Touting it as a move that will further democratize access to mobile entertainment in the Philippines.
Last Wednesday, August 20, telecommunications giant Smart Communications, Inc. announced its partnership with four leading homegrown streaming services, Cignal Play, iWant, Viva One, and Watchapp.
According to the company, it is part of its bid to make access to entertainment easier for more Filipinos and let its users enjoy their favorite shows, movies, and videos anytime, anywhere.
It added, Smart subscribers, through the new partnerships that it forged, can conveniently access and stream content using Direct Carrier Billing (DCB), which instantly charges subscriptions to these platforms using their prepaid load or postpaid bill.
“This payment method opens the door to premium entertainment for millions of Filipinos who may not have a bank account, credit card, or e-wallet,” Smart added.
The company also added that these collaborations also includes plans to introduce an innovative data pack designed specifically for streaming in the future.
“Additionally, Smart will explore opportunities with each partner to offer exclusive content available only to Smart customers,” the company furthered.
Cignal Play is the video-on-demand service of Smart’s affiliate satellite TV service, Cignal TV, which offers over 80 live channels in sports, news, lifestyle, and entertainment, and a curated selection of more than 1,000 hours of movies and series, and a slate of short-form vertical dramas, called microdramas, that subscribers can enjoy for PHP20 a day.
iWant is ABS-CBN’s recently relaunched over-the-top (OTT) streaming service, which offers a library of local and international entertainment encompassing dramas, original series, and variety, as well as news, documentaries, music, and sports, and live channels. Basic plan starts at PHP35 per month.
Watchapp is a web-based streaming platform developed by VOXP Technologies that enables subscribers to watch vlogs, movies, tv shows, sports updates and more for as low as PHP5 and can be accessed through the namesake website.
Viva One, meanwhile, is video-on-demand service by Viva Communications, that features a mix of local and international content, including original series like the breakthrough hits ‘Ang Mutya Ng Section E,’ ‘Bad Genius: The Series,’ and the ‘University Series’— which can be accessed through a monthly subscription that starts at PHP99.