower by 7% from a year earlier.
Moreover, average internet speed via mobile connections is 13 Mbps while average internet speed via fixed connections is at 4.1 Mbps. Based on users’ self-reported activity, 50% of the country’s population use mobile messengers, 57% watch videos on mobile, 47% of play games on mobile, 30% use mobile banking while 39% use mobile map services.
The report also said that Filipinos spend an average of 4 hours and 17 minutes per day on social media sites such as Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter. The data as of January 2017 are based on active monthly users from social media companies.