Philippine' operator, PLDT said it is investing about P2 billion (USD$40 million) over the next three years to roll out a hybrid fiber technology that can deliver super-fast broadband service through regular phone lines in buildings and residences.
The deployment comes after the successful trials of two advanced hybrid fiber technologies, one with KT called GiGa Wire and the other with Huawei called G.fast. Both are capable of providing data speeds per user of up to 600-700 Mbps per user, depending on the length of the local copper loop.
As vast majority of office and residential buildings are currently wired internally with copper and it is difficult and costly to re-wire these structures with fiber, both the GiGa Wire and G.fast work by connecting buildings and dwellings with fiber optic cables and using special equipment to enable the internal copper wiring of these structures to deliver fiber-like data speeds.
The deployment of hybrid fiber solutions complements very well the ongoing roll-out of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) connections. Currently, the number of homes passed by PLDT’s FTTH network reaches 2.5 million.
PLDT Chairman and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan
This new initiative is part of our broad effort to make fiber-powered, high-speed connectivity more widely available to the public. It’s part and parcel of building the ‘Gigabit Society’ – where high-bandwidth, low-latency digital services in homes, businesses, healthcare services, utilities and schools become an integral part of daily life.
PLDT Chief Revenue Officer Ernesto R. Alberto
Our initial plan calls for deploying Giga Wire and G.fast solutions in over 500 buildings in different parts of the country next year. This number will be split between residential and office buildings. But this is just the start.
