Philippines internet ‘second slowest’ in Asia, ranks 110th among 139 nations

[hk blues]

1 minute ago, Tommy T. said:

All this whining about poor or lack of internet service...

When I lived aboard the yacht and was cruising for over 20 years, there was no internet service. Well... I take that back a bit... I could send and receive e-mails using a short wave radio modem - maybe 5 - 10 minutes to send or receive e-mails or weather reports. And I did that once or twice a day.

I listened to Voice of America or other powerful radio stations to pick up some news.

I'm not saying I do not miss internet or fast internet service - L and I love streaming movies and TV shows. But, for a long time I didn't have any of that and didn't miss it. I read a s***load of books - sometimes 2 or three in a week. And probably half or more of those were non-fiction history, science, etc....

I am just trying to put some of these posts into a different perspective...

But I will agree with most comments here that the two biggest providers in Philippines charge first world - and higher - prices for 2nd or 3rd world service and that does irritate me too.

I'm not sure whining is the appropriate verb to describe members' comments about internet, Tom.

I can live without Facebook, Netflix etc etc for long enough BUT when my son and his classmates have their lessons suddenly curtailed due to the internet environment AND when I cannot earn money due to being unable to access the internet I feel I have every right to "whine".

Not everyone is in your shoes Tom, and some have a genuine need for reliable internet.

Whine over!

[Tommy T.]

16 minutes ago, hk blues said:

I can live without Facebook, Netflix etc etc for long enough BUT when my son and his classmates have their lessons suddenly curtailed due to the internet environment AND when I cannot earn money due to being unable to access the internet I feel I have every right to "whine".

 

Good points, HK. I guess I forgot about the plague for a while... I will try to be more sensitive in future....

[hk blues]

3 minutes ago, Tommy T. said:

Good points, HK. I guess I forgot about the plague for a while... I will try to be more sensitive in future....

Covid-19 has nothing to do with me not being able to work though, Tom. I worked from home before and suffered the same issues.

For us old timers the internet may be an entertainment tool but for younger generations it's much more than that. 

Sure, the 2 main players have upped their game and I've frequently given them credit for that but they were coming from a low base and that's to their discredit. Let's not forget that Duterte himself hauled them into the Palace and tore them a nee one due to their poor performance and as recently as 2 weeks ago was still ranting at them - so, it's not just whining ex-pats who are dissatisfied.

1st world prices and 3rd world service is never a winning strategy Tom mate!

[Tommy T.]

4 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Covid-19 has nothing to do with me not being able to work though, Tom. I worked from home before and suffered the same issues.

For us old timers the internet may be an entertainment tool but for younger generations it's much more than that. 

Sure, the 2 main players have upped their game and I've frequently given them credit for that but they were coming from a low base and that's to their discredit. Let's not forget that Duterte himself hauled them into the Palace and tore them a nee one due to their poor performance and as recently as 2 weeks ago was still ranting at them - so, it's not just whining ex-pats who are dissatisfied.

1st world prices and 3rd world service is never a winning strategy Tom mate!

Totally agreed, HK.

[graham59]

One step at a time, eh.

It would be nice to have a proper bloody phone signal out here in peasant land...nevermind lightning internet. 

[Snowy79]

2 hours ago, Old55 said:

Well that answers why there's no Chinese satellites around the Philippines. 

I think the difference is there's a land border and heavy military pressence on both sides.  I passed quite a few Nepalese military bases in the middle of nowhere. Apparently China has been providing wifi for a few years breaking India's monopoly in the region. I'm not fully up on the non commercial technology available but I do know a friend that does Government work with some Israeli technology and he assures me it is scary what they can pickup in the middle of no where. 

[jimeve]

3 hours ago, graham59 said:

One step at a time, eh.

It would be nice to have a proper bloody phone signal out here in peasant land...nevermind lightning internet. 

Same here, got Globe and Smart walang signal.

[Gandang Smile]

9 hours ago, Shady said:

I've had the thought more than once. Why buy real estate for 10 to 20 million in Manila or Cebu, when I can buy something similar in the province for 1 to 2 million?

Because internet.

It's crazy, a third world nation can charge first world prices just because there's fast internet. One might think it's motivated by the real estate cartels...

Well, it's like this almost everywhere in the world. Real estate in big cities are supposedly more valuable because living there means easier access to better infrastructure, jobs, amenities and nightlife etc. Metro Manila is no exception.

There has been some big time speculatiobn, mainly masteminded by the Chinese mafia that runs the gambling operations (POGOs) over here. They don't pay taxes, they only employ Chinese residents, they launder their proceeds buying dozens of condo units, many of which they use to lodge their employees. This has been heating up the real estate market in several areas, mainly Pasay (where most of the POGOs are), Makati, Fort Bonifacio and even Pasig/Ortigas.

If it wasn't for my wife who works here in Ortigas, I would have been a lot happier to build a house in a nice area around a tier 2 city (Iloilo would be perfect, we have been there and it's an amazingly well-run city) and live there peacefully. Anything farther down in the wilderness than that would be a bit of a gamble, and not just for the bad cellphone/Internet signal. Being far from a hospital, from a shopping district, from everything might make life more inconvenient than we might sign up for.

[Shady]

5 hours ago, Gandang Smile said:

Well, it's like this almost everywhere in the world.

The distinction is that internet isn't limited to just 3 cities in most nations around the world, and so the disparate pricing that we see here is unique.

5 hours ago, Gandang Smile said:

 the Chinese mafia that runs the gambling operations (POGOs) over here. They don't pay taxes, they only employ Chinese residents, they launder their proceeds buying dozens of condo units, many of which they use to lodge their employees. This has been heating up the real estate market in several areas, mainly Pasay (where most of the POGOs are), Makati, Fort Bonifacio and even Pasig/Ortigas.

POGOs just abandoned Mactan and Mandaue, contributing to the extreme vacancies in office buildings though the real estate market seems mostly unfazed.

[BC57]

On 12/29/2020 at 8:27 AM, Old55 said:

Latest yearly internet listings are out and little has changed. More empty threats demanding reform that's unlikely unless an outside internet provider were allowed and that won't happen unless it's Chinese.

 

Philippines internet ‘second slowest’ in Asean, ranks 110th worldwide

 

Besides slow speeds the service is terrible. If a fly lands on the cable outside it seems that the internet goes down every time, lol. Spaghetti is stronger than the cable they use here to supply internet.