DITO Tel, Converge ICT Ink Cable Asset Sharing Deal
By TED CORDERO, GMA Integrated News
January 11, 2024
Telecommunications firms DITO Telecommunity Corp. and Converge ICT Solutions Inc. signed a cable asset sharing agreement on Thursday.
At a ceremony in Taguig City, officials of both telcos signed a Master Facilities Provisioning Agreement (MFPA).
Under the agreement, DITO Tel and Converge would allow each other to share select terrestrial and submarine fiber optic cable assets.
The total fiber assets of Converge span 682,000 fiber kilometers and pass over 16.7 million homes, with its household coverage now at 62.3% of the total households in the Philippines.
Meanwhile, DITO Tel has over 7,000 cell sites, reaching over 80% of the population, located in over 850 cities and municipalities in the country, and now has over 9.5 million activated subscribers.
The asset exchange arrangement will strengthen the network of both telcos as it will translate to expanded coverage and increased redundancy, as well as create savings from increased operational efficiencies and reduced capital expenditure requirements.
“We want to leverage our respective existing facilities through this resource sharing agreement to bring us closer to our goal of empowering every Filipino home with quality broadband connectivity. Our collaboration will allow us to reach more customers and deliver a better service with increased resiliency,” said Converge CEO and co-founder Dennis Anthony Uy.
For his part, DITO Tel CEO Ernesto Alberto said, “Under the spirit of forging alliances and healthy competition, this agreement is a testament to both our organizations’ shared commitment to provide the best user experience that our customers deserve, whether consumers or enterprises.”
The partnership between DITO Tel and Converge also aims to achieve lower downtime, faster throughput, and more reliable connectivity, leading to further enhancement of the user experience of both telcos’ customers.
For purposes of implementing the MFPA, separate facilities agreements will have to be agreed upon by Converge and DITO Tel, specifying, among others, the location (routes), service restorations, and first-line maintenance of the covered facilities for each other’s usage. —VBL, GMA Integrated News
