Gov’t help sought in improving internet quality

Industry giant Globe Telecom has called on the government anew to help ease regulations and clarify new legislation, saying these would clear the way for better internet quality.

Globe said in a statement yesterday that it would upgrade its target to deliver about 10 megabits per second of fixed-line internet speed to at least 50 Mbps across two million homes by 2020.

Globe said the “majority of homes” today had fixed-line connections of 2 to 5 Mbps.

“What we want to do and achieve is that by 2020, anyone who wants a home broadband connection should have at least 50 Mbps connection but the telco environment is not completely rosy,” said Gil Genio, Globe chief technology and information officer.

Globe and main rival PLDT Inc. continue to lure complaints over poor internet quality in the fixed-line space.

Between the two companies, Globe has been more active in publicly seeking the government’s assistance in addressing regulations, such those governing right-of-way issues and bottlenecks in the permitting process.

The telco also cited the need to clarify proposed legislation on Open Access, which would allow other players, even those without a telco franchise, to build and operate physical infrastructure as well as offer services to the public.

“There is still a lack of clarity on what is called an Open Access. There are a lot of bills, discussions, and policy statements, but nothing has been pushed forward,” Genio noted.

Globe is also seeking clarity on the plan of the Department of Information and Communications Technology for a National Broadband project.

Fixed-line internet for homes remains a key part of Globe’s business, albeit still relatively small. It disclosed earlier that it had 1.4 million customers as of the first quarter of 2018.

Last year, Globe rolled out 400,000 “ultrafast” broadband lines. Capital spending for 2018 was pegged at around P43.5 billion, about the same amount as in 2017. —MIGUEL R.CAMUS