PLDT unit eyes tech agreement with Apple

Screengrab from https://pldthome.com/

MANILA, Philippines—A unit of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. is seeking talks with United States-based technology firm Apple Inc. as it sources manufacturers for a customized tablet-landline that it plans to market under its “Telpad” brand, a company official said on Tuesday.

The move would be part of PLDT Home’s strategy to provide services to customers demanding more premium offerings as the company sought to expand its market share, Patrick Tan, PLDT vice president of home voice solutions, told reporters yesterday.

Tan said there were 110,000 users of its Telpad, which incorporates features of a table computer and PLDT’s traditional landline service, and the company plans to double this figure in 2014.

He added that Telpad revenues, which hit P800 million last year, could increase to P1 billion in 2014 as penetration ramps up with Tuesday’s launch of an upgraded Telpad with a more powerful quad core processor.

“We just want to follow the consumer’s voice. If they want high-end, branded [products] we want to make sure it is available,” Tan said.

Apple, which makes the popular iPad tablet computers and iPhone smartphones, is considered a leading player in the global premium electronics segment.

Tan said the hardware for its current Telpad was being provided by China’s Huawei. He said they started talks with South Korea’s Samsung last year and the company was also keen on tapping other Chinese suppliers to allow them to offer Telpads at lower price points.

Telpad plans, which are bundled with broadband services, range from P1,649 to P4,100, depending on Internet speeds, information on PLDT Home’s website showed.

By tapping Chinese manufacturers, Tan said they could offer packages starting at P1,400. He did not provide figures for the more premium Telpads should talks with Apple or Samsung prosper.

PLDT Home launched Telpads on Tuesday with quad core processors and run on the Android 4.1.2 Jellybean operating system.

New content will come from its tie-ups with Spinner for music, EA Games, Clickplay for movies and news from TV5’s News5Everywhere and television shows from MyPinoyTV. PLDT Home said it was planning to launch added applications like digital newspapers, magazines and textbooks.