Telco expands connectivity, services in Cebu, eyes BPOs

EASTERN TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Telecommunications company, Eastern Communications, is expanding its reach in Cebu with stronger connection and a line-up of connectivity and cybersecurity solutions in a bid to address the growing needs of the business process outsourcing (BPO) and emerging enterprise markets here.

Marketing Division Head Catherine Muynila said they are starting the Cebu expansion in Mactan as the island has previously emerged as one of the top business centers in Central Visayas as home to a vibrant tourism and hospitality industry and growing IT-BPO hubs, and township communities developed by real estate giants.

“It has also been a favorite destination for manufacturing companies, especially those that operate in the Mactan Economic Zones and at the Cebu Light Industrial Park which employs many Cebuanos and Visayans from nearby cities,” he said.

Muynila said Eastern Communications serves the needs of businesses located in Cebu IT Park, Mactan Economic Processing Zones (Mepz) 1 and 2 and Cebu Light Industrial Park.

“We were already here prior to the boom of the BPO market. With the continued growth of the BPO market, we like to move with our current customers in Manila because they have a presence here,” Muynila told reporters at the sidelines of the company’s

Toastugan event at the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort on November 7.

Sales Division Head Michael Castañeda said they are only serving the needs of the enterprise market in Cebu.

He said Cebu only has less than 10% of their total customer portfolio, which made them see the need to expand and serve the needs of the market.

Castañeda said the Cebu expansion will initially cover Mactan Island (Lapu-Lapu City) as the company also expands its aggregate bandwidth capacity to supplement the increasing demand for telecommunications services in the area.

“The development in Cebu is not that just within the Cebu City proper. It is in Mactan, Mandaue and areas going out of SRP (South Road Properties). We do not want to be left behind,” he said.

“With the development of Cebu and the commitment to service our clients better, we are going where business is going. The idea is to expand and be very strong in Cebu. Give us a few months and you will see Eastern (to be) very aggressive and very active in Cebu,” added Castañeda.

Muynila said Eastern Communication’s history in serving the Cebuanos go as far as 1984 when they only had a small counter at a hotel near the iconic Fuente Osmeña Circle.

As the company expands its business in Cebu, Muynila said they are employing a two-pronged approach of “high tech and high touch service” to their clients.

“High tech means that we offer products and services that are at par with other telecommunication companies but we are also high touch as we offer personalized customer service to our clients,” she said.

Product and Innovation Head Edsel Paglinawan said the company also offers cybersecurity solutions to help companies protect their digital assets from cyberattacks.

“In a fast evolving world, the requirement of the enterprise is not just internet connectivity, they need data protection, threat prevention, mitigation from cyberattacks,” he said.