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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Smart expands LTE/5G coverage as data use surges

Smart expands LTE/5G coverage as data use surges

Published May 30, 2022 03:40 pm

Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) has increased the number of its Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 5G base stations across the country to 76,600 as of first quarter this year to cater to surging demand for mobile data in the post-pandemic Next Normal.

The infrastructure supports customers from Batanes to Tawi-Tawi and include around 7,300 5G base stations.

Already, mobile data traffic grew 30 percent year-on-year to 1,010 petabytes in the first quarter of 2022.

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Smart deployed more 5G base stations across the country, including in Davao City; the Metro Manila cities of Pasay, Quezon City, Taguig, Mandaluyong and Manila; Silang in Cavite and Lumban in Laguna; and in the Visayas cities of Iloilo, Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue and Baybay, to name a few.

"As the economy recovers and people become more mobile, the demand for fast and reliable connectivity will only further increase," explained Mario G. Tamayo, Head of Technology at PLDT and Smart.

"This consistent expansion of our fixed and mobile network over the years has enabled us to respond to the needs of our customers, who have been relying on the internet to power their hybrid workplaces, online learning, electronic banking and e-commerce," he added.

Supporting Smart's mobile network is PLDT's fiber infrastructure, which was at 803,000 kilometers as of end-March 2022.

Earlier this month, PLDT raised its capital expenditure guidance to ₱85 billion from a range of ₱75 billion to ₱80 billion.

This increase will support updated requirements for the Home broadband and data center businesses and additional upgrades of the towers and their passive infrastructure assets—subject of the tower sale and leaseback transaction.

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