Globe President & CEO ErnestCu joins leaders around the world during a dinner hosted by Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Kneeling from left to right: Mario Zanotti, Senior EVP, Latin America, Millicom; Augie Fabela II, Vimpelcom; Javier Olivan, VP of Growth and Analytics, Facebook; Ernest Cu, CEO, Globe Telecom; Daniel Hajj Aboumrad, CEO, Telcel; Jon Fredrik Baksaas, CEO, Telenor; Dan Rose, VP for Partnerships, Facebook; Chris Daniels, VP of Business Development, Facebook.
Globe Telecom set a global trend to promote internet adoption through the Free Facebook campaigns it has implemented over the past two years, in support of the objective of internet.org, a Facebook-led initiative to provide data connectivity to two-thirds of global population.
Following Globe Telecom’s successful Free Facebook campaign, which encouraged internet adoption among Filipinos, other telco providers are following the initiative of promoting and increasing data connectivity among mobile customers.
Globe generated a data customer growth of 110% over the telco’s two Free Facebook campaigns, indicative that the campaign has been an effective tool in enhancing internet adoption in the country, Daniel Horan, Globe Senior Advisor for Consumer Business Group, said.
“Our partnership with Facebook enabled more Filipinos to gain internet connectivity, in line with the vision of internet.org to allow more and more people to have free access to internet services. Globe Telecom is extremely honored to be a pioneering force in improving internet adoption, an example that is now being followed by other telcos locally and globally,” Horan said.
As corporate partnerships go, few are probably more relevant in our country today than the ongoing relationship between Facebook and Globe Telecom. Together, these two giants introduced the Philippines to “Free Facebook” back in 2013. As evidenced by a recent study, the campaign significantly changed the landscape of the mobile Internet space in the entire country, Horan said.
A recent whitepaper published by Globe and Facebook outlined how Globe’s efforts and massive investments to scale the necessary infrastructure for data usage (e.g., its massive 3G rollout), along with its drive to increase smartphone penetration, set the stage for a breakthrough in Internet penetration in the country. This breakthrough would come in the form of the “Free Facebook” campaign, which was launched in October 2013 for the first phase and again in October 2014 for the second phase.
The results of the campaign clearly demonstrate the long-term impact of the partnership. Over the first phase of the program, the number of data users on Globe’s network doubled, and Globe prepaid subscribers active on mobile data grew from 14% to 25%. The partnership also had an enduring effect that was sustained even after the campaign ended. After the first phase, Globe was able to continue acquiring twice the number of new mobile data users versus prior levels, even when access to Facebook was no longer free.
As a result, the Free Facebook campaign helped drive an increase of 6 million Filipinos actively using mobile internet during the period. For more details on the partnership and its impact, you can read the full whitepaper here: http://www.globe.com.ph/documents/50301/15939122/2015-03-05+FB+Globe+Whitepaper
“The partnership does not end there. Globe and Facebook will be launching new and exciting offers to make mobile internet further accessible via Internet.org, aiming to make more subscribers connected by providing a safe environment for browsing without incurring unexpected charges. More details to be released very soon.” Horan said.
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