Opensignal: Network switchers experience poor signal, lower time on 4G/5G

Opensignal has released a new report showing data on the experience of Filipino smartphone users before and after they switch mobile networks using Mobile Number Portability.

According to Opensignal’s analysis, they found that Filipino smartphone users that switched their mobile operators on average saw a significantly worse mobile experience before they changed operator. Such Leavers spent more time without a signal and less time connected to 4G or 5G than the average of all users on their original operator.

They also looked at Globe, Smart, and DITO and found that Leavers spent significantly more time with no signal than the average reported for all our users on those networks. The difference was 1.5 times more time for Globe Leavers, 1.6 times more for DITO and 1.7 times for Smart.

When it comes to Time on 4G or 5G, Opensignal says that Leavers on each of the three operators’ networks spent less time connected to these network generations than the average across all our users on their original operator. The difference was highest for Globe Leavers — 2.5 percentage points — followed by DITO leavers with a gap of two percentage points. Smart Leavers spent only 1.6 percentage points less time connected to 4G or 5G compared to the average calculated across all of our Smart users.

Opensignal also added that switching networks does not often give a better experience. The company compared Leavers’ experience in the last 30 days on their original mobile operator’s network against their experience during the first 30 days after the switch to their new operator, and saw that there was no significant difference between the proportion of time Leavers from all three operators spent with no signal before or after they switched to a new network.

However, they saw a different result with Globe Leavers as it registered a 4.6 percentage point improvement after they switched to another network, while DITO Leavers saw a 8.4 percentage point drop in their Time on 4G or 5G after they switched operators. Smart Leavers, on the other hand, did not see a significant change in the proportion of time they spent on 4G or 5G when they switched.