Information Policy

Romania's Progress In Electronic Commerce – After Accession On January 2007

As of January 1, 2007, Romania joined the European Union and accepted the constitutional treaty ratifying its accession. As Romania’s number of Internet users is quite low, compared to most of the European Union, banks and on-line traders are actively promoting a wide range of its services to attract consumers to the Internet. However, no further requirements for legislation on e-commerce have so far been identified in Romanian law. The Information Technology market is expanding at a rapid rate in Romania, and one of the growth factor would be implementation of 3G technologies.

Romania has the seventh largest population and the ninth largest territory in the European Union (EU). Beginning in late 1989, Romania actively followed a policy of expanding relations with the EU and United States. The Romanian government actively encouraged projects for upgrading the communications infrastructure and that would allow for increased Internet access, and to this end, issued special regulations to implement a series of government projects that laid a greater emphasis on e-commerce.

U.S firms are well represented in the Romanian ICT market, particularly in the IT sub-sector. Romanian imports of PCs, network interfaces and other communication interfaces, as well as of multimedia equipment and software for advanced IT applications would derive primarily from U.S. suppliers. In addition, there is widespread government-supported implementation of large IT projects as the development of information systems for public administration at both local and national levels (e.g., ID card system, integrated tax collection system, integrated health insurance information system) and an expansion of e-government and e-commerce.

What is the significance of the amendment of Law No. 365/2002 on electronic commerce in Romania? Law No. 365/2002 provides the legal framework for e-commerce and it relevant concepts like electronic messaging or exchange of data over the Internet. This law establishes who could start an e-business registered in Romania. Further, certain taxation principles are summarized under this law, and this law regulates other pertinent issues, with the overall goal of meeting EU recommendations. Electronic transactions that involve software applications are exempted from taxation, whilst any other material products which are imported or locally manufactured are subjected usually to the applicable tax rules of Romania.

Law No. 365/2002 concerning electronic commerce has been amended by Law No. 121/2006 with a view to correspond the Romanian legislation with Directive 2003/31/EC on certain legal aspects of information society services particularly e-commerce in the internal market. Nonetheless, the amendments carried out in Law 365/2002 are aimed chiefly at amending and clarifying the expressions used.

What is the significance of the Information Technology sector on e-commerce in Romania?

The IT sector is one of the active mechanisms of Romania’s economy and receives preference and interest from the Romanian government. IT has experienced significant development offering the latest technologies in many areas. The prominent user of IT is the Romanian government which makes up about one-third of Gross Domestic Product. The IT sector has implemented some of the major IT projects in the country which contains integrated systems for tax collection and National House of Health Insurance and various e-government and e-commerce projects. In 2001, Romanian government also opened a five year multi-million dollar project to provide 2,500 schools with computer laboratories and Internet access.

The Romanian government supports IT projects for the development of expansion of electronic government and electronic commerce.

What are the difficulties faced by Romania in the development of e-commerce?

A number of internal problems hamper in the development of e-commerce in Romania. For example, the Romanian banking system has not yet developed an effective system for electronic inter-bank payment clearing. Moreover, certain banks in Romania are not keen to develop a system to permit on-line payments via credit cards issued by other banks due to the low commission that they gain on such payments and the difficulties related to authentication of cards in real time. Notwithstanding, there are some banks (for example, BancPost) that have announced that they would provide an e-commerce service wherein companies interested could implement a computer system.

Furthermore, the Internet access rate is low in Romania and there is a limited usage of cards for on-line shopping, both factors that provide further disincentive for banks to develop effective e-commerce mechanisms.

Also, Romanian users and the companies show little or no trust in an e-commerce system, which could be due to the lack of information in the said field. In many cases, banks do not provide advice or in certain cases even prohibit the usage of issued credit or debit cards on the Internet, owing to qualms connected with data security.

In what ways is the tax system in Romania improving with respect to the collection of VAT?

Romania has enhanced its tax system to bring it closer to EU standards. Notwithstanding, improved efforts are required to enhance the collection of Value Added Tax (VAT) and to augment the collection of direct taxes. In January 2002, a new law on excise duties was entered into force in Romania, and in June 2002, a combined law on VAT was implemented. Romania also committed to modernize its tax administration and to augment its revenue collection system. However, no progress was noted by the EU in the area of administrative cooperation and mutual assistance, (an area where urgent action was requested in October 2005 by EU) to address the slow progress of implementation of the IT interoperability systems for tax collection, in particular VAT and excise duties. This has, in turn, led to progress in tax compliance by Romanian taxpayers.

The tax collection system in Romania experienced a decline in recent years and taxes contribute only 30% of the Romanian government’s budget, though control procedures for tax administration have been improved now. Romania’s taxation system experienced development in 2005 by eradicating a number of VAT exemptions contrary with the total body of EU law accumulated till date.

http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=articles&id=CFA2B8EB-0F3B-46E0-8091-82D062DF7AE8

Dutch critic of Islam launches anti-Koran film

Dutch right-wing lawmaker Geert Wilders posted on the Internet yesterday a film he said would be critical of the Koran, despite government concerns that it will offend Muslims and cause protests. The film was posted on his PVV party's Web site.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/27/AR2008032702082.html

YouTube expects Turkey to restore access after removing videos

YouTube has removed several video clips that had prompted Turkish authorities to block access to the video-sharing Web site, a move the company believes will lead to a restoration of access soon. In a statement in Turkish sent to The Associated Press on Thursday, YouTube said the company "reviewed the videos that led to the most recent ban on access and removed them because of their content, which violate YouTube's content policy."

http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_8716637?nclick_check=1

Are Further Splits in Motorola's Future?

Motorola announced Wednesday that it planned to spin off its mobile phone business into a separately traded company, unlocking the value of that division as well as giving new focus to its infrastructure group. But if focusing on core businesses is the goal of Moto’s restructuring, does that mean further subdivisions of the company are waiting?

If the separation receives approval, Motorola handsets will become a very integrated company dealing solely with the consumer devices space, but the new Motorola’s remaining business units won’t have the same continuity. Motorola’s networks and enterprise divisions build set-top boxes and IPTV gear, base station infrastructure spanning three separate standards as well as iDEN equipment, industrial and enterprise devices and machine-to-machine gadgets, and government radio equipment and devices. Its customers range from large enterprises and public safety agencies to cable companies and wireless operators.

http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/150/29872?7649

elearningeuropa.info - Newsletter February 2008

This web site contains lots of useful E-learning info, events, reference materials, etc. To read their latest newsletter, please visit the elearningeuropa web site by clicking the link provided here.

http://www.elearningeuropa.info/newsletter/index.php?page=home&nws=51

The Changing World Of Information Technology: New Futures

By Thomas B. Riley

This essay concentrates on the evolution of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in government. It also assesses the wider changes in society due to the emergence of these technologies. The last two decades have created a tsunami of change around the world as the Internet brought people together over distance and time. The implications of these changes have yet to be fully fathomed or understood. We continue to live during an evolutionary period with newer and newer technologies emerging into the marketplace and changing the way we conduct our lives.

Some governments around the world have been catalysts of change by making online services widely available in their jurisdictions. The first stage of this change was the emergence of e-government programs in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

E-Governance and e-government have been concepts embraced by the majority of governments around the world seeking more economical and swifter ways to provide services to their citizenry. The application of the terms e-Governance and e-government over the past decade and a half has contributed to the growth of online services and programs from government departments. Following are definitions of these concepts.

E-Governance - is the movement of governments online to electronically deliver their services and programs, provide government information, and interact with the citizen. e-Governance is, essentially, the application of proven governance principles that drives the public service. This is the formation of new relationships, and includes the private sector along with citizens and other levels of government. Successful and innovative applications of e-Governance across government departments and agencies determine the success of the development of e-government programs.

E-government - constitutes the way public sector institutions use technology to apply public administration principles and conduct the business of government. This is government using new tools to enhance the delivery of existing services. The degree of application of e-government programs very much depends on the amount of personnel and financial resources a government has to implement programs. The degree of application of online services will vary widely between developed, medium developed and developing countries.

Technologies have had a serious impact in our lives. How far will we go and what will be the impacts on our collective societies? This is just one important question of our time that we need to address.

Since 1854 (deployment of the telegraph) Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) have been providing electronic messaging to more and more people.

The marketplace was the first to exploit this capability, beginning with financial and news services. Later entertainment and workplace services were offered for sale. In the last decade, people have had the capacity to "reach out and touch someone" over far greater distances and in much less time than with surface or even airmail. The result has been the continuing spread of a social psychology of connectivity and immediacy over the Internet as well as new information and communication technologies. Thus it is important to assess the current status and impact of information technologies in government and in society overall.

The application of a smorgasbord of government IT programs has resulted in enhanced services to the citizenry on the public side, and efficiencies and speed of service within the government side of the equation. The emergence of these programs has resulted in society now taking IT programs and applications for granted. Many countries, especially Canada in 2003, dropped the e-Government term as departments and agencies moved on to new challenges. In many respects, online government services are now taken for granted.

Online services from government at all levels have changed the ways societies have operated: everything from paying taxes online, to looking up a bus schedule, to using Google, to finding a government department or agency, or to find a friend or any other of the thousands of actions people do online. The world of twenty years ago now seems ancient and antiquated given the way our new technologies allow us as individuals to interact in the world today. This is particularly true of any living individual 22 or under who has grown up with the Internet and the plethora of IT communication devices now available. To this current generation the Internet and concomitant information and communication technologies are simply a part of ordinary life.

These changes have resulted in challenges for government agencies, the corporate world and citizens at large. The technologies have brought instant communications, making connections around the world, bringing the world to our computers or Blackberries, iPods or Personal Digital Assistants (PDA). The capacity now exists for people to seamlessly reach out to friends and relatives through email and websites such as MySpace, You Tube and Facebook. These have been the moving forces that have concentrated on youth who take online activities for granted. Our technologies are becoming legion and all-pervasive to those who have the funds to pay and the wherewithal to utilize these ever evolving ICTs. But this is just the beginning of change that will continue in the next decade as our society evolves into new ways of thinking and acting.

The true change has been convenience. For example, people no longer have to wait in long lineups in government departments for services. But the reality of this change has now been articulated in hundreds of articles and books. As the saying goes the change is now "old hat." What is important at this stage of change is to assess where our society is going and how technologies will continue to change our way of life. Blackberries and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), for example, make it possible to perform any number of tasks, from phone calls, to text messages, to schedulers, to address books, to accessing websites. We are a people in constant motion seamlessly driven by these evolving technologies. Change is rapid and has been embraced in throughout societies around the world. It is currently estimated that 94% of countries around the world have some form of access to online services.

Recent events confirm that technology evolutions are not nearing an end. There will be more evolutions in society overall. From an economic standpoint, it is crucial that new technologies evolve into the marketplace, given that the vast majority of our populations around the world rely on information and communication technologies. In the process our culture will change. Our mores will evolve into different dimensions in just a few years. This is a time of rapid change and perhaps the fastest in all of our history.

This is not to ignore the fact that our ever-growing, pervasive online and offline technologies are causing disturbing social problems. One prime example is that of drivers who create text messages on their handheld mobiles while driving. Recently, newspapers in different countries have reported on drivers who have died in fatal accidents because they were trying to send a message from their mobiles. Other cases have been of drivers who, while talking on their mobiles or trying to create text messages, have killed pedestrians or smashed into other cars killing their drivers. The incidents are probably low compared to total numbers but do illustrate that every new technology has both its negative and positive side.

Other serious side effects of these new technologies include data theft, privacy violations of individuals' personal information, identity theft, hacking, theft of websites, criminal scams, spams and a host of other anti-social behavioral attitudes. In conclusion, it is imperative to state that there are many people in all countries who do not have the financial means or necessary skills to use and fully gain the benefits of these technologies. In fact, recent statistics on online access around the world suggest that there are now a billion people who use the Internet.

This is a challenge now to bring all people into these networks of networks.

http://www.rileyis.com

LV: New database of research papers on EU

A new database of reports and research papers on the European Union and on Latvia in the EU has been launched on the political web portal www.politika.lv.

Financially supported by the European Commission’s Representation in Latvia, the scheme will enable readers to expand their knowledge of EU matters and, thereby, it is hoped, raise the quality of citizen participation in debates about the Union. As Iveta Šulca, head of the EC Representation in Latvia, explains, “Full public participation in discussions and decision-making requires sound and transparent information, and the new database will offer just that – and free of charge. The Lisbon Treaty provides instruments to make the EU more efficient and more democratic, but this cannot be achieved without an informed public discussion on current EU issues.”

The Representation also anticipates that the database will serve as a useful source of information for the media and anyone interested in European Union matters, including state officials, students and academics.

At present, the database offers around 200 papers, mostly in English, covering EU foreign policy, migration, integration of immigrants, free movement of workers, Latvia’s participation in the Union, energy, the future of the EU, human rights, EU enlargement, the environment, the Structural Funds and agriculture. It is intended that sources should include public, private and non-governmental studies, as well as papers and dissertations from Latvian universities. Universities and other higher education establishments are invited to use the new resource and to offer their own materials for the database.

http://www.epractice.eu/document/4467

Latin America's ECommerce Leader

There is a market of 500 million people--about 8.6% of the world's population--that the business media all too often neglects as it serves up story after story about China and India. That would be Latin America. Between 2000 and 2007, the number of Internet users in Latin America grew from 18.1 million to 122.4 million, a compounded annual growth rate of 32% compared with only 12% in North America during the same period.

http://www.forbes.com/technology/2008/03/21/mitra-entrepreneur-argentina-tech-ebiz-cx_sm_0321mitra.html

OECD Resources on Policy Issues related to Internet Governance

This site, www.oecd.org/InternetGovernance, presents the OECD's contributions in several critical public policy areas related to the Internet; such as security, privacy, telecommunication policy, universal access, consumer protection, e-commerce, and broader information economy issues. It provides links to the relevant OECD resources on public policy issues related to Internet governance. The OECD prepared a report as an input to the United Nations Working Group on Internet Governance in 2005, available as a user-friendly e-book or as a PDF document. This report i) presents an overview of the major benefits that the developments of the Internet and ICTs provide to both OECD economies and non-OECD countries’ economies; ii) briefly reviews the evolution of the Internet and the parallel evolution of Internet governance from the 1960s until today; iii) provides the OECD’s perspective on the factors that were instrumental to the successful development of the Internet; and iv) finally, provides information on the relevant work conducted by the OECD on policy issues related to Internet governance as per the “Internet governance” public policy areas identified by the U.N. Working Group on Internet Governance.

http://www.oecd.org/document/21/0,3343,en_21571361_34590630_34591253_1_1_1_1,00.html

via http://www.technewsreview.com.au

EU Blogs Becoming Prominent Players in Elections

While the Internet continues to increase in users and impact, blogs are making themselves felt in the politics of the European Union and will be an increasingly important player, as seen across the Atlantic in recent U.S. Elections. In a period when analysts and critics bemoan the lack of fresh ideas and genuine dialog in the West, the European blogosphere promises to bring a mass of previously voiceless political enthusiasts into the arena. In the States, blogs were initially known as a bastion for the Right to bemoan a supposed lack of representation in the mainstream press. But the Left launched stunning growth in blogs, and are now well-represented. Now, in many blogs there are heated debates on the issues of the day that can go one for weeks and months.

http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=latestnews&id=2018