Aboitiz Infra upbeat on small cell sites venture

MANILA, Philippines — Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc. said the local small cell industry is poised for growth, with the company managing to roll out hundreds of small cell sites since its foray last year.

Aboitiz InfraCapital said it has rolled out 300 small cell sites in Cebu and Davao with Globe Telecom and Dito Telecommunity.

The company last year launched its small cell sites business to help mobile network operators accelerate the expansion of their network capacity and coverage.

Leveraging on existing assets, its small cell network in high-density urban cities such as Subic, Cebu, and Davao was made readily available to mobile network operators, making it cost-effective and easy to deploy small cell attachments.

Aboitiz InfraCapital said mobile network operators are looking to further fortify their networks with small cells for 5G upgrades.

Small cells are small low-powered, short-ranged antennas that provide coverage and capacity, meant to work in conjunction with macro cell towers.

By providing more targeted network capacity, Aboitiz InfraCapital said small cells can help mobile network operators deliver increased data capacity and faster connectivity speed in an area, which will in turn result in better audio and video streaming and overall wireless experience for users.

“With less congested networks and an increased data capacity, small cells can help support a host of other innovative services, such as telemedicine, connected cars, smart homes, smart agriculture, and even entire smart cities. These innovative solutions can then help thousands of Filipinos get more opportunities, access to healthcare, and improve food production,” Aboitiz InfraCapital said.

“And as greater connectivity becomes more available, more and more people will be empowered to use it. Demand will further create itself as they find more ways to use it in their daily lives.  Given the huge benefits and convenience small cells offer, it’s no wonder the industry is poised for growth,” it said.

Last April, the infrastructure arm of the Aboitiz Group has formed a joint venture with global private markets firm Partners Group to build and operate telecommunication towers and support infrastructure across the country.

The joint venture telecommunications infrastructure platform called Unity Digital Infrastructure Inc. has secured a certificate of registration as an independent tower company from the Department of Information and Communications Technology and is working on the rollout of its pilot batch of towers with the mobile network operators.