THE coronavirus pandemic is pushing PLDT Inc. to delay the launching of its fifth-generation (5G) network services, Chief Revenue Officer Alfredo S. Panlilio of the Pangilinan-led telecommunications company said.
“It is still an area that we are looking at. Maybe it will be deferred to a later date, but it is still something that we will get into,” he told reporters on Thursday, citing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that is causing disruptions in the whole supply chain for all industries.
Mr. Panlilio was quoted as saying in a newspaper report by The Philippine Star on March 9 that PLDT was “plotting to have something that it can bring to the market sometime in the second quarter” of the year.
In December, PLDT Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said a significant amount of the capital expenditures (capex) for 2020 would be used to fund the company’s continuing rollout of its 5G technology, although the product “may not be immediately” profitable.
On Thursday, the telecommunications company said the capital spending for this year would probably be cut by 24% to P63 billion from the planned P83 billion as movement and travel restrictions under the government-imposed enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) hamper its network rollout activities.
Technology firm Cisco Systems, Inc. (Cisco) earlier said the rollout of 5G network services in the Philippines could increase the annual revenues of telecommunications companies by as much as $650 million beginning 2025.
Cisco said 5G penetration in countries in Southeast Asia is expected to reach 25% to 40% by 2025.
Fitch Ratings said in November last year that Philippine telcos are expected to be still dependent in the next three years on existing 4G technologies amid growing demand for data.
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. — Arjay L. Balinbin
