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<p style="text-align: left;">Next year, Philippines is expected to witness an explosion of premier smartphone users, says the country-based telecom operator Smart Communications (Smart)</p></article>

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<p style="text-align: left;">Next year, Philippines is expected to witness an explosion of premier smartphone users, says the country-based telecom operator Smart Communications (Smart)</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The smartphone user penetration, which stands at 15% of the population, is expected to go up to 50% in 2015, the company added, citing a <span style="line-height: 1.714285714; font-size: 1rem;">study by On Device Research.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Smart has already started preparing for this explosion and has begun to offer consumers, services bundled with the most popular smartphones brand. Meanwhile, the company continues to advance its LTE network.<br />
Entering the month of October, this year, Smart has deployed around 1,400 FDD-LTE cell sites in various parts of the Philippines. This brings the combined number of LTE cell sites for both fixed and mobile applications to over 1,800.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">According to postpaid marketing head at Smart, Kathryn Carag, the research, labels the mobile market in the country as “young, urban, and affluent,” with 88 % smartphone users expected to be in the age group of below 34 years. “These consumers are at the forefront of the latest in technology, and they demand not just function but also style from their mobile devices,” said Carag, adding that the company is prepared with the latest handsets as part of its future product line-up.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Latest world statistics show that citizens in the Philippines have an average age of 23 years. The country has a population of over 100 million.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">PLDT or Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company is Smart&#8217;s parent company. The wireless services provider claims it now has over 66 million subscribers.</p>
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PH set for smartphone explosion in 2015

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PH set for smartphone explosion in 2015

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