Converge installs nearly 5.5 million ports

MANILA, Philippines — Fiber broadband operator Converge ICT Solutions Inc. has deployed nearly 5.5 million ports as of end-October, enabling it to cover the country with its pure fiber connectivity.

Converge now services over 440 municipalities and cities across the country with its accelerated port deployment, spanning from the northernmost region of Luzon to the islands of the Visayas and the southern cities of Mindanao.

“We’ve achieved a record rollout of 654,188 ports in the third quarter of 2021 alone, a solid testament to the robust demand we continue to see throughout the country. In our new markets in Visayas and Mindanao, we’re glad to see a healthy uptake as 20 percent of the fiber rollouts were in these areas,” Converge CEO and co-founder Dennis Anthony Uy said.

Uy said company’s swift port deployment underpins its overarching goal of reaching more unserved and underserved areas in the country.

This allows the fiber provider to accelerate its target of covering 55 percent of Philippine households with high-speed fiber connectivity by two years to 2023, from its earlier target of 2025.

Last month, Converge completed its domestic subsea cable project connecting all the major islands of the Philippines to its national fiber backbone.

The company has also opened 23 business centers nationwide as of end-November, with the latest one located in Sorsogon in Bicol. Converge also expanded its footprint last October in Cagayan de Oro and Iloilo.

“Given the shift of every activity to the online space, access to the internet should no longer be a privilege but should be a right of every Filipino. The social and economic benefits that connectivity (particularly broadband) unlocks has to reach those at the margins,” Uy said.

Converge has nearly 1.6 million residential subscribers as of the end of the third quarter, almost double compared to the same period last year.

While its operations is currently centered on providing high-speed fixed broadband, the company is also looking to expand to new businesses such as fintech, e-games, and content, while continuing to grow its core broadband services.