In the 2014 Cloud Readiness Index, Asia Cloud Computing Association (ACCA) cited the Philippines’ active efforts to improve factors that promote cloud computing adoption in the country, citing government legislation and private initiatives in developing a sound environment. ACCA is a member-driven, Asia-focused non-profit organization with a mission to accelerate adoption of cloud computing in the Asia Pacific region.
“Common to all of the improvers seems to be the presence of an overarching ICT and cloud policy plan,” the report noted for all countries in the Asia Pacific. It added that the Philippines, however, “has improved its responsiveness to the changing cloud environment in the last 12 months, in particular through the passage of a new data privacy law and the dropping of libel provisions originally included in its draft cybercrime law.”
The report further said that the Philippines “is one of the stronger Asia Pacific countries in terms of Freedom of Information Access and has also expanded its connectivity by adding new international capacity.”
In line with the Philippines’ improvement in the recent ACCA report, local telco provider PLDT has been leading in terms of investing in Cloud infrastructure and services to sustain the increasing Cloud adoption in the country.
Noting 60% growth in revenues from last year, PLDT has seen strong demand for Cloud services as more local industries integrate Cloud services in their operations.
PLDT leads the ICT landscape in terms of supporting Cloud adoption in the country with 2,000 combined racks in its VITRO Data Centers all over the country, backed by the most extensive fiber optic network reaching 100,000 kilometers by the end of the year. It also acquired IP Converge to complement its expansion for its multi-tiered data center product suite and cloud business solutions.
“Our roll out and continuing investments in the country’s local Cloud environment has seen tremendous growth as we expand our infrastructure to support the country in improving its Cloud readiness,” says PLDT President and CEO Napoleon Nazareno.
“We have positioned PLDT to service the growing data center and business solutions requirements of both large- and medium-sized businesses, in keeping with the globalization trend of Cloud Computing,” said PLDT EVP & Head of Enterprise, International and Carrier Business and ePLDT Group CEO Eric Alberto.
This year, PLDT announced it is investing P3-billion to add two more VITRO Data Center facilities to complement its three existing facilities in Pasig, Subic, and Cebu.
“We are very optimistic about the growth of Cloud services in the country, and we have invested in global-class infrastructure and expertise which will enable local industries to enjoy premiere Cloud solutions that create positive business impact and strategic competitive advantages. We have also partnered with world-renowned institutions such as the Asia Cloud Computing Alliance (ACCA) to continuously benchmark PLDT’s Cloud solutions and roadmap against world standards,” Alberto said.
The 2014 Cloud Readiness Index show the Philippines has risen in the middle band of economies to be included in the “Dedicated Improvers” for Cloud Computing, together with Taiwan, Malaysia, and Thailand. The Index assesses countries against ten indicators: privacy, data sovereignty, international connectivity, broadband quality, government regulatory environment and usage, power grid and green policy, intellectual property protection, business sophistication, data center risk, and freedom of information access.
