The IT Journalists Association of the Philippines (CyberPress) held a forum celebrating the 20th year of Internet connectivity in the Philippines. Here are some of the key speakers.

CyberPress Forum 2014 Bill Torres

Bill Toress, above, the “Godfather” of the Philippine Internet, laments that we’re ahead worldwide in selfies and texting but are behind in education, farming, food production, and infrastructure.

CyberPress Forum 2014 Allora Uy

CyberPress President and veteran, veteran tech journalist Alora Uy Guerrero opens the event.

CyberPress Forum 2014 LG Faith Mijares

LG Philippines Product Manager Faith Mijares covers LG’s contribution to LTE development.

CyberPress Forum 2014 Globe Cocoy Claraval

“The average age of tablet use if ten months,” this according to Fernand Cocoy Claraval of Globe.

While these speakers presented various (and often politically differing) eyes on the development of the Internet (and of Internet-spurred behavior) in the country, absent were the nostalgia-inducing rise and fall of user-centered narratives – EdsaMail, Yahoo Messenger, Blogspot, Banner Ads, Citizen Journalism, Friendster, Video Scandals, MySpace, Mininova, Napster, YouTube, Gdrive, MMORPG, and the like.

CyberPress Forum 2014 LG Philippines

CyberPress Forum 2014 was sponsored by LG Philippines.

Well, there’s always next year.

Happy 20th, Internet in the Philippines. Someday, maybe, enough Tweets and FaceBook unlikes may unseat many a hideous government official.

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