Information Policy

DE: eParticipation survey

The German Interior Ministry has launched an on-line user survey on eParticipation.

The study focuses on the possibilities for citizens and the main business and social actors to use and develop eParticipation in political and administrative decision-making. The aim is to survey and describe the stage of development reached by German eParticipation and draw European comparisons.

The exercise is also expected to produce recommendations for promoting eParticipation within the framework of the German federal government’s programme eGovernment 2.0. Both national and international eGovernment projects will be analysed and best practices identified.

Two questionnaires have been drawn up. One, not currently available on-line, is for business associations and non-governmental organisations. The other is aimed at private citizens, more particularly “internet users who have already, through this medium or other new communications technologies, taken part in political processes”.

Discussion forums on local policy or planning issues, petitions and questions to members of parliament are among the examples given. Survey participants are also asked about their expectations of federal eGovernment. The questionnaire is designed to be completed on-line – mostly by ticking boxes. It is anonymous, which is perhaps just as well. One of the tickable options for the politically active is “I have already taken part in an unauthorised demonstration”.

http://www.epractice.eu/document/4014

Rethinking Governance to Fight Corruption

This Brief argues that the key to more effective anti-corruption strategies is to think differently about governance. Instead of starting with an OECD model of governance in mind, and assessing the gap between the developing country reality and OECD institutions, policymakers would do better to start with fewer assumptions, and some questions. What are the underlying reasons for poor governance and high levels of corruption in so many poor countries? What do we know about the political processes involved in building more effective and acountable public institutions?

http://www.cmi.no/publications/file/?2757=rethinking-governance-to-fight-corruption

Wobbing Europe

In the Netherlands, about 1,000 requests under the freedom of information act are filed each year, Dutch media lawyer Roger Vleugels says. But in Belgium and France, only about 25 requests are made. If journalists don't use their freedom of information rights, says Danish media lawyer Henriette Schjøth, "you will never be able to change the administrative culture within authorities."

The two lawyers were speaking at a mid-October launch of a Belgian site intended to encourage reporters to use Europe's freedom of information laws. Posted in Dutch and English, Wobbing Europe (http://www.wobsite.be) outlines transparency legislation in the European Union's 27 member states and tracks EU policy on freedom of information.

The difficulty of following up with FOI requests - many of which are initially denied - often produces a chilling effect. Journalists at the launch recommended pooling their FOI efforts.

BY: Internet versions of the press must be registered as Mass Media

The Belarusian interdepartmental republican working group on research of legal regulation of Internet Media in the CIS and Europe sets its goal to summarize world’s practices, Belarus’ Information Minister Uladzimir Rusakevich told BelTA.

According to the Minister, Belarus has no experience in solving this problem. The materials collected, world’s practice studied, the working group will come out with its proposals. In particular, Internet versions of the press must be registered as Mass Media, Uladzimir Rusakevich believes.

http://www.charter97.org/en/news/2007/10/30/1117/

The Global University Network for Innovation

The Global University Network for Innovation - GUNI is composed of UNESCO Chairs in Higher Education, research centers, universities, networks and other institutions highly committed to innovation in higher education. More than 100 institutions from around the world are GUNI members. GUNI was set up by UNESCO, the United Nations University (UNU) and the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC) in 1999 with the aim of following up the decisions taken at the World Conference on Higher Education (WCHE) held in Paris in 1998. The goal of GUNI is to contribute to the reinforcement of higher education by the application of the decisions of the World Conference on Higher Education.

http://www.guni-rmies.net/interviews/detail.php?id=1088

3 Launches Skypephone

3 Group and Skype Ltd. launched the much anticipated, co-branded, awkwardly named "3 Skypephone" today. Skype says it now wants to roll out the inexpensive device with other mobile operators in markets outside 3's territories.

The imminent launch of the handset has hardly been a big secret lately -- 3 has offered Skype as part of its X-series mobile Internet services since the end of last year.

http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/100/27360?7649

Uruguay The First Country To Order $100 Laptops

The first official order for the so-called "$100 laptop" has been placed by the government of Uruguay. The South American country has bought 100,000 of the machines for schoolchildren aged six to 12. A further 300,000 may be purchased to provide a machine for every child in the country by 2009.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7068084.stm

US: Net Neutrality Becoming A Presidential Issue

If elected president, Barack Obama plans to prioritize barring broadband providers like AT&T and Comcast from prioritizing Internet content. Affixing his signature to federal Net neutrality rules would be high on the list during his first year in the Oval Office, the junior senator from Illinois said during an interactive forum Monday afternoon with the popular contender put on by MTV and MySpace at Coe College in Iowa.

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9806707-7.html

EU: TVWF: The Commission has adopted its 6th Report on the application of the "Television without frontiers" directive

This report covers the application of the essential provisions of the directive during the period 2005-2006 and the international aspects of the audiovisual policy. It also analyses the recent developments in the audiovisual landscape, which will be reflected in the forthcoming audiovisual media services directive.

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/com/2007/com2007_0452en01.pdf

Telecenter Sustainability using the Free and Open Source Software CatGen E-commerce Client

Telecenters are a noble approach to democratizing the benefits to ICT. However most of them struggle for sustainability precisely because they target users of limited means. The key to their viability, however, is providing services to relatively prosperous enterprises in any community. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly feeling the necessity to establish an on-line presence and are willing and able to pay a small amount ($10 per month for example) for hosting and also purchase additional services such as computer/camera rental, training, and technical assistance. Once the fixed costs of a telecenter (rent, equipment, staff payroll, Internet access) are covered with e-commerce services to local SMEs, the marginal cost of offering Internet services to low income users (peasants, students, residents of slums, etc.) is modest.

http://topics.developmentgateway.org/ict/rc/filedownload.do?itemId=1118233