The US-based internet testing and analysis company Ookla may have ranked the Philippines in the 81st slot out of 177 countries in the Speedtest Global Index, Converged ICT Solutions said its base offering FiberX Plan at 35 Mbps is still the fastest in the country while others still offer 5 Mbps plans.
In a statement, Converge CEO Dennis Anthony Uy said Converge is the only major internet service provider in the country that uses pure end-to-end fiber optic technology to deliver high-speed broadband to its customers.
“Fiber optic technology has been the proven technology around the world that can provide the fastest speed and most reliable connection for broadband internet,” said Uy.
Some internet providers still use the old DSL (digital subscriber line) technology which runs on copper telephone lines which is 100 times slower than fiber optic cables that transmit data in the form of light via ultra-thin glass strands.
Uy said fiber optic technology for high-speed broadband connection is also much superior than fixed wireless technology which is unstable, slower, and more expensive. “Fiber broadband delivers the most consistent and fastest speed, without data caps.”
He said speed tests only represent a small sample size, using defined parameters set by an organization. “Across the fixed broadband sector, most customers are subscribed to the lowest, entry level plans. Thus, it’s important to show speedtest results that consistently reflect what the majority of subscribers signs up for and not a minority of high-end users may experience.”
Uy said “Converge already offers a higher speed entry level plan at 35 Mbps and we’re proud to be able to reliably deliver to our subscribers a digital experience close to the maximum speeds of their subscription plans, through fiber technology.”
Ookla has recently validated that Converge delivers the most consistent speed among fixed broadband providers in Metro Manila, Calabarzon (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon), Ilocos, Central Luzon, and the Cordillera Administrative Region in the first quarter of the year.
Also based on thousands of consumer-initiated tests taken with Speedtest®, Converge results showed the best average latency rate of 13 millisecond (ms) and jitter rate of 25 ms among local internet providers.
Latency or commonly called ping refers to the reaction time of your connection, from how quickly your device gets a response after a request has been sent while the jitter rate shows the variability in ping over time.
Converge has also led the aggressive expansion of fiber optic cables in the country as we aim to bring the internet experience of Filipinos to be at par with the best in the world.
As of end-April, total fiber assets of Converge have reached around 370,000 kilometers, with over 69,000 kilometers in its fiber backbone and distribution network and over 300,000 fiber kilometers in its last mile network, serving more than one million customers.
“Last April, we also announced that we have connected Visayas and Mindanao to our national fiber backbone and we’re already doing a soft launch of our services in Cebu and Davao as we prepare for a full commercial launch of our services in the second half of the year,” said Uy.
“We are on track to meeting our goal of reaching 55% of Philippine households by 2025. As of end-2020, our all-fiber network has already passed over six million Filipino homes, accounting for 25% of total households.”