Smart to implement major network expansion in MM

MANILA, Philippines - Smart Communications Inc. is set to implement a major network expansion in Metro Manila over the next three months to deliver improved voice, text messaging, and mobile internet, particularly LTE or Long Term Evolution service to subscribers.

While the aim is to provide better voice, text messaging as well as mobile internet services, Smart expects to see the biggest gain in indoor LTE coverage, which will quadruple. 

Indoor 3G coverage, meanwhile, will double in Metro Manila. 

“Smart is rolling out the fastest and most powerful mobile data network in the country, and we are focused on improving indoor coverage since we know that people use mobile internet services mostly indoors, particularly in Metro Manila – in their homes, offices, restaurants, coffee shops, and the like,” Joachim Horn, chief technology and information advisor for PLDT Inc. and Smart said.

For the network expansion, Smart is deploying new base station equipment in about 2,500 cell sites across Metro Manila for low-frequency bands such as 700 Megahertz (MHz), 850 MHz, and 900 MHz for its LTE and 3G services to cover a larger area and provide better indoor signals.

Smart is also using high-frequency bands like 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz for the network expansion to enable each cell site to handle more calls, texts and rising mobile data traffic.

Smart’s network expansion in Metro Manila follows work it started in Boracay and Metro Davao last year.

Apart from Metro Manila, Smart is also working on delivering improved mobile internet service in other parts of the country.

As Smart is accelerating LTE deployment, it is also working with leading handset manufacturers for the availability of more affordable LTE handsets in the market.

“LTE provides us the right platform to bring high-speed mobile internet throughout the country. LTE facilities, with strengthened transport links, can be quickly upgraded to LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), which can provide greater capacity and faster data speeds,” Horn said.

In April last year, Smart started to roll out the country’s first LTE-A or 4.5G service using a capability called Carrier Aggregation or the combination of two or more radio frequency bands to deliver bigger bandwidth and faster data speeds to mobile users in Boracay.

Smart, together with Huawei, hit another record last year after it combined five frequencies to achieve data speeds of over one Gbps (gigabit per second).

The breakthrough has placed Smart in the league of a handful of leading operators actively working on ultra-high speed wireless data capacity in anticipation of demand for gigabit speeds.

“With this breakthrough, we have successfully demonstrated that very high speeds demanded by the advent of the ‘Gigabit Society’ can be supported using LTE technology, and with the spectrum available to PLDT and Smart,” Horn said.

In Europe, regulatory initiatives are currently underway to encourage investments in ultrafast broadband infrastructure, towards what is being called the Gigabit Society, which aims for operators to be able to provide a standard one Gbps speed to all individual subscribers, public and private institutions, rural and urban households, and seamless 5G coverage across all major transport routes and hubs.

“We are also focused on ensuring that our current investments in network facilities will enable us to be ready for 5G when it arrives sometime in 2020,” Horn said.

Last year, Smart made another breakthrough as it conducted a demo with Nokia and achieved 5G speeds of 2.5 Gbps for the first time in the Philippines.