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| (Image Source: ABS-CBN Corporation) |
SKY Cable Corporation (SKY), a major subsidiary of the Philippines' premiere media and entertainment company ABS-CBN Corporation, will bring faster, superior, and more reliable internet service to new and existing SKY Fiber subscribers by utilizing the pure fiber network of leading Philippine fiber broadband provider Converge Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Solutions Inc. The two major broadband internet and digital services companies in the country have entered into a commercial arrangement that will enable SKY to upgrade its network and improve services to its subscribers.
ABS-CBN Corporation and SKY Cable Corporation Chairman Mark Lopez said, “Converge has built a superior state of the art fiber network nationwide that SKY customers will soon experience.” SKY President and Chief Operations Officer Claudia Suarez said the initiative with Converge supports SKY's transformation plan that is aimed at improving its products and services. “Through the arrangement with Converge, we expect Sky and its subscribers to benefit from the world-class fiber network that Converge has built over the last few years,” Suarez further said. Converge President and Co-Founder Maria Grace Uy said that the arrangement will allow Converge to maximize its network and increase port utilization. “This will be a revenue boost for Converge consistent with similar arrangements with other players as we are able to continue to monetize further our excess network capacity,” said Uy.
Converge has the largest fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network in the Philippines with over eight million ports and a fiber footprint extending over 700,000 kilometers that reaches 16 million Filipino homes nationwide. As of end-March 2024, Converge serves 2.3 million residential broadband subscribers across the country. “As everyone knows, the first business that I built on my own was in cable television and with the increasing availability of fiber technology in the early 2000s outside the Philippines, my wife Grace and I decided to enter the fixed broadband business. So, I’m really excited that we are able to help SKY, the leader in the cable business, in its own transformation program by providing them the latest optical fiber technology,” said Converge CEO and Co-Founder Dennis Anthony Uy. Converge Chief Operations Officer Jesus Romero commented, “We are confident that SKY subscribers will have a better experience with faster broadband speeds with fiber connectivity.”
ABS-CBN Corporation President and concurrent SKY Cable Corporation Director Carlo Katigbak expressed confidence that the initiative with Converge will bring positive benefits to SKY subscribers, saying, “We believe that this is the best way to move forward and stay focused on delivering superior customer experience." Aside from the network upgrade, the SKY transformation program also calls for increased operational efficiency, greater financial discipline, and organizational improvements. Uy concluded, “We hope to replicate this business model and encourage other players to do the same. This is really all part of the mission of Converge to bring world-class connectivity to all Filipinos and leave no one behind in this digital age."
