INFORMATION technology firm NOW Corp. is targeting to have 400,000 broadband subscribers in Metro Manila in five years with the expansion of its enterprise-grade wireless internet to residential areas, a company executive said.

Mel Velarde, president and chief executive officer of NOW, told reporters in a news briefing on Tuesday that the company is optimistic it can hit the target in five years with its combined subscribers from the residential sector and small- and medium-sized enterprises.

He said they decided to expand their services to the residential areas in response to demand from users in the enterprise segment for faster internet connectivity and higher bandwidth.

Velarde also said NOW is introducing a new marketing strategy whereby residents can earn money by representing NOW in their respective buildings and subdivisions. Velarde said these channel partners will earn commissions and get free broadband.

Meanwhile, he disclosed that the company is looking to raise P1 billion to support the rollout of its enterprise-grade wireless internet to residential areas.

“We’re in the middle of doing a preferred share offering. We’re raising a billion pesos,” he said.

He said the company is the middle of the application process with the Philippine Stock Exchange and Securities and Exchange Commission. “Hopefully, we get the approval in the next few months,” he added.

Velarde said the P1 billion they are aiming to raise is “good for us to cover the major areas of Metro Manila.”

NOW Corp. is entering the massive residential broadband business as it hopes to capture a small but loyal slice of a market being aggressively pursued by industry giants PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom.

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NOW president and CEO Mel Velarde told reporters in a briefing Tuesday that the company would utilize its fiber air service, which it had successfully rolled out for businesses such as banks, schools, hospitals and hotels. The next step is homes and Velarde said there was a market for NOW’s guaranteed broadband rates. “Families want enterprise-grade service,” he said, referring to the type of internet quality typically demanded by businesses. Using its fiber air technology, NOW hopes to go around regulatory bottlenecks experienced by the telcos in laying down fiber cables for their broadband connections. Moreover, it can pursue a modular approach to expansion, helping mitigate upfront capital spending. NOW has so far launched its broadband service in Corinthian Gardens, an upscale neighborhood in Quezon City. “This is wireless. We will be able to cover Metro Manila easily through partners,” Velarde said. With partners, NOW’s home broadband could be available across the capital district within 12 months, he said. He is also targeting to expand in Davao and Cebu City by next year. NOW’s partners will help the company penetrate certain areas and, in exchange, receive a commission. For Metro Manila, Velarde is targeting a relatively small market of 400,000 homes and small businesses in five years. Their current 100 fiber air hubs will increase to over 450. Funding will come from a P1 billion preferred share sale, which has convertible features, which Velarde hopes to close by the first quarter of 2018. Broadband so far accounts for 20 percent of NOW’s revenues, most of which come from its IT services arm. NOW’s IT customers include the Philippine National Bank, the Supreme Court and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Velarde said they hope to increase broadband to 50 percent of revenues and then 80 percent in two years. /cbb
source: http://business.inquirer.net/240277/business-broadband-now-corp-pldt-globe-telecom-mel-velarde-fiber-air-service-it
NOW Corp. is looking to raise P1 billion from a preferred share offering in the first quarter of 2018 to fund the expansion of its broadband business Mel Velarde, president of NOW, said the company had already filed its application with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Philippine Stock Exchange. The company has tapped Unicapital Inc. as its underwriter for the share sale Proceeds from the offering will be used to expand its broadband internet infrastructure in Metro Manila to serve enterprises and residential areas. Among its new broadband customers include Sogo Hotel Group, which has a chain of hotel establishments in Metro Manila; Marco Polo in Ortigas; Work Haven, a co-working space located in Linden Suites; Manila Broadcasting Corp. in Pasay City; and STI campus in Bonifacio Global City, among others. NOW is also looking to expand in Cebu and Davao next year. The company also offers software systems and IT managed services to top banks such as BDO, Philippine National Bank, the industry’s regulator, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, as well as other government agencies and branches like the Supreme Court. Source: http://bilyonaryo.com.ph/2017/11/07/now-corp-eyes-p1b-share-offering/
NOW Corporation announced it will use IBM Collaboration Solutions portfolio to become the country’s premier one-stop-shop IT and broadband services provider for enterprises and government agencies looking for safe, secure, top-of-the-line software solutions bundled with NOW Corporation’s broadband connectivity. Workforce productivity, among the top challenges for organizations today, is one such area where NOW is looking to provide their integrated communication and collaboration solutions. According to TechAisle Asia-Pacific Mid-market Insights 2017 report, as the size of a business increases, companies also see an increase in the use of mobile and collaboration solutions that develop cohesiveness among geographically dispersed teams. With the partnership of IBM, NOW can help companies support their employees remotely on a secure platform and drive productivity improvement.
“As an integrated solutions company, NOW Corp. deploys telecom pipes, provides solutions to operational problems that encompass information technology, software systems and maintenance, network connectivity and cybersecurity to select blue chip and fast rising companies,” said Kristian Pura, Head of Enterprise Marketing at NOW. “By partnering with IBM, we can now offer a unified collaboration platform for our clients. This allows businesses with distributed workforce to embrace a new way to work that improves personal productivity and team collaboration”
NOW offers IBM Collaboration Solutions software licensing, technical maintenance and support, user-training services, applications development to a host of companies and is an IBM Premier Business Partner. NOW was named IBM’s Top Business Partner of the Year for IBM Collaboration Solutions in the Philippines in 2014 and 2015.

“We are helping our clients implement IBM Verse, a cloud business email hosting platform and messaging software. It allows our clients to not just use traditional emails but to also host audio and video conferences, make information and background about the people and companies within the email network more accessible. Most importantly, it also serves as a social networking platform since Verse is tightly integrated to IBM Connections, a collaboration platform for businesses,” said Maneth Libid, Managing Director of NOW’s software collaboration group. “Our clients are demanding more value and insights from mailing and collaboration tools. Our partnership with IBM gives us the capability to offer our customers an integrated business mail & collaboration platform that integrates email, chat, meetings, content and social networking on a single cloud platform to reduce clutter and focus on what is most important. IBM Verse is available on the cloud and as an on-premise solution.”

 NOW works with several companies and government agencies to deliver IT software solutions and broadband services. Some of the country’s biggest companies such as BDO, Chinabank, Phinma Properties, Development Bank of the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Meralco and SM Retail count on NOW to provide their IT software solutions. NOW believes that as an integrated communications and collaboration solutions provider, NOW is well placed to enable companies for social business and improve workforce experience.
source: http://technology.inquirer.net/67307/now-corp-uses-ibm-collaboration-solutions
NOW Corporation will team up with IBM to provide integrated communication and collaboration solutions for enterprises and government agencies and drive productivity among geographically dispersed teams. “By partnering with IBM, we can now offer a unified collaboration platform for our clients. This allows businesses with distributed workforce to embrace a new way to work that improves personal productivity and team collaboration,” said Kristian Pura, Head of Enterprise Marketing at NOW. NOW offers IBM Collaboration Solutions software licensing, technical maintenance and support, user-training services, applications development to a host of companies and is an IBM Premier Business Partner. NOW was named IBM’s Top Business Partner of the Year for IBM Collaboration Solutions in the Philippines in 2014 and 2015. “We are helping our clients implement IBM Verse, a cloud business email hosting platform and messaging software. It allows our clients to not just use traditional emails but to also host audio and video conferences, make information and background about the people and companies within the email network more accessible. Most importantly, it also serves as a social networking platform since Verse is tightly integrated to IBM Connections, a collaboration platform for businesses,” said Maneth Libid, Managing Director of NOW’s software collaboration group. Libid says the partnership with IBM gives them the capability to offer customers an integrated business mail & collaboration platform that integrates email, chat, meetings, content and social networking on a single cloud platform. IBM Verse is available on the cloud and as an on-premise solution. NOW works with several companies and government agencies to deliver IT software solutions and broadband services. Some of NOW’s clients are BDO, Chinabank, Phinma Properties, Development Bank of the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Meralco and SM Retail. Source: http://newsbytes.ph/2017/09/22/now-corp-ibm-partnership-to-bring-unified-collaboration-platform/
Velarde-led Now Corp. has entered into a partnership with IBM to provide software solutions for businesses. “By partnering with IBM, we can now offer a unified collaboration platform for our clients. This allows businesses with distributed workforce to embrace a new way to work that improves personal productivity and team collaboration,” said Kristian Pura, head of Enterprise Marketing at NOW. NOW offers IBM collaboration solutions software licensing, technical maintenance and support, user-training services, applications development to a host of companies. “We are helping our clients implement IBM Verse, a cloud business email hosting platform and messaging software. It allows our clients to not just use traditional emails but to also host audio and video conferences, make information and background about the people and companies within the email network more accessible. Most importantly, it also serves as a social networking platform since Verse is tightly integrated to IBM Connections, a collaboration platform for businesses,” said Maneth Libid, managing director of NOW’s software collaboration group. Among NOW’s clients are Meralco, SM Retail, Banco De Oro, Chinabank, Phinma Properties, Development Bank of the Philippines, and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Source : http://bilyonaryo.com.ph/2017/09/21/now-corp-ibm-team-offer-software-solutions/
By: Darwin G. Amojelar Now Corp.,  a listed company controlled by the Velarde  family, said it posted a net profit in the first half, boosted by higher sales from broadband, software and other businesses. Now said net income reached P2.25 million in January to June, a turnaround from a net loss of P9.70 million recorded in the same period in 2016. The company said gross revenues jumped 120 percent in the first half to P68.09 million from P30.87  million a year ago. Now said the major turnaround was achieved despite a 50-percent  increase in total expenses to P64.876 million from P40.58 million, on higher cost of sales, salaries and benefits, taxes and licenses fees, transportation and other expenses brought by the high growth business of wireless broadband. “We are happy to announce that all of the company’s business segments are doing well,” Now president and chief executive Mel Velarde said. Velarde said the overall higher revenue was led by higher sales generated from broadband delivery, software services and deployment of company’s IT professionals to render mission critical IT solutions and services to blue chip companies. “We expect the strong revenue and profit momentum to continue in the second half of the year since our business segments, especially our broadband business, continue to produce outstanding results.” Velarde said. Now said earlier it rolled out pre-5G infrastructure to bolster fiber air broadband services, which could deliver guaranteed speeds of up to 700 megabits per second to customers such as BPOs, schools, banks, hotels and hospitals. The company will soon deliver its fast broadband technology to residential areas in Metro Manila. “Fiber Air or fixed wireless will play a major role in broadband connectivity in the Philippines,” Kristian Pura, head of enterprise marketing at Now, said. “The big telco players who are committed to mass markets have given us the opportunity to target profitable niches; thus, Now complements the two telcos,” he said. Source : http://www.thestandard.com.ph/mobile/article/246315

NOW Corporation is aggressively pursuing its push to become one of the country formidable Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) companies by using Pre-5G technologies to enhance and expand its ever-growing broadband Internet infrastructure in Metro Manila.

The PSE-listed TMT firm (PSE Ticker: NOW) said the deployment of its fixed wireless broadband infrastructure in Metro Manila shall utilize new technologies such as millimeter waves and TDD Full Duplex — both Pre-5G technologies — to deliver its broadband and cable TV connectivity to enterprises such as hotels, schools, hospitals, BPOs, commercial and residential areas. The Company has earmarked Php500 million for this undertaking with a projected subscriber base of a quarter of million by the end of five years.

“We have successfully tested two of ZTE’s latest wireless equipment with a capacity of 480 megabit per second (Mbps) and 3 gigabit per second (Gbps) links — connecting almost ten times faster than any backhaul. They have been installed to paying customers and we shall connect current and new hubs,” said Kristian Pura, head of enterprise marketing of NOW Corp.

In a recent interview with Mel Velarde, CEO of NOW Corp, he said that the Company’s adoption of an All Wireless Network Plan is motivated by two related global developments: (1) Google Fiber has drastically reduced the deployment of hard fiber optic for its network build-up in favor of fiber-like performance of aerial fixed wireless network similar to the Company, and (2) AT&T of the US is using high-frequency millimeter waves to successfully connect enterprise clients using fiber in the air that offers 1.5Gbps broadband connectivity.

“By utilizing gigabit links on fixed wireless set-up, the Company sees no need to deploy fiber optic in the early stages of its network build-up. The positive economic effect is that the financial requirement of the Company’s 5-year business plan has been adjusted from Php1.5 billion to Php500 million. The Company, however, is prepared to scale upwards its All Wireless Network Plan as when the need arises,” said Velarde.

The board has also given its nod to the management’s plan to amend its application for 15 million preferred shares offering with 30 million warrants to 5 million preferred shares and 30 million warrants, thus lowering the expected use proceeds from Php1.5 billion to Php500 million.

The decision to lower the planned shares offering was due to the fact that the company’s fixed wireless broadband rollout as spelled out under the All Wireless Network Plan would no longer require capital spending of as much as Php1.5 billion, said Mel Velarde, CEO of NOW Corp. The newly approved plan would instead require capex of just Php500 million for the broadband rollout. The Company’s network however is very scalable in preparation for a bigger play.

“In the early stages of our network build-up for the delivery of broadband technology, we don’t need to dig grounds for hard fiber deployment, which is very expensive. We will be utilizing tested wireless technology that delivers millimeter waves wireless gigabit links direct to customers’ rooftop,” said Velarde.

For its part, Security Bank Capital, has been appointed by the Company as a financial advisor with on-going initiatives in bringing institutional investors into the TMT company. For this reason, the Board gave management the flexibility to utilize various financial instruments for the Company to consider such as private placement of strategic partners in cooperation with foreign and local institutions.

The board has also approved for management to continue ongoing initiatives propelled by the Company’s underwriter and other investment houses for the underwriting of the issuance of Php500 million worth of preferred shares with warrants.

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LISTED information technology (IT) firm Now Corp. is expanding its broadband services in Metro Manila as part of efforts to grow its clientele nationwide and to see a P5.5-billion profit for the segment by 2022.

In a statement, Now Corp. said there is a “strong clamor” among Metro Manila residents for a fast and reliable Internet connection which it is offering via its Fiber-in-the-Air technology for homes. “Now Corporation is expanding its broadband services to include residences in Metro Manila… strengthening the delivery of its broadband services in Metro Manila is part of Now’s five-year plan that would see the Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) company posting a projected net income of P5.5 billion from its broadband business by 2022,” the company said. By the end of the five-year period, the company estimates it would have around 225,000 subscribers. Now Corp. said tapping the residential market is part of its latest initiative to improve its revenue stream after successfully building up its customer base in the enterprise sector of the broadband market that includes small and medium size enterprises (SMEs). “The demand for broadband from homes in residential areas is now similar to that of the SMEs. This is a plan that we are determined to accomplish and it can be achieved. Metro Manila is a profitable market,” Now President and Chief Executive Officer Mel V. Velarde was quoted as saying. Under its initial phase of its expansion into residential areas, the company is delivering fiber-in-the-air connections to posh residential areas such as Forbes Park, Corinthian Gardens, Valle Verde, Wack-Wack, Bel-Air, and Urdaneta. Eventually, Now Corp. would build its presence in the “tertiary areas” such as the communities in Pasay and Tondo, which has a “solid market base.” “The plan involves offering fiber-in-the-air directly to homes that could be accessed by neighbors who live within 300 meters,” Now Corp. said. Apart from IT, Now Corp. is also engaged in providing products and services related to media and telecommunications. Mr. Velarde earlier this year said bulk of Now Corp.’s revenues — or 90% — still comes from its IT business but the firm is hoping the share could go down to 70% this year as its broadband business continues to pick up. Now Corp. returned to the black in the first quarter posting a P1.01-million net income for the January to March period, on the back of improved performance of its broadband business and its other IT-related solutions and services. Shares in Now Corp. slipped by 1.09% to P2.73 apiece on Thursday. — I.C.C. Delavin

source : http://m.bworldonline.com/m_content.php?section&id=146446

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Updated NOW Corporation’s gross revenues more than tripled in the first quarter of this year from a year ago, boosted by the rise in the number of companies and government agencies that subscribed to its broadband and IT services. Revenues jumped to P31.9 million in the first quarter of this year, up from P10.3 million during the same period of 2016, the IT-listed firm (PSE Ticker: NOW) said in a statement on Tuesday. The surge in revenues helped NOW reverse losses that it recorded in January-March of last year. In the first three months of 2017, NOW posted a net income of P1 million, a complete turnaround from a net loss of P3.5 million a year earlier. “The impressive showing in the first three months of the year is due mainly to the increase in broadband subscriptions and the rise in customers who sought our technical expertise in IT services,” said NOW President and CEO Mel V. Velarde. “NOW introduced new, cutting-edge technologies in the Philippine market that helped us win more customers and expand our market share. Combining these technologies with our unrivaled technical services that’s available 24/7, as well as guaranteed broadband speed, proved irresistible to the market,” Velarde added. Just recently, NOW won the bid to install the e-mail and collaborative solution of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, proving that NOW’s expertise goes beyond private enterprises. Other factors that helped NOW record a hefty gain in revenues in the first quarter include expansion of its fixed wireless network coverage through strategic building partnerships in the Greater Manila Area, focus on enterprise clients such as hospitals, schools, financial institutions, SMEs and BPOs that are looking at digital transformation as a key strategy to enhance efficiency and bolster profitability. Also helping the company increase its revenue was the rise in IT manpower deployment through search and select, and outsourced project-based IT teams. NOW looks forward to sustaining the gains in the next three quarters of 2017, said Velarde. “The outlook for the rest of the year is positive, with more enterprises looking for alternative broadband providers and complementary software as well as IT services,” Velarde said. NOW counts some of the biggest firms in the country such as BDO, Chinabank, Phinma Properties, and SM as among its clients that enjoy its IT and other digital services. Among its recently connected broadband clients include Sogo Hotel Group, which has a chain of hotel establishments in Metro Manila, Marco Polo in Ortigas, Work Haven, a co-working space located in Linden Suites, Manila Broadcasting Corp. in Pasay City, STI campus in Bonifacio Global City, and Philippine Daily Inquirer in Makati City. Source: http://technology.mb.com.ph/2017/05/18/now-corps-revenues-rise-three-fold/

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