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MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines saw an increase in average internet speeds for both mobile and broadband connections in August, according to a new analysis of speedtest.net by Ookla.
Based on Ookla’s recent Global Index report, the Philippines’ average internet download speed for fixed broadband increased from 71.17 megabits per second (Mbps) in July 2021 to 72.56 Mbps in July.
According to the National Telecommunications Commission, this latest speed represents an improvement of 1.95 percent for the internet in fixed broadband.
As for mobile internet speed, the Philippines’ improved from 33.69 Mbps in July to 33.77 Mbps in August, representing a slight monthly improvement of 0.24 percent.
The Philippines’ fixed broadband speed now ranks 63rd out of 180 countries in the Global Index, while mobile internet speed ranks 73rd out of 140 countries.
Meanwhile, the country places 17th out of the 50 countries in Asia for broadband speed and 22nd for mobile internet speed.
In the Asia-Pacific, the Philippines ranks 14th in broadband and 13th in mobile out of 46 countries.
As for the list of countries that belong to the ASEAN nations, the country ranked 5th in both fixed broadband and mobile out of 10 countries.
The NTC attributed the improvements in the country’s internet speeds to President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive in July last year, highlighting the need for swift processing of local government permits so additional cellular towers would be built to improve communication and connectivity nationwide.
As of April 2021 from July 2020, a total of 2,789 LGU permits were issued to telcos, which is a 294 percent increase compared to a total of only 1,636 LGU permits issued in 2019.
READ: PH’s telco infra improves amid speedy issuances of LGU permits
Currently, the country has 24,614 cellular towers, including the 10,941 towers of Globe; 10,433 towers of Smart; and 3,240 towers of DITO, the NTC said.
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