PLDT, Inc. said total PLDT Home subscriptions jumped by 12% to reach over 4.1 million as of end-2017, amid its continued deployment of fiber-powered Internet services.
In a statement, the telecommunications giant said its total fiber-fast broadband subscribers surged 131% as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2017.
Fiber facilities passed four million homes as of end-2017, growing by around 1.2 million.
The 4.1 million PLDT Home subscriptions include Fibr, DSL, and voice customers.
PLDT SVP and Head of Consumer Business Market Development Oscar A. Reyes, Jr. said PLDT’s fiber-powered SmartCity and SmartProvince programs enabled access to Home services, including the SmartHome suite.
“The market response to PLDT’s aggressive deployment of fiber lines was quick and strong, adding nearly half a million new subscribers. The dramatic improvement in PLDT’s ability to deliver faster broadband speeds with the roll out of fiber and hybrid fiber, coupled with continuous innovations in digital solutions, access to content, and bundled offers, have boosted subscriptions,” Mr. Reyes said in a statement.
PLDT’s SmartCity and SmartProvince programs were implemented with the cooperation of local government units (LGUs). The first SmartCity was set up in Toledo City, Cebu in March 2017, while other cities covered were General Santos, Naga, South Metro Manila, East Metro Manila, as well as central business districts Rockwell Makati and Bonifacio Global City. The first SmartProvince was Cavite, with the program implemented last September.
PLDT also launched the Whole Home Wi-Fi service which makes use of signal enhancing devices to connect the entire home to an all-in-one broadband and smart Wi-Fi network.
By 2019, the company said virtually all of its 1.2 million copper-based DSL subscribers will enjoy fiber-fast Internet.
PLDT earlier said it will double its fiber and hybrid fiber broadband capacity to over 2.2 million ports, with about 650,000 of the additional ports for fiber and another 550,000 for hybrid fiber broadband.
It also targets to increase the total capacity of its international fiber network by 80% to 8.92 Tbps (Terabytes per second) by end-2019, of which 8.11 Tbps will terminate in the Philippines, to be boosted by its investment of P7 billion in the new Trans-Pacific undersea cable system called Jupiter.
PLDT is set to expand its fixed and mobile networks as part of its five-year P260-billion capital expenditure (capex) program.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo
