|
Vint Cerf |
The rest, as they say, is history. E-mail became the first commercial killer Internet application, Microsoft built TCP/IP into its operating system, and Berners-Lee and friends created the World Wide Web.
Cerf sees voice over IP as one of the first modern technologies beholden to the Internet for its existence. "This is the first time [VoIP] has really caught on," he says. "We have a tumultuous 10 years in front of us." He sees entertainment as another "disruptive" but positive force, citing Sony's claims that all its consumer devices will be Internet-enabled by 2006.
Cerf also has been a big proponent of IPv6, which, despite years of gloom and chatter, hasn't taken off in the United States. He blames the failure of IPv4 on the "dangerous" trend toward NAT (network address translation). "We need to get back to an end-to-end address space," he says, especially with the onslaught of voice, mobile applications, entertainment and grid computing. "I want to see a large and inexhaustible address space." He points to significant IPv6 deployment in Japan, which has started rolling out Internet-enabled automobiles, and in Europe.
Cerf spends a lot of time these days at MCI, where he's senior VP of technology strategy and is helping the company ready itself and its customers for grid computing. "Switching packets isn't going to be the best margin business," he says. To that end, he's working with Microsoft, HP and IBM and envisions a day when third parties can build application services into MCI's network. Previously, as senior VP of architecture and technology, he helped the company advance its VoIP services, and he's been a leader in getting security elements put on the MCI backbone.
Discover the benefits of scalable backbone and network services for application and cloud providers.
Network automation is gaining momentum. Here's how you can drive this powerful technology to its full potential.
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
