Globe Telecom to continue testing LTE in 2011
Filipino operator Globe Telecom has stated that field trials for Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile technology will continue into 2011 before it makes a decision on how best to approach a strategy for its adoption in the country.
According to Globe’s head of network technologies strategy, Emmanuel Estrada, phase 2 of the field trials will commence soon following the successful completion of the first stage of tests.
The cellco’s Phase 1 trial achieved up to 60Mbps downlink data throughput rate at 10MHz bandwidth.
According to Estrada, the Phase 1 test was very successful. The company and supplier NEC have agreed to take on the next level. The objective of the tests is all about collective learning of the LTE technology.
Globe Telecom secures loan from Metrobank (Philippines)
Globe Telecom, had signed a US$92 million term loan facility from Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (Metrobank) to cover a portion of its outstanding debts and fund CAPEX projects for next year.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the company claimed that the loan facility is payable for five years.
According to Alberto de Larrazabal, Globe Telecom Chief Financial Officer, the firm wanted to take advantage of the current favorable interest rate environment. There is an opportunity for the company to generate savings and at the same time lengthen their debt maturity profile. The funds will be used to prepay US$244278 in debt that will mature in 2012. The balance will be used to fund their capital expenditure requirements in 2011.
As per the company, the term loan facility with Metrobank was the third loan signed by the company this year. In the first quarter, the firm inked a US$162852 loan with Allied Bank.
Philippines’ Globe Telecom ready to launch 4G
Ayala-led Globe Telecom Inc. plans to launch in the next few years the “real 4G” technology in the Philippines, promising to offer wireless broadband Internet connection speeds never seen before in the country.
The company conducted a demonstration of its Long-Term Evolution (LTE) wireless network for members of the press.
The LTE technology, which is optimized for broadband connections, is one of the two candidates being evaluated by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) as the step up from the existing 3G technology.
Globe said it began the trial of LTE technology early this year in partnership with Japanese firm NEC Corp.
However, the company declined to give a definite guideline as to when it could start a more widespread rollout of the new network.
“As part of our thrust to provide superior customer experience, Globe sustains its network buildup and continues to look out for the latest mobile technologies that will benefit the Philippine market,” Globe network technologies strategy head Emmanuel Estrada said.
“As we see mobile broadband growing and more subscribers clamoring for faster and higher bandwidths, LTE will help us meet demand and further improve our broadband service offering in the near future,” he said.
LTE technology is a type of cellular mobile technology that is optimized for broadband connectivity. This means that companies with LTE networks will be able to offer higher Internet speeds than what is available on the existing 3G network.
Globe said 3G technology was designed mainly for traditional telephone services such as voice calls, with provisions for broadband connectivity only on a limited basis.
The company said the new technology is in line with its strategy of growing its broadband business amid the saturation of the market for traditional call and text services.
Globe said the LTE will not only make existing mobile phone applications run faster but also pave the way for new functions that were previously available only for devices with fixed-wire connections.
At the end of the third quarter, Globe had over one million broadband subscribers, growing 95 percent over the same period last year.
Globe Telecom’s broadband subscribers exceed 1 million in September (Philippines)
Philippines’ second-largest telecommunications company , Globe Telecom Inc., has revealed that the number of its broadband subscribers at the end of September nearly doubled from a year earlier to 1.01 million. Globe Telecom had total broadband subscribers of 517,355 at the end of September last year.
According to Globe President and Chief Executive, Ernest Cu, the company is happy to hit the 1 million milestone for broadband users, and expect the growth trajectory to continue by year-end. Globe Telecom aims to be the preferred provider by more subscribers as they introduce new products and improve the surfing experience of customers.
In the first half, Globe Telecom spent $120 million of its $500 million capital expenditure for this year to expand its broadband network.
Western Union collaborates With SBI to Launch Mobile Money Transfer in India
Western Union has collaborated with State Bank of India (SBI) to provide accountholders with cross-border money transfers via mobile phones. In July, Western Union announced the introduction of the Account-Based Money Transfer (ABMT) service which will be launched in early 2011. This service will facilitate SBI customers with online bank accounts to pull a Western Union Money Transfer directly into their accounts via Internet or ATM.
According to Anil Kapur, Western Union’s Senior VP (South and Southeast Asia), India is the world’s No. 1 remittance recipient country, and according to World Bank figures, has received US$52 billion in 2009. Currently, consumers can send Mobile Money Transfers from nearly 70,000 Western Union Agent locations in 25 countries.
Western Union has 61,000 locations in India, and the mobile transfer partnership will allow it to expand its distribution within India using SBI’s network. Western Union already has a partnership with SBI, with over 12,000 SBI branches offering Western Union Money Transfer service.
SBI has 110 million accountholders, of which more than 4 million are registered for online banking.
Western Union also offers the Mobile Money Transfer service in the Philippines with Smart Communications and Globe Telecom; in Kenya with Safaricom; in Malaysia with Maxis; and in South Africa with Absa Bank.
The company also announced an agreement with EnStream in Canada and has agreements with Tunisian Post and Bank of Commerce & Development (BoCD) in Libya. In addition, Western Union previously announced an alliance with Zain (Airtel) in Africa.
Singtel’s profit rises due to regional businesses, Bharti, Optus (Singapore)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Due to the increase in the revenue at the regional businesses and the Optus unit in Australia, the fourth quarter profit of Southeast Asia’s largest phone company, Singapore Telecommunications Ltd rose 12 percent. Revenues from mobile division units of SingTel including Bharti Airtel Ltd. and PT Telekomunikasi Selular also contributed to the fourth straight quarter of profit growth of the company.
Singtel’s earnings increased by 12 percent to S$546 million, courtesy the performance of its regional mobile units. Indonesia’s largest mobile-phone company, Telkomsel’s earning surged 26 percent to S$205 million on revenue growth from an increased customer base and currency movements. 8.6 percent rise in earnings to S$245 million has also been posted by Bharti Airtel. Globe Telecom Inc., SingTel’s Philippine unit, posted a 23 percent decline in profit to S$61 million. Earnings from Advanced Info Service Pcl, Thailand’s biggest mobile-phone rose 4.6 percent to S$53 million.
According to Chief Executive Officer Chua Sock Koong, it’s too early to determine the impact on earnings of a proposal by India’s telecommunications regulator to impose a fee on operators such as Bharti.
Net income of the company gained to S$1.02 billion ($740 million), full-year profit rose 13 percent to S$3.91 billion, revenue rose 25 percent to S$4.46 billion and it had 293 million mobile-phone customers at the end of the quarter, or 17 percent more than a year earlier. The fourth-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were little changed at S$579 million in the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, the company is targeting new Australian subscribers through its mio TV service, with broadcasts of World Cup soccer matches starting next month. As SingTel spent more to attract mobile-phone customers and add new content to mio TV, the division’s profit margin dropped 4.5 percentage points to 35.3 percent. Witnessing a strongest mobile-phone customer growth in five years, Sydney-based Optus income rose 5 percent to A$610 million ($545 million).
NTC announces quick 3G frequency auction mandatory
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The final 3G frequency spectrum auction in Philippines has been suggested by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to take place immediately before the technology is overtaken by a much faster one.
According to the 152-page appeal filed by the watchdog , there is an exigent need for it to implement its statutory mandate before the 3G technology is overtaken by better, faster standards and if it is not awarded immediately to a service provider who will use it efficiently and effectively then this renders the same obsolete.
As an example, Filipino telco Liberty Telecoms has been cited which is already rolling out 4G services through its Wi-tribe brand. With a subscriber base of 715,000 as at December 21, 2009, Globe Telecom has been the number one WiMAX operator in the Philippines. Meanwhile, Liberty Telecoms has announced that 1, 000 subscribers has been added to its pre-commercial WiMAX trials at the end of March 2010.
Globe Telecom plans to roll out 2,000 Wimax, 3G base stations
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Installation of 2,000 new base stations has been planned by Philippine communications provider Globe Telecom this year. The new base stations will be installed for 3G and WiMAX services on account of expected traffic rise by 35 to 40 percent per year by the operator.
3000 base station is currently owned by Globe Telecom and the company aims to bring this number to 5,000 this year. The figure has been filed by the operator with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC). Need for additional 3G spectrum is also pointed by the operator and at present it has 10 MHz of 3G spectrums.
The regulator on the other hand is planning to auction the last 3G slot this year and it allowed the current 3G licensees to participate in the auction.
Globe Telecom to invest USD500m in 2010 (Philippines)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: USD500 million has been set aside by Filipino telecoms group Globe Telecom for capital expenditure projects in 2010. A large portion of the amount will also be allocated for its escalating broadband business.
Expansion and augmentation of its high speed internet access networks and services will receive an investment of USD230 million, which will also include the expansion of coverage of DSL, WiMAX and 3G mobile broadband services. Mobile telephony business has received USD170 million while Globe’s fixed line data networks which cater in the main for corporate users has got USD50 million.
Globe’s number of base transceiver stations was boosted by its expansion work by 22% year-on-year to 10,333. The cell-site deployments of the firm were up 7% to 6,226 to support its 2G, 3G and WiMAX services and at the same date its networks reached 99% of the population and 97% of the territory.
