Roughly 4 per cent of Filipinos live beyond the reach of ordinary mobile networks, and Globe Telecom is now positioning satellite technology as the fix. The operator has received clearance from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to commercially deploy Starlink Direct-to-Cell across the country, a move that makes the Philippines the first market in Southeast Asia to bring the satellite-to-mobile service to consumers through a mobile carrier.
Rather than depending on ground-based cell towers, the service links compatible handsets straight to Starlink’s orbiting network, which currently numbers more than 650 low-Earth orbit satellites. Subscribers can send SMS, use messaging apps, place voice and video calls, tap navigation tools and get mobile data through the connection. Globe structured the offering as satellite roaming, so users travelling or living anywhere in the Philippines link to the Starlink network without paying roaming fees.
Access at launch is limited to supported Android LTE handsets paired with an active Globe SIM. The company frames the rollout as a lifeline for isolated communities and for periods when disasters or extended blackouts knock out standard communication lines.
That disaster-response use case was already put to the test. When a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit portions of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani in June, the technology helped keep emergency communications running for over 150,000 subscribers in the affected zones.
Globe President and Chief Executive Officer Carl Cruz said the commercial launch would let the company push coverage past the limits of traditional cell towers, keeping people connected in remote and disaster-hit areas.
Geography has always complicated the task of blanketing the Philippines with reliable signal. The country spreads across more than 7,000 islands and sits in the path of recurring typhoons, earthquakes and other hazards, all of which strain conventional infrastructure. Globe describes the satellite link as both a tool for widening digital access and a durable fallback when emergencies sever normal networks.
For the regulator, the decision carries a policy dimension: the NTC said its approval advances the government’s push toward inclusive digital transformation and helps close the connectivity gap separating different parts of the country.
