The Information Technologists' Company

Vint Cerf dinner with BT at the Hall to help IPv6

"Do you know? I really like it here. This feels like home." So said Vint Cerf, the 'Father of the Internet', half-way through dinner at the Information Technologists' Hall on Thursday, 25 September 2008. It's not his first visit, Dr. Cerf is a new Freeman, and the statement wasn't in response to a question, but was simply an off-the-cuff remark. For those who have met him, they will know it was very genuinely meant. How very flattering; he will always be welcome.

British Telecom kindly hosted this intimate dinner of thirteen (plus, of course, a place for our unseen fourteenth guest) in the Court Room. The conversation was lively and Vint gave us his, and Google's, take on many subjects ranging from the integrity of personal identity on the Internet, the perceptions of different generations, through communication protocols used in interplanetary spacecraft, to the need for IPv6. The latter, which he had spoken about in front of the Press earlier in the day, is largely concerned with the Internet running out of unique addresses and the need to increase capacity.

To put this in context, the day following our dinner The Times reported that his comments were the most visited news item on the Times Online web site. Bear in mind this is ahead of much other news that day, including global melt-down in the financial markets, America's bail-out plans and Sir Paul McCartney playing for the first time in Israel, 43 years after the Beatles were refused entry.

The dinner was attended by senior members from BT (Richard Baker, Head of Identity Management; Tim Boden, Director of BT’s Olympics 2012; Kevin Covington, Director Radianz – BT Financial Products; John Harries, Director Public Services; Felix Atkins representing the CTO). Google were represented by Vint and Anthony House. Anthony, also American, was celebrating (to the day) his fifth anniversary of arriving in England. An Oxford graduate, introducing the Livery to him became somewhat superfluous when he revealed he mastered in the development of the City of London in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. It would be good to welcome him too as a Freeman.

There was evidently a great synergy between the hosts, BT, and Google, and much note-taking was evident of issues to take away and work on in the future. It may be fanciful, but these mutually respectful ICT giants may well go on to work collaboratively together in spectacular fashion. Edward Lloyd's Coffee House in 1688 bred the eponymous insurance market and Jonathan's Coffee Shop in Change Alley spawned the London Stock Exchange. Might this evening in the Information Technologists' Hall have been the incubator for something equally wonderful? You heard it here first ...

Richard Baker proposed a vote of thanks to Vint which was wholeheartedly endorsed by the rest of the attendees.

Past Master Tricia Drakes; the Panels Warden-elect, Jonathan Soar; the Clerk, Michael Grant; Liveryman-elect, Peter Drake, who organised the event, together with new Freemen Chris Hurst (who works for Richard Baker at BT) and James Zorab, all attended and contributed to the lively debate.

If anyone would like to see what a great person Dr. Cerf is, please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7S2CCnakE0 to see his marvellous endorsement of ITC and iT4C. Something he just managed to fit in before dinner and it brings a lump to the throat...

Vint finished with a different plea. He has recently visited Bletchley Park and was evidently unhappy to note that it is in a state of decay. He urged the Company to help do whatever we can about this sorry state of affairs. Those at the dinner noted that quite probably, without the work of those at Bletchley Park, the World would be a very different place today and most likely without the Internet.