ZAMBOANGA CITY—Mayor Celso Lobregat welcomed the interconnection services between Globe and the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) here, saying it would help usher development in the city.
At an early morning meeting today with Globe officials from Manila and all over Mindanao, Lobregat, as a gesture of support for the interconnection between the two telecommunications giants in the country, bared he was inviting representatives of government line agencies to attend the ceremonial launching of the interconnection Tuesday.
From the meeting with Lobregat at the mayor’s office, Froilan Castelo, head for Corporate and Legal Services Group of Globe, said that “Zamboanga is touted to become one of Mindanao‘s biggest economic hubs with its robust ICT infrastructure.”
“After launching our Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax) network in 2009 comes the successful rollout of an interconnected Globe and PLDT network. This is very timely for the city with its vision to provide and attract more business opportunities that will spur continued growth,” said Castelo.
Thanking the National Telecommunications Office [NTC] for its decision to push on the interconnection, Lobregat said he was expecting that the NTC decision would help “boost the growing information and communications technology [ICT] industry in the city.”
The interconnection was a product of a five-year negotiation that culminated with the NTC board’s order for both telecommunications giants to immediately implement the interconnection to maximize their respective services to the communities.
NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba said that “the regulatory body expects the immediate implementation of local interconnection services between Globe and PLDT to provide subscribers and business establishments with quality and more affordable telecommunication services.”
This year, the NTC paved the way to complete the interconnection between Globe and PLDT in Pampanga, Bulacan, and Zamboanga, with four more areas up for full activation before the year ends. With the completion of local interconnection, residents and business establishments, regardless of subscription, can enjoy calling each other without having to pay long-distance charges or being charged with toll rates.
Castelo said that “Globe is happy to have been part of this milestone for the people of Zamboanga. Rest assured that Globe will always be at forefront of public service and will continue to work closely with NTC and the local government units to fast track implementation of interconnection services in more areas nationwide.”
Since last April, Globe, Bayan Telecommunications and Digitel Telecommunications Philippines have been 100-percent interconnected in all areas of common presence and operations nationwide.
Source: Globe, PLDT interconnect in Zamboanga City (BUSINESS MIRROR)