PLDT Inc. is still expanding its fiber infrastructure, which reached 395,000 kilometers end-September, by another 81,000 kms (31,000 kms more in 2020 and 50,000 in 2021), PLDT-Smart senior vice president for network planning and engineering Mario G. Tamayo announced yesterday.
The telco's fiber optic network supports all its internet delivery platforms, from fiber fixed broadband, mobile data services via 4G and 5G, as well as carrier-grade WiFi.
With its ongoing works, PLDT also intends to increase the capacity of its backbone network by another 37 terabits per second.
As of end-September, 2020 its backbone capacity stands at 55 terabits per second.
This capacity expansion will cater to the growing demand for data and deliver technologies like
5G, LTE, and fiber-to-the-home.
In addition, PLDT’s fiber infrastructure supports its mobile subsidiary Smart Communication Inc.'s network by providing high-capacity links for base stations.
Base stations are electronic equipment installed on cell sites that transmit and receive radio frequencies.
These stations connect customers’ mobile devices, such as phones and WiFi routers to the network.
“From the base station all the way to the data centers, the connection is mostly fiber," Tamayo pointed out.
Faster transmission of data is best enabled by fiberizing the base stations, so customers can have a better experience, such as when streaming videos.
The international submarine cables that connect PLDT's network to the rest of the world, where most content is hosted, are also made of fiber.
The network ecosystem of PLDT and Smart consists of thousands of cell sites; 56,799 base stations; 3.81 million ports for outside plant facilities; 25 core data centers; three cable landing stations and international gateway facilities.
PLDT’s heavy network investments make these improvements possible.
Over the past five years, PLDT’s capex – most of which was poured into its network build-out – reached P260 billion.
Capex was particularly high in the last two years – when PLDT ploughed back 38% of its revenues in 2018 and 45% of its revenues in 2019 back into capex.
PLDT earmarked P70 billion for its 2020 capex. Its network spending will remain sizable next year as PLDT further expands its fiber network and Smart rolls out 5G.