PLDT Inc.’s wireless arm Smart Communications, Inc. announced on Friday that its fifth-generation (5G) roaming service now covers 45 countries.
“Customers in Malta, Croatia, Indonesia, Greece, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Cyprus, Portugal, Poland, Guam, and France can now enjoy live 5G roaming services with their 5G-capable SIMs and devices through Smart’s partnerships with global telco operators in these countries,” Smart said in an e-mailed statement.
Smart also said that it expanded its 5G roaming coverage with 68 partners across five continents.
It has new partners in Canada, Turkey, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Bulgaria.
The service is also available in Taiwan, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Israel, China, Australia, Switzerland, Japan, Thailand, Denmark, Vietnam, Qatar, Ireland, Oman, Germany, Luxembourg, Italy, Austria, Romania, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Belgium, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
According to the telco, as of the end of December 2021, it already has 75,500 base stations nationwide supporting the growing mobile data traffic.
“This includes around 7,200 5G base stations. Supporting Smart’s mobile network is PLDT’s extensive fiber footprint, which was at 743,700 kilometers as of end-2021,” it added.
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
