Mobile phone users expected to shift to Internet-capable smartphones in 2 years

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino mobile phone users will shift to Internet-capable “smartphones” in large numbers over the next two to three years, according to leading wireless service provider Smart Communications.

In response to this, Smart said it is now taking the lead in promoting this transition with the introduction of an array of high-quality, affordable smartphones and tablets led by its “Netphone”, and, low-cost internet service packages in the next few months.

They added that the company will further beef up its cellular data network in anticipation of the growing volume of mobile data. The PLDT Group is expected to raise its capital expenditures above P30 billion this year, with much of the increase going to fortifying Smart’s cellular network including mobile broadband.

“Network superiority has been a key competitive advantage for us. Our fixed and mobile networks are the country’s most extensive, resilient and robust. We are building on that strength,” PLDT and Smart president and CEO Napoleon Nazareno said.

According to Nazareno, the shift to smartphones is a global trend.

“At last week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, smartphones, tablets and mobile data service took center stage. This is happening because feature-rich smartphones are becoming more affordable and mobile phone networks more powerful and data-capable,” he said.

Meanwhile, Smart chief wireless adviser Orlando Vea said the company is offering its own line of smartphones featuring a suite of relevant, affordable services that will bring the Internet to the broad market of Filipino mobile phone users. “We will put the Internet within the reach of every Filipino. The Netphone has drawn positive reviews from the global mobile community, with Smart seen as leading the change into the mobile broadband mass market. This is in line with our ‘Internet for all’ vision,” he added.

At Barcelona, Smart unveiled a world-first: the Netphone, a smartphone designed to provide Internet services in affordable bite-sized servings. Early in the year, the telco also made a major push to promote Internet access by introducing IDEOS, billed as the world’s first affordable Android Smartphone.

Anticipating the rise of mobile data traffic, Smart is both expanding and upgrading its broadband and cellular networks. The expansion program covers Smart’s 3G/HSPA mobile broadband and WiMax networks.

Smart currently provides Internet access to over 8.3 million subscribers all over the country, according to Rolando Pena, who heads the PLDT Group’s network expansion program.

“This is the largest mobile Internet subscriber base being served by a Philippine telco. With the surge in popularity of smartphones and tablets, we expected this subscriber base to grow further in the coming years,” he said.

Globally, sales of smartphones rose by 72 percent in 2010 to over 300 million units and accounted for nearly 20 percent of total mobile phone sales, according to Gartner, a leading global IT research and advisory company. In a recent report, the research firm IDC said smartphone sales are expected to grow faster in 2011, as vendors make available more mid-range to low-level handsets at lower prices.