Smart Communications Inc. said its network upgrades in Cebu province would boost the internet connectivity of its Sun brand across Visayas.
Over 80 percent of cell sites across Cebu now have LTE.
?Sun?s newly upgraded network all over Cebu allows its customers to instantly share their stories, as they go about their day,? said Carlo Endaya, VP for prepaid marketing at Smart.
Expanded LTE capacity is available in areas in Cebu City, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Minglanilla and Talisay, while the service has also been rolled out in Badian, Balamban, Barili, Catmon, Madridejos, Sibonga, and Tabuelan.
These network upgrades are part of PLDT’s thrust to provide world-class internet service to Filipinos in Cebu and in other parts of the country.
Internal tests showed speeds ranging from 10Mbps to 50Mbps have been reached using a Sun LTE SIM and an LTE smartphone in key areas around Cebu.
The PLDT group’s expansion initiatives also include the integration of the Smart and Sun mobile networks, which enabled Smart to install more new base stations for 2G, 3G, and LTE technologies to better serve the subscribers of both brands.
As of the end of June, Smart had equipped over 3,900 base stations across the country with LTE and LTE-A, which can provide even greater capacity and speeds to users with LTE-compatible smartphones. This puts the total count of LTE base stations at over 12,600.
PLDT has earmarked historic levels of resources to support its etwork transformation which is estimated to amount to $ 5 billion from 2016 to 2020, with capital expenditures expected to reach P58 billion this year.
