Faster speeds, better internet access for Philippines

[firestarter]

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Somehow I'm not feeling the vibe on this Salalima. But, we'll see.

http://cnnphilippines.com/news/2016/...-salalima.html

Faster speeds, better internet access in 2017 for laggard Philippines: government


Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Filipinos can bid slow internet speeds goodbye in 2017, the Department of Information Communications and Technology (DICT) said on Monday.
"Next year will be the start of us making the internet faster," DICT Secretary Rodolfo Salalima told CNN Philippines' The Source.
To make this reality, the newly minted department is spearheading a telecoms summit in January 2017 to discuss how to improve internet speed and connectivity in the Philippines, considered to be one of the slowest in Asia.
"From the summit, we'll only be able to see the possible solutions," said Salalima. Pressed for a figure on what faster internet speeds can be expected, he declined to give one.
"I would leave that to the regulator. But definitely you will experience a speedier internet once we have that summit," he said.
Read: Gov't: Cell towers, frequencies to blame for slow Internet
In its latest State of the Internet Report for the first quarter of 2016, the Philippines ranked 14 out of 15 countries in the Asia Pacific region, with an average Internet speed of 3.5 Mbps (megabits per second), said U.S.-based content delivery network Akamai Technologies Inc.
The Philippines' average speed is below the global average of 6.3 Mbps and way below the global topnotcher South Korea, with an average speed of 29 Mbps, the Akamai report added.
To prepare for the January summit, telecom regulators were measuring Internet speeds of the top telecom service providers, Salalima told The Source.
"At the same time also we will call the telcos and ask their problems and we will meet head on their problems," he said.
He said he also expected Internet speed to increase following the purchase by telecoms giants Globe Telecoms and Smart Communications of San Miguel Corp.'s telecom assets which included the prized 700 MHz spectrum.
The 700 MHz spectrum is preferred by telecom providers because it has greater range of coverage and can easily pass through obstacles such as walls or trees.
"I understand that bumilis na 'yung speed ng Internet [I understand that Internet speed is faster] in some areas where the telcos are ruling out their cell sites using the 700 megahertz which they are able to acquire from the San Miguel group," he said.
Less red tape key to better Internet service

On top of zeroing in on telecoms' problems and needs, a key move was to lessen the red tape required to build cell sites across the country, the telecoms chief said.
There are only 15,000 cell sites nationwide, Salalima said, compared to Southeast Asian neighbor "Vietnam which started mobile operations only after us but they have triple or four times than that."
The secretary blamed tedious permit procedures and building constraints for the lack of cell sites.
A draft executive order is being drawn up to cut red tape by bringing down to seven or less the number of days required in total for all levels of government, from local to national, to issue a permit to construct a cell site.
"In that executive order, I am putting about three to seven days only within which the LGUs (local government units) or agencies outside the national government must issue the permit," he said.
In a senate hearing held in January 2015 to improve Internet service in the Philippines, telecom providers testified that it took anywhere from one to six months to secure more than two dozen permits to construct one cell site.
Salalima noted that in August, a memorandum was signed by Salalima's department, and the Departments of Trade and Industry and the Interior and Local Government to speed up the issuance of business permits in the country.
"For permits which are not complicated, only one day. For permits which are little complicated, two days. And for renewal of permits, only one day," the telecoms department chief said.
Hampering cell site construction were protests from private villages fearing that radiation from these sites would affect their health.
He rebutted these claims, saying that the Court of Appeals had already ruled otherwise and declared cell sites safe from harmful radiation.
Nationwide Wi-Fi

The government also plans to put up its own free nationwide broadband connection. The connection will cater to areas and people without access to major networks.
Extended Wi-Fi spots around the country are also in the works. Salalima said the government is eyeing as many as 1,300 Wi-Fi sites for 2016 and 100,000 sites for 2026.
These measures are in line with the government's efforts to broaden people's access to telecommunication, which the United Nations has deemed a human right.
"Telecommunications – the right to communicate – is a basic human right," Salalima said.
"It is the duty of the government to see to it that the people who have no access to the telecommunication system be given the opportunity to exercise the right to telecommunicate," he added.
Room for more competitors

Salalima said that there is still room for more telecom players in the Philippines, while acknowledging that the country's two telecom giants, Smart Communications and Globe Telecoms, were indeed a duopoly.
"Although there are so many telecommunications firms in the country, there are actually two dominant ones. So in a sense you will call it duopoly," he said.
While Smart and Globe have purchased two-thirds of the 700 MHz spectrum, the Government still holds one-third of that spectrum. "That one-third is open for a third player," Salalima said.
"There is nothing in our law that will prevent a third player… The more the competition, the better for our consumers," he said.
However, he also admitted the difficulties a new company competing with the two telecoms giants would face.
"You have to take into consideration that in order for you to compete, you not only have to have the necessary capital… Even if your service is better than the two existing, marketing is a difficult one," he said.

[bula1980]

^^tagaan nato ug chance boss.. afterall, thats what we all want, better internet connection... support lang ta ani. Good job PRRD.

[digitalsuperman]

cutting the red tape is a step in the right direction. it is affecting businesses. great move by DICT.

[firestarter]

Tagaan chance nalang gyud, salig nalang ta nga sakto ni ang napili ni Mr. President ani.... The way lang gyud siya mo explain is as if there is no other way.

Dapat gyud unta naay competition, but this guy is stating nga i improve ra ang current nga system, granting nga mosaka lage ang internet speed but for how long. Time comes basta walay klaro nga competition ma biyaan na pud ta. But in a way.. sige nalang ..

Really not feeling the vibe on this guy, but I could be wrong.

[THE KID]

free faster wifi in all major cities in the Philippines....

[spectrespook]

I believe this has something to with our government planning to tie up with chinese firms on broadband plan. In fact naa nay PLDT contractor owned by the Chinese government.

[RainRiku]

Basin ma trigger npd ang mga binayran nga mga politician an. Main cause nganong hinay ang internet ky ang corruption sa gobyerno..inequality of distributing of Internet infrastructure throughout the country.

Kung butangan ug sites or network infrastructure kada major island sa pinas and providers with POP3 support pagka nindot nlng jud sa internet unya nlng ng fiber optic. hehe..we are still one of the slowest and also one of the most expensive in Asia.

[firestarter]

Ang ako ra gyud ani kay with all the infrastructure dili gyud gihapon ikadeny nga duopoly gihapon ang business sa telecommunications. We need at least 5 players in order to have fair competition. Kaso wala lage pud tingale mo invest..

[firestarter]

Updates

Gov't wants to build ₱200-B national broadband network

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — The Philippines is gearing up to build a nationwide broadband network that will help bring Internet to the countryside.

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has proposed to the President a national broadband network that will run across the country, linking previously unserved, rural areas.

If approved, the project will start this January and take three years to complete, ICT Secretary Rodolfo Salalima told reporters on Tuesday.

Related: Govt says faster speeds, better internet access in 2017 for laggard Philippines

The cost will range anywhere between about P80 billion and P200 billion, depending on the type of network the government will build and how it will choose to manage it.

During his meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte in October, Salalima recommended that the government build and manage the network, with private companies allowed to lease it.

This could prove attractive to telcos, since they have no networks of their own in the countryside.

They have been unable to reach these areas because of a lack of basic infrastructure like roads, bridges and airports. Putting up their own Internet infrastructure would take costs even higher.

By setting up networks in these so-called "missionary areas," the government hopes to lay the groundwork — so telcos can come in and begin to offer much-needed Internet services to the residents there, Salalima said.

Related: Govt blames cell towers, frequencies to blame for slow Internet

Another option is for the government, not only to build and manage the national broadband network, but also act as a "full-blown, third-party operator" as well, the ICT chief said.

It would effectively be entering the market and competing with telco giants Globe Telecom, Inc. and Smart Communications, Inc.

But he was quick to explain: "That is too premature. We cannot compete with the telcos right now. We would have to conduct feasibility studies first before we explore that."

The DICT is also reviewing the most cost-efficient national broadband network for the country.

Salalima said it could lay down fibre-optic cables or tap satellites. The agency could also work with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines, tapping its existing power lines for broadband.

"That is why we only have rough estimates for the costs. It could still change depending on what the President approves," he said.

Nevertheless, Salalima said the government would be open to private sector partners — even foreign ones — to help take on the massive project.

He admitted "two big Chinese firms" had already approached the DICT to offer their services.

[ghostie2472]

Unya, unsa naman nahitabo atong Nationwide Free Wi-Fi sa atong gobyerno?

Anyway, sa akong tan-aw ani noh, ok naman ang internet speed nato diri sa pinas, as a mobile user lang ha. Ang problema man gud sa mga tao, most have non LTE capable phones, mao hinay. I have an LTE capable phone and use LTE connections all the time, wala man koy problema bisan mag youtube pa ko or download.

Hinay ang internet basta naka non LTE connection or non LTE mobile device ka.

Unsaon ta man nga nag baha man ang baratohun nga mobile phones nga internet capable, ang mga LTE capable kay gamay ra man maka afford. Ang maayo ana kay ang mga mobile phones, bisan sa pinaka barato, kay LTE capable unta.