MANILA - There were analog mobile phones before smart digital handsets were introduced. Now, the country’s largest telecommunications conglomerate says the time is ripe to present digital television to Filipinos.

“We are convinced that now is the [right] time to bring digital TV to Filipinos.  As I say this, I am reminded of a time when I came to a similar realization with respect to another device—the mobile phone. Sixteen years ago, we were persuaded that the time was ripe to bring mobile phones to the hands of our people.  That’s how Smart Communications Inc. was born.  And that’s where we are today,” said Manuel Pangilinan, chairman of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), at the formal launch of the PLDT Group’s digital, high-definition (HD), nationwide pay television service Tuesday night.

Cignal is the direct-to-home (DTH) satellite TV brand of MediaScape Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of MediaQuest Inc. which, in turn, is owned by the PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund (BTF).

A pilot test of the DTH service started two months ago. Subscription to the Cignal service, which comes in two packages (Cignal HD and Cignal Digital TV), has already reached 3,000.

“We are once again at the edge of another revolution.  We are once again persuaded that Filipinos will take another technological leap—one that promises to make their lives more enjoyable and productive.  We are confident about Cignal’s success because once you’ve tried it, you won’t ever want to go back to analog like in mobile phone,” Pangilinan added.

Cignal Digital TV provides 20 standard-definition top-rated channels for a subscription fee of P390 a month, while Cignal HD offers three channels in high-definition platform for P450 a month. The company plans to increase the number of HD channels in the near future.

HD shows are best watched over HDTV screens to capture the cinema-like viewing. The current price of HDTVs is expensive but PLDT expects the decreasing price of widescreen TVs could soon drive subscription of HD DTH service.

MediaScape is ready to serve the areas where cable TV systems are not viable. Pangilinan said his company wants the country to be a part of the global migration in broadcast to digital then later to high definition—“a significant milestone not just for us at MediaQuest but more importantly Philippine television industry and the Filipino consumer.

“I find it particularly gratifying that we can serve the whole country.  This unserved market represents over two million households nationwide. We now have the opportunity to bypass analog TV and enjoy richer, quality television viewing.  Because we’re using satellite technology, we can roll out this service quickly and bring this to homes and offices all over the country,” added Pangilinan.

MediaScape managing director Benjie Fernandez they are looking at tapping at least 10 percent of this unserved cable TV market.  “It will take some time but we are targeting at least 10 percent of the two-million user market in two to three years.”

MediaScape spent P650 million as initial investments to the technology and will probably spend P350 million more for future requirements such as purchase of set-top boxes and provisions for more content programming. “For the rest of the year, we will be spending about P350 million,” added Fernandez.