Converge ICT slashes internet prices, improves speed

Converge ICT Solutions Inc., a fixed broadband service provider, slashed its home fiber internet prices across the board, undercutting competitors such as PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom.

The company announced late Wednesday a slew of speed upgrades for existing customers without raising subscription costs. Converge ICT chief operating officer Jesus Romero said these also represented the new pricing scheme for its unlimited plans moving forward.

Specifically, the company announced that internet speeds for its 2,500 and 3,500 plans were increased by 50 percent to up to 75 megabits a second and 150 Mbps, respectively.

Globe’s top unlimited fiber plan is up to 100 Mbps, for which it charges P2,899 a month. PLDT’s closest offering is P6,000 for up to 200 Mbps.

Romero said they also tweaked the price of their most popular product, which is P1,500 a month for up to 25 Mbps. Converge ICT has started to offer P1,599 for 35 Mbps.

This is less expensive by 40 to 50 percent to similar services offered by PLDT and Globe.

The move, which Romero said was in response to booming demand for high-quality video streaming and online gaming, is linked to Converge ICT’s goal to double customer base by 2019.

Romero said they had more than  200,000 subscribers at present while coverage in Luzon continued to grow.

In a previous interview, Converge ICT CEO and founder Dennis Anthony H. Uy said the firm was targeting to double revenue in 2019 to about P10 billion.

In August, Converge ICT partnered with South Korea’s KT, Fibernet Konstrukt and TE Connectivity Subcom to lay down fiber lines and submarine cables across the Philippines within five years.