MANILA — Globe Telecom sustained its stronghold in the consumer broadband business after the consistently-growing and profitable segment of Globe posted broadband revenues of P12.7 billion ending 2014, a 22% increase from previous year’s P10.4 billion amid the rising demand for internet connectivity and the burgeoning shift to a digital lifestyle.
The telco’s broadband customer base also registered double-digit growth after customers reached nearly 2.8 million at the end of 2014, an increase of 37% from 2 million a year earlier. Fixed broadband and wireless broadband business booked customer uptake growth of 16% and 42%, respectively.
“Broadband is one of the fastest growing business segments in the company and remains a key growth driver for Globe. We are confident that the brand will sustain its growth trajectory moving forward as we continue to develop innovative and relevant products and services in line with our commitment of enriching our customers’ digital lifestyle whether they are mobile or at home,” said Gilbert Simpao, Globe Senior Vice President for Consumer Broadband Business.
The impressive revenue performance resulted from the continued aggressive acquisitions campaigns and new competitive bundled plans launched throughout the year, he said. Also, the introduction of more affordable products and competitive tablet bundles throughout the year and the expanded pervasiveness of the fixed and wireless broadband network stimulated the robust performance of our broadband business in 2014, Simpao added.
Globe continued to introduce innovative content offers and various device plays to remain relevant to customers. In the fourth quarter of last year, Tattoo Postpaid launched gadget bundle offers with no upfront cash out and low monthly fees at P749/month; Lenovo A3300 at P799/month; Samsung Tab3 7” at P849/month and Lenovo Yoga at P1,099/month. All gadget bundles come with free three months Spotify Premium subscription of 1GB data per month, Bluetooth speaker, mobile WiFi device and 1GB Globe Cloud.
Also, Tattoo Prepaid sustained its best table bundle offers with free mobile WiFi and savings as much as P1,995. Taking the next step from 3G to LTE, Tattoo Prepaid SIM portfolio was relaunched with new LTE Combi-SIM (regular and micro SIM) and LTE tri-SIM (regular, micro and nano SIM) with speeds of up to 42 Mbps plus freebies. LTE Combi-SIM is available for only P40 with free 50 MB worth of data plus Basic Spotify access of 200 MB, valid for one day, while LTE Tri-SIM is available for only P75 with free 250 MB worth of data plus Basic Spotify access of 400 MB, valid for three days.
Amid continuing shift of its customers to digital lifestyle, Globe is currently upgrading its network capacity and expanding its LTE TDD and LTE-FDD footprint to further strengthen the company’s mobile data infrastructure and deliver faster and more reliable wireless internet connectivity. This involves activation of more than 4,300 cell sites with the LTE-TDD and LTE-FDD ultra broadband access technologies for a more pervasive LTE coverage. The LTE-TDD and LTE-FDD technologies offer higher bandwidth, which enhances speed of data transfer, provides lower latency and increases overall network capacity.
In 2014, Tattoo ventured into a partnership with the National Basketball Association (NBA) to allow customers to enjoy special edition plans and promos with access to NBA League Pass by bundling its services with exclusive and premium content. Tattoo Home Broadband introduced its special edition Plan 1299 at 5 Mbps that comes with access to NBA League Pass and data allowance of 30 GB per month. With NBA League Pass, fans can watch NBA games live and on-demand at home through multiple devices. It comes with 7 days of NBA League Pass access via promo codes that customers may choose to use anytime within 30 days.
