PH Books Biggest Improvement in 5G Download Speeds, Video Experience in Asia

The Philippines booked the most significant uplift between 5G and 4G download speeds and video experience in Asia Pacific as it registered 5G mobile technology download speeds of nearly nine times faster than 4G technology, according to March 2022 Benchmarking the 5G Experience – Asia Pacific report of independent mobile analytics firm Opensignal.

It also had the biggest improvement in video experience, with Filipino users enjoying a 33% better video experience on 5G over 4G. The Philippines had an average 5G Download Speed of 136.6 Mbps during the data collection period from November 1, 2021 to January 29, 2022.

The Philippines’ 5G Download Speed vs. 4G improvement ratio at 8.9 was faster than Thailand (7.5), Taiwan (7.2), South Korea (6.3), New Zealand (6), Hong Kong (5.1), Australia (4.6), Indonesia (4.5), Singapore (4), and Japan (3.4).

In terms of 5G versus 4G Video Experience improvement, the Philippines’ 33% was better than Indonesia (29%), Thailand (23%), Hong Kong (18%), Taiwan (14%), New Zealand (13%), Australia (12%), Singapore (9%), South Korea (7%), and Japan (6%).

The Philippines also scored on average 77.1 out of 100 for 5G Video Experience, 63.7 for 5G Games Experience, and 77.5 for 5G Voice App Experience.

In its latest Asia-Pacific 5G benchmarking report, Opensignal said 5G technology continues to mature as a technology as operators expand the extent of their 5G services. This is achieved by expanding the geographic reach, deploying 5G on new spectrum bands that improve speed and capacity, or by boosting in-building signal propagation and rural reach through lower frequency bands for 5G.

Although 5G Availability and 5G Reach in the Philippines are lower than most of its neighbors, Opensignal still considered it impressive given the challenging landscape of the country. The Philippines posted on average 11.1% 5G Availability and 3.7 out of 10 for 5G Reach.

Operators worldwide are expanding their 5G services because of the advantages of this latest technology in serving users.

Locally, Globe also continues to improve and expand its network. This year, the company has earmarked P89 billion for its capital expenditures to accelerate 5G rollout, build new cell sites, upgrade existing sites to 4G/LTE, and ramp up the fiberization of Filipino homes nationwide.

“We intend to meet the growing demand for faster connectivity, lower latency, and higher bandwidth which 5G technology can offer. 5G has the potential to transform lives and drive new investment opportunities. We want to be ready when that shift happens,” said Ernest Cu, Globe President and CEO.