Smart Communications Inc. emerged as the country’s fastest and best mobile network in the first half of 2022, overtaking rival telecom company, according to  Ookla, the global leader in mobile and broadband network intelligence. 

In the latest Ookla’s Speedtest Awards covering Q1-Q2 2022, Smart emerged as the ‘Fastest Mobile Network’ with a Speed Score of 62.22, while its closest competitor posted a Speed Score of 32.48.    

To bag this category, Smart posted a median download speed of 24.26 Mbps and a median upload speed of 6.59 Mbps, while its closest competitor posted a median download speed of 17.47 Mbps and a median upload speed of 6.43 Mbps.   

Smart also dominated the ‘Best Mobile Coverage’ category with a Coverage 794, surpassing its closest competitor’s Coverage Score of 732. The Coverage Score captures both the number of locations in which an operator offers service (its footprint) and the quality of service in each location, explained Ookla in its report.   

 “Being the first Philippine mobile services provider to be declared as the ‘Best Mobile Network’ is a huge honor for Smart. This inspires us in our mission to provide better connectivity for our customers as we all adapt to a digitally empowered lifestyle,” Alfredo S. Panlilio, PLDT and Smart president and chief executive said.

“We aim to enable the life of every Filipino. This aligns with our nation-building efforts as we also support the government’s aspiration to digitalize the country,” Panlilio added. 

As of end-June 2022, Smart had around 77,100 total base stations nationwide, including around 7,300 5G base stations, to support the growing mobile data needs of 3G, 4G/LTE and 5G customers from Batanes to Tawi-Tawi.