PLDT to boost speed for fiber customers in Metro Manila, parts of Greater Manila

MANILA, Philippines – PLDT said on Friday, March 13, that it expects a greater need for bandwidth as companies and schools switch to work- or study-from-home arrangements amid the novel coronavirus threat. 

PLDT spokesperson and head of public affairs Ramon Isberto assured their customers that they have more than sufficient capacity for the additional load the company expects, and said they would be providing a speed boost for fiber customers in Metro Manila, Rizal, Bulacan, Laguna, and Cavite so that the minimum speed will be 25Mbps.

The company expected the technical preparations to be finished next week. By then, users would be able to expect the speed boost. “That should be enough to serve the needs of several simultaneous users in the household,” Isberto said. 

In the US and in Italy, telcos AT&T and Vodafone have announced that they will lift their data caps until April 2020. PLDT will not need to as their plans have no data caps. 

For their prepaid fixed wireless service, PLDT said it would extend its current promo to April that would double the data load of their P199 prepaid data pack from 12GB to 24GB.

PLDT’s wireless subsidiary Smart will provide free mobile access to key government websites such as the Department of Health’s NCOV tracker, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRMMC), and Philippine Information Agency. 

Isberto promised they are taking “extraordinary measures to ensure network availability.” 

Globe will also provide free access to the official sites of the DOH and NDRMMC. It’s also offering a P1,000 discount on all postpaid home plans with free installation until March 31, 2020, accessible here. 

Globe ensured that its installers and repairmen would undergo stringent health check protocols. The workers will be checked for temperature and other symptoms before they leave for deployment to houses.

“Once they arrive at the customer’s residence, installers must also observe strict distance and interaction protocols such as introducing themselves 2 meters away from the customer before immediately putting on their mask. The mask shall not be removed under any circumstances until installation or repair has been completed,” Globe said. – Rappler.com