MediaQuest Holdings eyes foothold on RP mobile TV

MediaQuest Holdings eyes foothold on RP mobile TV

By LOUI GALICIA
ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau

A team from MediaQuest Holdings Inc., part of the PLDT Group, went to the capital of the Netherlands recently to study the latest in mobile television technology and, hopefully, set a record in harnessing the technical skills of Filipinos.

The team visited Amsterdam to attend the International Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam to look for the latest revolution in broadcast technology.

"We’re launching mobile television in the Philippines very soon. In fact we’re rolling out our network. We’re trying to validate some of the basic principles we’re doing and we're looking likewise to network with other countries who have experiences related to mobile TV," said Jose Benjamin Fernandez, MediaQuest technology and management head.

Fernandez said MediaQuest is proud that the Philippines, through its company, is one of only three or four countries in Asia that will offer mobile television and one of the first countries in the world to launch the service.

He said MediaQuest wants to get first-hand information on mobile TV technology from vendors in Europe. He said he also hopes to see what the company can bring back to the Philippines in terms of training local engineers.

Fernandez said that he is optimistic that it would be a "déjà vu" experience in terms of developing local talents to become experts in the technology.

"In a very short span of time, two to three years, the global community noticed the technical expertise of Filipino engineers to the point that they started hiring Filipino engineers for GSM. Kasi mura yung rate [nila], magaling naman, experiensado. [Their rates were affordable, they were good and experienced] Now we’re seeing a repeat again with mobile TV," Fernandez said.

"We’re one of the first globally...to launch mobile TV. And I think it will be again another source of technical pride for the Filipinos. Good reach, highly-educated, highly skilled, again a good source of export talent," he added.

Fernandez said that the company is confident about the potential impact of mobile television in the Philippines in the same way that cell phones became an instant phenomenon in the country.

At present, there are about 48 million mobile phone subscribers in the Philippines.

MediaQuest consultant Erwin Galang said he expects mobile TV to modify the viewing habit of Filipinos.

He said several studies show that Filipinos watch an average of four hours of TV a day.

With the advent of mobile TV, this could translate to more sales for the company.

"Unang-una, napakataas ng mobile phone penetration sa Pilipinas. Tapos lahat ng tao mahilig. Mahilig sa prepaid, mahilig sa cellular phone. Mahilig sa telebisyon. Tong technology na to ang magbibigay ng access para sa mga kababayan natin na gustong magkaroon ng television na madadala nila (First of all, mobile phone penetration in the Philippines is very high and a lot of people really want cell phones. They want prepaid. They want television. This technology will give our countrymen access to television that they can carry anywhere)," he said.

Galang noted that Filipinos are not yet ready to abandon their regular television sets and switch exclusively to mobile TV.

"Well it is not really switching. You are actually extending your television at home to wherever you are, whether you are in the car, traffic or waiting for the bus," he said.

"Since the technology has just started, it is still expensive. Eventually it will go down," he added.

SOURCE: WWW.ABS-CBNNEWS.COM

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