PLDT, Globe neck and neck in LTE game

PLDT Inc.’s Smart Communications maintained its edge in 4G internet speed while main rival Globe Telecom was ahead in availability, the latest crowdsourced survey by OpenSignal showed.

The report highlighted fourth-generation mobile services or LTE, an area where both PLDT and Globe had been pouring massive resources. Both jointly acquired San Miguel Corp.’s (SMC) telco assets in 2016—largely a play to gain access to most of SMC’s 4G frequencies.

According to the report, Smart outpaced Globe in LTE speed during the period from Nov. 2017 through Jan. 31, 2018.

Smart measured 12.48 megabits per second in 4G download speed while Globe saw 7.69 Mbps. But in terms of availability, Globe measured 67.46 percent, ahead of Smart’s 59.68 percent.

OpenSignal said these results were mainly mirrored across the country.

Yet, OpenSignal said the Philippines “offered significantly worse LTE speeds and availability than most other countries in the world.”

It said a new operator could “put pressure” on PLDT and Globe. It noted, however, that it would take several years for a new telco challenger to roll out 4G services in the country.