DICT: More cell towers to be built to boost internet connectivity coverage

Internet connectivity in the country may soon improve as internet service providers (ISPs) are expected to ramp up their services, an official of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said Monday, June 21.

DICT Undersecretary Emmanuel Rey Caintic said people will soon feel the development in the country’s connectivity because ISPs are seen to add more cellular towers and other telecommunications infrastructures to boost signal coverage.

“Iyong intermittent ng halimbawa mobile signal, dulot nga po iyan ng laktaw-laktaw pa rin ang mga tore sa ibang mga lugar (Your intermittent , for example, of mobile signal, is due to the fact that the towers are built far from each other in some places),” Caintic said in a public briefing.

“So halimbawa gagalaw ka from one tower spot to another, nagkakaroon ng intermittence. Pero dahil nga dito sa pagpapadagdag natin sa kanila ng kanilang mga towers ay mas mababawasan iyong ating mga dead spots (So for example you move from one tower spot to another, there is intermittence. But because of this, by adding more towers, dead spots will be lesser),” he added.

As for the internet connection via fixed broadband, the DICT official said ISPs conduct their fiber-optic cable rollout simultaneously, which affects the users internet connection.

“So konting tiis lang iyan dahil nga din sa kanilang pag-increase ng kanilang mga coverage is lalong malapit na panahon ay mararamdaman (So, just a little bit of patience because with the increase in coverage will be felt sooner),” he said.

President Duterte issued a directive back in July 2020 for telecommunication companies to improve their services, and ordered local government units to ensure an efficient processing of permits for construction of cellular towers.