‘No longer in last place’: DICT sees improvement in PH internet access
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MANILA, Philippines — Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Gringo Honasan said the Philippines is “no longer in the last place” for internet connectivity as both fixed and mobile broadband have improved over the years.
Honasan said connectivity for fixed broadband has improved by as much as 700 percent while mobile broadband has improved by 300 percent.
“Our connectivity programs have improved by 700 percent sa fixed at saka more than 300 percent sa mobile. Di pa po tayo nasa itaas, pero ‘di na tayo kulelat ngayon,” Honasan said.
(Our connectivity programs have improved by 700 percent for fixed and more than 300 percent for mobile broadband. We’re not yet on the top, but we are no longer in the last place.)
Honasan said they are also starting to convince telecommunication companies to strike a balance between income and public interest.
“Nakukumbinse na po namin yung mga telco na magtulungan tayo dito. Hindi na po pinaguusapan dito yung kikitain dahil the telecommunications industry is so big that you can actually moderate your greed,” Honasan said.
(We are convincing telcos that we help each other. This is no longer a discussion on income because the telecommunications industry is so big that you can actually moderate your greed.)
“Pwedeng timplahin naman yung corporate objective at tsaka public interests component nito. Nakukumbinse na po natin sila at big kong ibalita sa inyo tumutulong na sila sa atin. Maybe with a little back-up, we might develop some traction here,” he added.
(We can mix corporate objective and public interests components here. We are convincing them and I would like to relay to you that they are now helping us. Maybe with a little back-up, we might develop some traction here.)
In June this year, the DICT reported that internet access speed in the Philippines remained in the middle ground in terms of international levels despite getting slight bumps in both fixed and mobile platforms.
As per the DICT, fixed broadband speed in the Philippines was recorded at 58.73 megabits per second (Mbps) while mobile speed was at 31.97 Mbps as of May 2021.
