Globe, a premier telecommunications services provider in the Philippines, took part at a WiMAX Analyst Event during the recent Mobile World Congress 2010 held last month in Barcelona, Spain.

Ernest L. Cu, President and Chief Executive Officer of Globe, was one of the speakers at the WiMAX Analyst Event where he shared the WiMAX deployment of Globe and its broadband leadership foray in the Philippines. The Globe WiMAX network is the first and largest mobile WiMAX network in Southeast Asia to date.

Globe WiMAX provides primary connections to support customers' needs for higher-bandwidth services. The fixed broadband offers of Globe enjoyed good take-up last year led by its WiMAX service which is now available in over 160 towns and cities nationwide.

The overall broadband business of Globe continued to deliver robust subscriber growth, beating full year forecast to end 2009 with over 715,000 subscribers, more than triple that of the 2008 level of over 200,000. Total broadband revenues rose 74% to P3.3 billion last year from P1.9 billion in 2008.

Strong take-up for the nomadic, mobile broadband service Globe Tattoo was a key driver to the growth, providing secondary connectivity for on-the-go use, or for those with limited budgets and prefer a prepaid, pay-per-use service.

As broadband remains a key growth area for Globe and the industry, Globe will invest in augmenting existing capacities, expanding coverage, and improving the pervasiveness of its 3G, DSL and WiMAX broadband services to sustain its broadband leadership. This will support the rapid subscriber take up of Globe WiMAX, which has consistently high satisfaction rating among subscribers.

WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) is wireless broadband access that presents a cost-efficient alternative to deploying internet access via cable and DSL. It has improved reach versus other wireless technologies as WiMAX covers greater distances than WI-FI, CDMA or even 3G and HSPA.

Globe tested WiMAX as early as 2005 and began the rollout in 2008. The WIMAX network was launched in February 2009 in Cebu City, the first in the Philippines to experience the WiMAX service of Globe. Upon launch Globe had the first 2.5 Ghz WiMAX (802.16 e) broadband network in Southeast Asia.