Enterprise

Globe senior advisor Dan Horan talks data cap, fiber, Netflix deal, and content creation and distribution

Published

on

Globe Telecom, one half of the Philippines’ telco duopoly, held its first Wonderful Wold with Globe event last June 24. And on the sidelines of the evening’s program that saw Netflix, Sports Illustrated, and Turner Broadcasting, among others, joining Globe’s growing list of content partners, we spoke with Globe chief advisor Dan Horan about data capping, expanding fiber-internet service in the Philippines, what the Netflix partnership will look like and mean for customers, and his company’s evolution into a content provider.

Spoiler alert: Data capping — two words you should never ever say to an avid internet user — is here to stay for the foreseeable future. Or at least as far as Globe’s mobile and broadband services are concerned. On a more positive note, Horan hinted at the likelihood that data rates would drop over time.

This interview has been edited and shortened for clarity.

GadgetMatch: You introduced several new content partners this evening. How will your expanded list of streaming services affect your data-capping scheme?

Dan Horan: Obviously, over time content changes. Now, we’re seeing lots of on-demand videos. As you know, we just launched a partnership with Netflix.

One of the things that’s really important is that we’re continuously building our networks to allow services to truly operate well. Earlier, you saw speeds of up to 100Mbps, which is more than enough for video services. We’re also building our WiFi networks. In many shopping malls, you see our up-to-100Mbps WiFi connections. We offer those connections for free, and not just to Globe customers. We’re also building our broadband network, which is physically the hardest because you have to go from house to house.

All of those have different cost structures and different capabilities, and they cost a lot of money. The investment in San Miguel Corporation alone cost us three quarters of a billion U.S. dollars. As much as I would love to offer our carrier services for free, we do need to recover some money. So it’s a delicate balancing act between making our shareholders happy and getting content in the hands of consumers affordably and fast.

You’ll see over the next few months that we will start to introduce more and more data options. And in the coming years, we will be adjusting our packages and prices to allow the Filipino community to get as much content as we can give them.

Fiber expansion is a topic of interest among internet users in the country. What are your plans for the future?

We have so many new things coming. One of the things we’re working on right now is that we’re putting future builds on our website to give you an idea when fiber will be available in your area. We also have $60 million in terms of upgrades happening on a lot of existing infrastructure as we speak.

Binondo is a good example, where we installed fiber everywhere. So if you want gigabyte speeds in that area, we can give it to you finally. I can also tell you that we have a big investment right now, and within the next three or four months, you’re gonna be seeing a lot of new locations that we’ll be upgrading with fiber. In Quezon City, there will be a lot of locations.

Netflix mentioned earlier that Globe is its first partner in the Philippines. How will the deal impact consumers?

So we signed an exclusive agreement with Netflix. And what that means is that customers will soon start to see services from Globe and Netflix that won’t be available anywhere else. It will be a mixture of both content and streaming packages. I can’t be more specific, but you’ll start to see things that are currently not available in the Philippines.

Let’s talk about Globe’s transformation into an entertainment company. Is this the next crucial step for your company?

Absolutely. We don’t treat ourselves as a telco anymore. I don’t think anybody mentioned megabytes or gigabytes or things of that nature tonight. You saw stories, you saw emotions, you saw brands that bring content to life. For us, those brands go hand-in-hand with our networks. The two have to work together.

With Globe Studios (which will produce original films and shows for the company), for example, we have the ability to make our own content, which we couldn’t have done before, and deliver it to anyone, anytime, anywhere. For me, that’s where we start to think of things from a lifestyle perspective.

A big question is where Globe Studios will put the content it creates. Will it only be available on Globe portals?

No, not at all. What’s great is that we can put the content in different platforms. We can put it in the cinema, and take it from cinema to subscription and so forth. The others we can upload to YouTube; some we can put in services like Astro, HOOQ, and Netflix. What Globe Studios gives the Filipino community is a platform to create content and monetize it internationally. If we have something that’s marketable worldwide, then why not?

[irp posts=”9513″ name=”Globe Prepaid Home WiFi review”]

Related Topics:

Enterprise

AGIBOT just topped the medal table at the World Humanoid Robot Games

The robots that did it are already clocking in at real factories.

Published

on

August 27, 2026

By

AGIBOT entered its first World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing on August 26 and walked away with a dominant victory.

The company claimed 18 gold, 16 silver, and 12 bronze medals, securing 46 total podium finishes and topping both the gold and overall medal standings.

Designed to stress-test humanoid machines in sports, fine manipulation, and real-world duties, the Games evaluated robots across events ranging from martial arts to hotel service and emergency response.

AGIBOT swept through these categories, earning top spots in motion control, obstacle racing, and daily practical tasks.

The true triumph lies in what remained unchanged on competition day. AGIBOT fielded its standard production lineup, including the OmniHand, G2, A3, and X2.

None of these units were custom-built to win medals, as every machine came straight from active commercial deployments.

Precision and agility straight off the assembly line

The OmniHand reached the finals in all eight dexterous manipulation events and brought home seven gold medals.

It aced delicate challenges like Block Building, Powder Weighing, and Bean Picking with Tweezers, proving that fine motor control matters just as much as raw power.

In motion control, the AGIBOT X2 captured gold in the 100m obstacle race while adding silver and bronze in the 400m sprint.

Meanwhile, the AGIBOT A3 secured gold in Tai Chi. The X2 competed in its standard commercial configuration without any hardware modifications.

Powering the X2 is AGIBOT’s proprietary AGILE framework, short for AgiBot Generative Intelligent Locomotion Engine.

This system blends real-time environmental perception with autonomous decision-making to navigate sudden obstacles and changing terrain.

By combining precise parameter identification with seamless simulation-to-reality transfer, the framework maintains rock-solid stability when transitioning from code to physical ground.

Proven intelligence on actual factory floors

AGIBOT earned five golds in real-world scenarios, dominating tasks across library operations, hotel services, and emergency response.

The G2 robot behind these wins is the exact same model currently operating on factory floors for manufacturers like Longcheer and SAIC.

Its operational intelligence stems from AGIBOT’s ViLLA embodied foundation model GO, the world model GE, and its RW-RL system. These combined technologies sharpen perception and planning inside unpredictable work environments.

While the 46-medal tally commands headlines, the deeper story is that mass-produced robots won without special modifications.

AGIBOT proves that general-purpose intelligence paired with commercial hardware can adapt across varied scenarios. Embodied AI is finally stepping out of isolated lab demos and into consistent, repeatable work where it matters most.

Continue Reading

Enterprise

Cebu Pacific becomes 1st SEA low-cost carrier with Starlink Wi-Fi

Rollout expected to begin in 2027

Published

on

July 15, 2026

By

Cebu Pacific has introduced Starlink, making it the first low-cost airline in Southeast Asia to bring Wi-Fi in the sky for passengers.

The rollout is expected to begin in 2027. Starlink delivers an unparalleled broadband experience inflight, with high-speed, low-latency Wi-Fi capable of HD streaming, online gaming, productivity and more.

Beyond enhancing the passenger experience, Starlink will also support improved operational connectivity for Cebu Pacific’s flight crews and operational teams. This enables better operational efficiency.

The collaboration is a significant milestone for Philippine aviation. The rollout forms part of Cebu Pacific’s continued investment in customer experience and digital innovation.

As part of the partnership, Cebu Pacific and Indigo Partners portfolio airlines, Wizz Air, and JetSMART expect to install Starlink on over 1,000 aircraft.

Continue Reading

Enterprise

Google ordered to pay EUR 4.1 billion in fines

The EU alleges that Google uses its apps to establish an unfair dominance.

Published

on

July 3, 2026

By

European fines have unintentionally become a normal part of doing business in the American technology space. For too long have American companies paid paltry fines to prevent harsher regulation in the European Union. Now, for the first time, Google is about to pay a record-breaking fine that goes beyond “paltry.”

Today, via CNBC, Google has been ordered to pay an astonishing EUR 4.1 billion (or approximately US$ 4.67 billion) in fines. The fine is in response to an anti-competition case.

This has been a long time coming for Google. The original case started in 2018. At the time, the European Union accused the brand of using anti-competitive practices to ensure its dominance in the smartphone market. According to the courts, the company’s bundling of first-party apps for every Android smartphone gives them an unfair advantage in the market and lessens the user’s choice in selecting apps.

For years, Google has fought the fine to seemingly no avail. Now, the company has lost its final attempt, which means that the fine still stands. On the bright side, they did get it reduced from the original EUR 4.34 billion fine.

The European Union is the scourge of every American tech company (and a godsend to consumers). Most notably, the continent’s government forced Apple to adopt USB-C, leading to a more universal experience across brands.

Google’s hefty fine aims to do the same. And it is quite hefty. Whereas previous fines were in the millions (and hence, negligible for most companies), a fine in the billions is more tangible.

SEE ALSO: Google might limit free storage to only 5GB

Continue Reading

Trending