PLDT spearheads dev’t of ICT in RP

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) has tied up with academe and government to foster the development of information and communications technology (ICT) in the country.

"We realized there are trends in technology that need to be addressed proactively so that the country can take advantage of opportunities," PLDT senior vice president Eric Alberto said.

One of the important issues discussed during a recent workshop was the adoption of IPv6, which is a technology that will exponentially increase the number of IP (Internet protocol) addresses over a network. Every PC, printer, or server over a network has its own IP address for routing data traffic. However, because current IP addressing technology is limited, all these addresses may soon be used up. IPv6 is the answer to the problem.

"As the Internet is increasingly becoming pervasive and indispensable in the world today, IPv6 deserves some attention. We need to identify and understand what other technologies will bring us to the future," said Alberto.

Dr. Ives Poppe, one of the foremost Internet experts in the world, said during a videoconference at the workshop that there were certain drivers or catalysts for the adoption of IPv6.

"IPv6 is not a service but will likely be a crucial enabling technology. Nobody cares too much about IPv6 per se but nobody will be able to ignore it much longer," he said.

Mobile Internet, peer to peer (P2P) networking, P2P VoIP (voice over IP), P2P gaming, RFID (radio frequency ID) networks, and sensor networks are perceived to be the main drivers of IPv6.

Many Filipinos are becoming more and more familiar with wireless Internet through mobile phones and laptops aided by wireless network interface cards and wireless hubs. The trend is more pronounced in more economically developed countries.

P2P trends as well as RFID, one of whose uses is to tag products using small devices that emit radio signals, also indicate that the IPv4 currently being used may soon become inadequate.

Dr. Poppe said it is imperative that developed and developing countries act now to address this problem by incorporating IPv6 in their ICT development plans.