Globe’s Innove unit awarded USD1.6m Wi-Fi project

The Philippines’ Department of Information and Communications Technology (DOST) has awarded a PHP74.84 million (USD1.64 million) project to Globe Telecom subsidiaries Innove Communications and Yondu Solutions to build out a network of Wi-Fi access points in the country, as part of the ‘Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places’ initiative. Under the plan, the pair will deploy points of presence (PoPs) as the backbone and distribution hubs for internet connectivity covering no fewer than 967 municipalities. The PoPs will be built at the following locations on Luzon: Tugegarao City (Cagayan), Dagupan City (Pangasinan), San Fernando City (Pampanga), Lipa/Batangas City, Batangas), Legazpi City (Albay), Puerto Princesa City (Palawan Visayas), Iloilo City (Iloilo), Cebu City (Cebu), Calbayog City( Samar), Tacloban City (Leyte Mindanao), Cagayan De Oro City (Misamis Oriental), Pagadian City (ARMM), Davao City (Davao del Sur) and Zamboanga City (Zamboanga). The deployment is expected to be completed within the year. A second round of the bidding for the various managed services is slated to begin this August, with a total budget of PHP226.06 million set aside to provide coverage to the remaining 867 municipalities.