PH vies for new web-based services

The Philippines is in for the next big thing — web-based services explosion — as American firms are now focusing on web-based services moving into the Philippine shores eclipsing investments in the manufacturing and retail sectors.

According to Trade and Industry Secretary Gregory L. Domingo, who just returned from his trip to Silicon Valley, home to America’s tech companies, US interest in the Philippines has shifted from manufacturing of computer hardware to the software development side, including various apps for mobile smartphones and gadgets.

US firms are very focused on services in consulting, IT-BPM, web-based, investment, banking and financial services, Domingo said.

“I expect company breakouts in two to three years,” he said.

Already, he said, the two biggest names in the Internet space are coming into the Philippines. He refused to name these companies, but said they are big names in the Internet space.

“The way we should be doing is to be able to participate in a big way, we should be ready today,” he said noting that other countries are also preparing for this next wave in the knowledge-based sector.

That is why local conglomerates like Ayala Corp. are already starting to make their presence felt in this arena, he said.

What is necessary is to set the stage to make at least two or three local firms succeed in this space to be able to build an ecosystem and “we will see an explosion in five years time.”

At present, however, web-based enterprises are just starting locally because there is not enough venture capitalist or angel investors who would fund their operations.

“The information revolution is here and gaining more momentum,” he said.

Globally, US, China, Europe, Canada and Japan are leading in this information revolution. In Asean, Singapore and Malaysia are ahead.

Despite the lack of this ecosystem, Domingo expressed confidence the Philippines could partake in this new wave of web-based services because the soft infrastructure or the quality manpower pool is already available locally.