Globe to roll out 5G technology in 2019

Ayala-led telecommunication giant Globe Telecom Inc. announced Wednesday its adoption of the latest fifth generation (5G) wireless technology.

Globe president and CEO Ernest Cu said the first 5G network service will be rolled out starting second quarter of 2019.

Globe president Ernest Cu announces Globe will bring 5G technology to the Philippines by Q2 2019 | via @Ted_Cordero pic.twitter.com/KTgr7FQASg

— GMA News (@gmanews) June 6, 2018

Cu said 5G will enable Globe to deploy fixed wireless broadband at fiber speed.

It will also allow Globe to use Air Fiber technology in relation to the deployment of fixed wireless broadband.

"Air Fiber internet, which makes use of fixed location wireless radio instead of fiber, could provide speeds ranging from 50 Mbps to 100 Mbps," he said.

The Globe chief said the company has been preparing for the onset of 5G technology since 2016 with the Massive MIMO or multiple-input and multiple-output (MM). MM is the fundamental radio access technology for 5G.

"We have been preparing our network for sometime now with our existing vendor partners, including Huawei Technologies. We are happy to bring the Philippines in line with other countries that are early adopters of 5G," Cu said.

The technology will also enable Globe to go over the circuitous approval process of deploying a fiber optic cable, which involves multiple permits from local government units.

"We can bring internet to more homes by deploying 5G compared to a typical fiber optic roll out," Cu said. — BM, GMA News