Globe pilots 5G home broadband device
Darius Delgado —MEG J. ADONIS
MANILA, Philippines — Globe Telecom Inc. on Wednesday launched what it claimed to be the world’s first 5G-powered portable home broadband device dubbed “The Loop” – an offering touted to bring “fiber-like” internet speed to customers.
Globe chief commercial officer Darius Delgado told reporters the device’s speed averaged 75 megabits per second (Mbps) and could connect up to five devices at a time.
“That’s the average speed that the device can give, so long as there’s good coverage on 5G in the area where it is used,” Delgado said on the sidelines of the company’s The Blueprint media event.
The Loop is a hybrid device that functions as a portable Wi-Fi router, Android phone and speaker.
According to Delgado, users will need to insert a physical sim card in the device to access 5G broadband internet plans that vary depending on their location.
Delgado said that, for now, they would deploy less than 1,000 units in Luzon to gauge market demand.
“You’ll never know [the demand] until you really launch it, that’s why we fast-tracked the launch,” he said. “We will scale depending on the demand.”
READ: 5G seen to supercharge Pinoys’ digital adoption
Pricing
The Loop, which was mainly launched for young families, currently retails at a promo price of P10,999.
The device is the first major product that the Ayala-backed Globe launched as part of its The Blueprint event. This showcased the telecom giant’s programs aimed at promoting digital inclusion through technology.
Softer revenues from Globe’s core businesses resulted in a 14-percent drop in its first-semester net income to P12.4 billion.
READ: Globe bullish on bouncing back from first-semester blues
This offset an extraordinary gain of P2.6 billion from MUFG Bank’s acquisition of an 8-percent stake in Mynt, the parent firm of popular e-wallet GCash.
Consolidated gross service revenues declined by 2 percent to P80.2 billion as contributions from its mobile and home broadband units went down.
Still, Globe said it was expecting a rebound in the second semester, especially after seeing a stronger second quarter.
Core earnings in the April to June period rose by 30 percent to P5.9 billion.
