NOW Corp. introduced on Thursday its first 4G product that aims to provide Internet connectivity to households in certain communities, partnering with businesses and the local government unit of Pasig City for its initial rollout.
RJ Torres, who heads the marketing division at Now Corp., said the company plans to accelerate the growth of its 4G product—called Now 4G LTE—by tapping businesses, local governments and entrepreneurs as platforms of customer activation.
The company calls these partners as NMPs or Network ng Mamamayang Pilipino (Network of the Filipino People), a play on its previous bid to become the new major player (NMP) in the telco arena.
“We want to bring our product to the residential areas through our local partners,” Torres said in an interview. “We are partnering with them so they can give us knowledge on how to serve the communities.”
For its 4G product, Now Corp. uses its recently awarded 20 megahertz (MHz) frequency under the 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) band.
“We designed and engineered it so that each sector in our area is given optimized experience,” he said. “The maximum number of subscribers is 600 households within a 1.5-kilometer radius.”
Torres said this is Now Corp.’s response to the gap between the supply and demand for fiber-optic cables in the Philippines, noting the company will also be laying out fiber-optic cables in the areas where its 4G services are and will be available.
After Santa Lucia, Pasig, Now Corp. targets to also roll out its 4G services in Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Ortigas, Manila and Bonifacio Global City, through the NMPs.