Globe Telecom Inc. said Friday it expects the number of subscribers using 5G devices to post a double- digit growth this year as it aggressively rolls out 5G technology nationwide.
Customers of 5G devices as of March reached 560,000 based on the company’s latest data. The number rose 10.7 percent in April to more than 620,000 and by 12.0 percent in May to 700,000.
It said there was an average of 11.8-percent increase in device count in the last two months.
“We are expecting the rise in numbers as we make the 5G technology more pervasive in key locations not only in Metro Manila but also in highly-urbanized cities in the Visayas and Mindanao. The entry of affordable 5G-capable mobile devices has also made it possible for more people to use the technology,” said Globe senior vice president for program delivery Joel Agustin.
“We will make our 5G presence more felt in Visayas and Mindanao in the coming months,” he said.
Globe now has 5G outdoor coverage in at least 88 percent of the National Capital Region with Bonifacio Global City central business district and Ortigas CBD having the highest coverage with similar 97 percent.
Makati CBD is third with 96-percent coverage while Pateros is fourth with 92-percent coverage. Globe’s 5G network is also active in at least 82 percent or more in 13 cities in Metro Manila.
It said 5G is accessible in 81 percent of Cebu City, 68 percent of Boracay Island, 67 percent of Bacolod City and 53 percent of Iloilo City.
Globe said that in Mindanao, 5G is accessible in 73 percent of Davao City and 72 percent of Cagayan De Oro City. Six additional 5G cell towers are also being installed in General Santos City.
Globe said its aggressive network builds and network modernization to 4G LTE and 5G resulted in improved services to customers nationwide.
The Benchmarking 5G Experience-Asia Pacific June 2021 report by Opensignal showed that the Philippines’ 5G download speed is now at 141 Mbps, which is among the fastest in the Asia Pacific.
The download speed is even faster than Hong Kong’s 134.8 Mbps and Thailand’s 122.5 Mbps. The country can go as fast as up to 426.2 Mbps as its peak download speed, also faster than in Thailand and Hong Kong.
Compared to 4G, the Philippines registers an improvement of about 10.4 times in terms of download speed on 5G.