Study reveals major shift in IT development, growth

By Ehda M. Dagooc (The Freeman) Updated September 11, 2009 12:00 AM

CEBU, Philippines - While network and internet infrastructure companies are investing money to provide connection even to the remotest place in the Philippines, IDC-Digital Universe study revealed that a fundamental shift in the areas of information growth, security, compliance and management is seen in the next few years.

The IDC study revealed that over the next four years, the number of information-generation technologies and interaction will increase dramatically. Mobile users will grow to 600 million in four years time, as more people will become Internet heavy users.

Non-traditional IT devices such as wireless meters, automobile navigation system, industrial machines, RFID (radio frequency identification) readers, and intelligent sensor controllers, will grow by a factor of 3.6.

Because of the increasing high-technology generation, interactions between people via email, messaging, social networks, and others, will also grow dramatically.

Moreover, more of the world’s economic stimulus efforts will also increase the amount of digital information created, the result of increased access to broadband communications, electronic patient recorders, smart electric grids, smart buildings and autos.

By 2012, IDC projected that 850 million people will buy and sell products and services on the Internet and twice as much, Internet commerce will take place versus 2005.

Also in the same year, Internet commerce will become a US$13 trillion industry, mostly involving sensitive business-to-business commerce.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) earlier announced that it is spending a total of P27 billion in expansion investments, including its plan to roll out “fiber-to-home” technology in the middle of this year, and its ultimate goal in providing “broadband-for-all.”

The company incurred P25.2 billion in capital expenditure in 2008. This year, despite the volatile economic conditions, PLDT is increasing its capex allocation by P3 billion more.

“The 2008 capex level reflects PLDTs continued investment in the business, an outlook sustained in our forecasted capex of P27 billion for 2009. We are looking beyond the near-term uncertainty and positioning for the long-term when global situation stabilizes,” said PLDT president and chief executive officer (CEO) Napoleon L. Nazareno

The introduction of “fiber-to-home” technology will provide Filipinos with much reliable and faster internet connection. Although this may cost a little higher compared to ordinary connection, it is considered as the “ultimate” in fixed line infrastructure.

PLDT, the largest telecommunication provider in the Philippines, reported that Internet traffic has grown at least 80 percent year on year since 2006. Broadband subscriber based continued to grow robustly, and approached one million by year-end.

Total broadband and Internet service revenues for the company grew 45 percent to P11 billion in 2008, which now represents eight percent of consolidated service revenues from six percent in 2007.