PLDT Group said Tuesday said it expanded the reach and capacity of fixed and wireless networks across the country to cater to increasing customer demand amid the pandemic.
PLDT said that as of August, its fiber infrastructure, the most extensive in the country, spanned 382,500 kilometers, up 19 percent from end-2019. The expansion boosted the coverage of its fiber-powered fixed network to 8.1 million homes, up 12 percent from end-2019.
It said with the increase in fixed network coverage, it also raised available capacity by 8 percent to 3.78 million ports.
Smart ramped up its LTE rollout, increasing the number of LTE base stations on its network by 15 percent to 28,200 as of end-August. The accelerated network rollout included the firing up of LTE sites in far-flung areas, including Pag-asa Island in Palawan and the town of Kawayan in the island province of Biliran.
PLDT and Smart said despite challenges linked to COVID-19 and the lockdowns, they continued their nationwide network expansion program by combining the rollout of physical installations with software systems upgrades that could be done remotely.