Competing Values Regarding Internet Use in “Free” Philippine Social Institutions
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person ’ s account can already be monitored, whether he or she uses the universityissued e-mail or commercial e-mail.
Another issue among universities regarding Internet usage pertains to accessing
“ high-bandwidth ” consumer sites. OpenNet Asia testing conducted in a state university found YouTube and subsequently news content such as http://youtube.com/
AlJazeeraEnglish and http://youtube.com/zamboangajournal blocked. The reason for
this block, at the time of testing, was bandwidth concerns. In larger campuses with
bigger student populations, the quality of Internet access varies. Some students complain that the quality of Internet access also varies within the same building. These
quality issues were a network infrastructure problem, whereby quality diminishes with
distance from the source. In other instances, there are individual units and colleges
that provide wireless access independently, and in these cases they provide layers of
restrictions in addition to those that the university already provides.
A recent study on the Filipino youth ’ s digital media use found research and schoolwork to be the most common use for the Internet.
18 However, the same study found
accessing entertainment and YouTube ranked second. As a result, one university proposed regulating high-bandwidth sites. Its recommendation was based on its internal
Internet traffi c report in 2008 that showed that six of the top 20 sites being accessed
by its users pertained to online videos and downloading/fi le-sharing sites ( table 6.1 ).
19
The proposed restriction, however, was not accepted by the student body. The students
argued that since they are already paying fees for the service and since the cost of
bandwidth was actually going down, funds should not be a problem if additional
bandwidth is necessary.
These examples illustrate how Internet use in schools is developing rapidly, and
how much is to be learned on how to make it effective and safe for students to use.
Even though there is no prescriptive remedy to ensure Internet responsibility, schools
fi nd they cannot rely on a single solution.
20
Corporations
Corporations recognize the impact on and contribution to their business of information technology like the Internet and “ smart phones. ” A study on Philippine organizations revealed that 65 percent of employers provide Internet access to all their
employees. Employers cited the importance of technology in enabling communication, enhancing productivity among employees, and obtaining information.
21
There are also data to suggest that employee use can include unproductive, negligent, illegal, and counterproductive activities. In an OpenNet Asia survey that was
distributed to 1,033 employees in 86 companies all over the Philippines, respondents
were asked if they “ know of any employee being disciplined due to violation of Internet use policy at work. ”
22 They were then asked to explain some details about the
121
person ’ s account can already be monitored, whether he or she uses the universityissued e-mail or commercial e-mail.
Another issue among universities regarding Internet usage pertains to accessing
“ high-bandwidth ” consumer sites. OpenNet Asia testing conducted in a state university found YouTube and subsequently news content such as http://youtube.com/
AlJazeeraEnglish and http://youtube.com/zamboangajournal blocked. The reason for
this block, at the time of testing, was bandwidth concerns. In larger campuses with
bigger student populations, the quality of Internet access varies. Some students complain that the quality of Internet access also varies within the same building. These
quality issues were a network infrastructure problem, whereby quality diminishes with
distance from the source. In other instances, there are individual units and colleges
that provide wireless access independently, and in these cases they provide layers of
restrictions in addition to those that the university already provides.
A recent study on the Filipino youth ’ s digital media use found research and schoolwork to be the most common use for the Internet.
18 However, the same study found
accessing entertainment and YouTube ranked second. As a result, one university proposed regulating high-bandwidth sites. Its recommendation was based on its internal
Internet traffi c report in 2008 that showed that six of the top 20 sites being accessed
by its users pertained to online videos and downloading/fi le-sharing sites ( table 6.1 ).
19
The proposed restriction, however, was not accepted by the student body. The students
argued that since they are already paying fees for the service and since the cost of
bandwidth was actually going down, funds should not be a problem if additional
bandwidth is necessary.
These examples illustrate how Internet use in schools is developing rapidly, and
how much is to be learned on how to make it effective and safe for students to use.
Even though there is no prescriptive remedy to ensure Internet responsibility, schools
fi nd they cannot rely on a single solution.
20
Corporations
Corporations recognize the impact on and contribution to their business of information technology like the Internet and “ smart phones. ” A study on Philippine organizations revealed that 65 percent of employers provide Internet access to all their
employees. Employers cited the importance of technology in enabling communication, enhancing productivity among employees, and obtaining information.
21
There are also data to suggest that employee use can include unproductive, negligent, illegal, and counterproductive activities. In an OpenNet Asia survey that was
distributed to 1,033 employees in 86 companies all over the Philippines, respondents
were asked if they “ know of any employee being disciplined due to violation of Internet use policy at work. ”
22 They were then asked to explain some details about the