PLDT to focus on service packages

MANILA, Philippines - PLDT Inc. is going beyond providing connectivity by putting focus on service packages to cater to the growing demand of customers for video, gaming, as well as other digital content to drive the increase in mobile internet revenues.

PLDT and Smart Communications Inc. chief revenue officer Ernesto Alberto said the move to go beyond providing internet connectivity is intended to help drive higher mobile internet revenue for the company.

“It’s not just about connectivity anymore,” he said.

As such, the group has recently come up with offers to address the rising appetite for various digital content.

For instance, the group has a new offer called Video Prime 99 which comes with subscriptions to top streaming sites like iflix and iWant TV.

While the package includes a 2 GB data allocation to provide customers internet access, Alberto said the key selling point is the video content.

This, as video consumption is helping drive higher data usage on smartphones.

PLDT’s mobile internet revenue or revenue generated from the use of smartphone data rose 20 percent to P9.7 billion in first half from a year ago.

Alberto said video consumption enabled the 78 percent jump in data usage on smartphones and dongles in the Smart network to 117,657 Terabytes.

“We expect video consumption to further intensify as more Filipinos start to use smartphones,” he said.

As of end-June, 52 percent of Smart’s customers were using smartphones.

The group wants to promote the greater use of data on smartphones and dongles to achieve growth in the wireless business.