Glove to expand network

MANILA, Philippines (AP): Globe Telecom said Monday it will spend US$300 million this year to expand and upgrade its cellular telephone network.

Globe said the project will expand the reach and increase the capacity of its network, including switching, network subsystems, transmission and cell sites.

Globe is a joint venture of Ayala Corp. and Singapore Telecom International, the international investment arm of Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. Ayala Corp. owns 44 percent and Singtel International owns 39 percent.

The company said it will expand its cell sites to 1,112 from 690 and the number of switches to 17 from six. It will also purchase several computer platforms to provide more value-added services to clients.