- The Gilas Pilipinas team receives Smart Travel Wi-Fi kits from PLDT and Smart
- Gear up Gilas Pilipinas!
- Promoting sports development as part of nation-building
[23 August 2019] Leading telco and digital services provider PLDT and its wireless unit Smart Communications, Inc (Smart) throw their support behind Gilas Pilipinas as they gear up for the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
During their sendoff lunch, PLDT and Smart provided Smart Travel Wi-Fi kits to the staff and team members of the Philippine men’s national basketball team to help them stay in touch with friends, family, and millions of fans when competing internationally.
The Smart Travel Wi-Fi is a complement to Smart’s existing roaming services to keep subscribers connected whenever they travel.
Smart Roaming keeps an individual securely connected while Smart Travel Wi-Fi allows more than one phone or gadget to conveniently access the internet, without spending a lot of money.
Aside from the connectivity that the Smart Travel Wi-Fi kit provides, the national team can also make long distance calls from wherever they are in the world to any PLDT, Smart, Sun or TNT subscriber in the Philippines through PLDT Global’s award-winning app, Free Bee.
A VoIP solution available in over 180 countries, Free Bee is an advertising-based voice service which delivers high-quality IDD calls to the Philippines for free.
For longer calls and ad-free experience, users have the option to buy Premium Free Bee Voice buckets at affordable rates from global retailers or via in-app and online purchases.
Free Bee has also recently been recognized as Telecom Asia’s Most Innovative Voice Solution.
“We hope that through the Smart Travel Wi-Fi kits and Free Bee, our national team can feel our support, by keeping them connected to their family and fans when they raise our flag in the World Cup stage,” said Albert Villa-Real, Chief Commercial Officer of PLDT Global.
“We are proud to support Gilas Pilipinas in their bid for the World Cup by providing them the technology that they need to stay motivated and connected with their loved ones.
This is in line with our advocacy of promoting sports development as part of nation-building,” said Gabby Cui, AVP and Head of Community Development and Partnerships at Smart.
PLDT and Smart have been a solid supporter of the Gilas Pilipinas program since 2008, a program managed by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP).
Gilas Pilipinas will face Italy during its first game on August 31 in Foshan, China.
