NOW Telecom secures USTDA grant funding

Listed telecommunications services provider NOW Telecom Co. Inc. said Friday it secured a grant funding from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) for technical assistance to advance critical digital infrastructure projects in the Philippines.

In a statement, NOW Telecom said that USTDA, an independent agency of the US government, approved its grant request.

The grant amount was not disclosed.

The telco said the grant will fund the technical assistance (TA) for the development of “Wireless Telephony Network for the Philippines using 5G Technology.”

The TA includes three major components: design of a national 5G wireless network, the design and planning of a nationwide broadband network, and the design and implementation of a pilot 5G network in Metro Manila.

USTDA's funding will support NOW Telecom’s development and implementation of a mobile and fixed wireless network utilizing 5G technology, the company added.

NOW Telecom said the TA will be undertaken by Bell Labs Consulting, represented by Nokia of America Corporation as the prime contractor —a company registered in the US that is engaged in research and scientific development in the telecommunications sector.

“This strategic project is in collaboration with global 5G Tech Leader Nokia of America and a global technology and research innovator, Nokia Bell Labs,” it said.

NOW Telecom said its 5G pilot launch will use network and radio equipment, corenetwork, and software developed and supplied by Nokia Americas and its subsidiaries. — DVM, GMA Integrated News