BY ADRIAN T. ELUMBA
The PLDT Group is beefing up support to the annual tech conference Geeks on a Beach (GOAB) presented by TechTalks.ph, as it targets to draw in startups, innovators, and angel investors to Puerto Princesa in Palawan on August 24-25.
Through PLDT Innolab, PLDT Enterprise, Smart, Smart DevNet, Voyager Innovations, Paymaya, and ePLDT, the PLDT Group is helping build and empower the local startup community through innovative products and services for start-ups and small entrepreneurs making them competitive through scalable technology that are usually only afforded by large companies.
With this year's conference centered on tech initiatives that focus on environmental efforts, the PLDT Group is optimistic that the conference will boost the local economy, build the startup communities, and interests of businesses to set up shop and invest in Palawan.
Connectivity in the island has already been linked with fiber technology which will help raise the global competitiveness of local businesses in the region helping generate jobs, and support for Palawan’s booming tourism industry.
“The PLDT Group has long been a partner in organizing this conference as we hope to build and support these kinds of avenues that incubate visionaries and innovators that could possibly change the world. As we hope to empower enterprises and consumers with connectivity and productivity tools, we also aim to aid new business, the start-ups, with the right tools that will help them elevate their ideas and eventually expand their business and succeed,” said PLDT VP and Head, Core Business Research and Development Joey Limjap.
“With Palawan being the venue for this year, the spotlight that this event will bring to this tourist destination also augments our objective in helping strengthen the thriving economy with high-speed fixed and wireless fiber connectivity.”
Since 2014, PLDT has invested over P1 billion in connectivity infrastructure of inland and submarine fiber cables to link the island of Palawan to its expansive network backbone or Domestic Fiber Optic Network (DFON).
High-speed fiber connectivity enables businesses to deploy more marketing productivity solutions in their operations such as cloud-based solutions from ePLDT, or e-commerce platforms like Takatack from Voyager Innovations. Strong connectivity also allows businesses to expand their payments systems through digital payment models using Paymaya, while consumers can make online purchases and pay for services without having to own a credit card.
Smart also boosted connectivity for tourist and visitors to enjoy as they can freely access the high-speed wifi at the airport through Smart’s Wifi hotspot.
“Through PLDT and Smart, we are trying to build an inclusive ecosystem where even small businesses and start-ups can make their business ideas big through opportunities in the digital space. There are already a lot of solutions and services out there that can make them scale to reach bigger markets and stronger funding with the help of connectivity,” said Smart Manager for Digital Platforms & Product Development and co-founder of Smart Developer Network Paul Pajo. CC:
