Unrivalled mobile leader Smart Communications (Smart) is expanding the
coverage of its Surf Abroad 550 data roaming package to cover more than 110
countries around the world — the widest data roaming network available to
Filipino travelers today.
Moreover,
Surf Abroad 550 is now available as a fully automated service for Smart
Postpaid subscribers for a worry-free data roaming experience.
Smart’s
improved data roaming offers cater to a growing market of young travelers,
often referred to as “millennials,” which are increasingly traveling for
leisure in other countries given new overseas routes and lower airfare promos
made available by local airlines.
“Now, all
users have to do is turn on ‘data roaming’ on their data-enabled phones and
they will instantly be connected to our preferred roaming partners in that
country. No more need to register via text or call our roaming hotline. This is
part of our commitment to allow our subscribers to live the ‘Smart
Life’ even while traveling overseas,” said Tina Mariano, Global
Access and International Services head at Smart.
From just 57
countries in 2014, Smart’s data roaming coverage has now been expanded to more
than 53 additional countries, including top tourism destinations such as
Myanmar, India, Finland, and Luxembourg, among many others. By the end of the
year, the list will further be expanded to include a total of 180 countries
around the world.
The service
is expected to contribute to the skyrocketing growth of Smart’s mobile data
business, which has already registered a sharp 21% year-on-year growth to reach
P4.7 billion during the first six months of 2015.
‘Internet’ an important travel amenity
The simple
and hassle-free enhancements to Smart’s data offers appeal particularly to
millennial travelers, according to Mariano, especially since they are the types
of travelers who are always eager to instantly capture and share their
experiences online via Facebook, Instagram, and other social networks.
According
to the 2015 Annual Millennial Travel Habits study by global travel
search site Hipmunk, Internet connectivity ranks among the top amenities most
important to millennials whenever they book their flights or hotels abroad.
Around 43% of
millennials surveyed by Hipmunk, for example, rank fast Internet connectivity
as their most favorite hotel perk, while Internet ranks next to entertainment
in the list of top in-flight amenities important to them.
“These types
of travelers demand an always-on, instant-sharing experience when traveling
abroad, which is why Smart has made it very convenient and affordable for
them to connect to the Internet while traveling in other
countries,” Mariano shared,
Available for
only P550 per day, Smart’s Surf Abroad 550 will give users high-speed
mobile Internet connections in covered countries, valid for one day.
The new offer
is powered by a network-lock technology that makes sure the service only works on
partner networks, and eliminates the hassle of having to manually select a
roaming partner whenever a subscriber wants to access data services.
By
automatically registering to the service with preferred roaming
partners abroad, subscribers will no longer have to suffer from “bill shock”
when they return to the country.
Once the
service is active, subscribers will receive an SMS notification informing them
that they have already been subscribed to the enhanced Surf Abroad 550 package.
For more
information on this new offer, visit smart.com.ph/roam.
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