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OECD Ministerial Meeting on the Future of the Internet Economy, 17-18 June 2008
OECD 2008 Ministerial Meeting on The Future of the Internet Economy
On 17-18 June 2008, the OECD convened the OECD Ministerial Meeting on The Future of the Internet Economy in recognition of the increasingly critical role of the internet to economies and society.
The meeting brought together ministers, senior government officials, heads of major intergovernmental organisations, industry leaders and representatives of the internet technical community, civil society and organised labour.
The themes of the meeting included enabling the internet as a catalyst to improve future economic performance and social development and leveraging the evolution of the internet to:
- maximise the benefits from the convergence of what were separate platforms (video, telephony and data) to the internet
- promote creativity and enhance the role of the internet as a source and a tool for stimulating innovation and growth, and
- build confidence in the internet as a trusted infrastructure to conduct economic and social activities.
Three non-governmental Stakeholder Forums for business, the internet technical community, and civil society and organised labour interests preceded the OECD Ministerial Meeting on 16 June 2008.
The OECD Ministerial Meeting provided an opportunity for communication and information technology ministers to develop a shared global vision for the future of the internet economy.
Ministers adopted the Seoul Declaration, which will guide the work of the OECD and its member countries in pursuing digital economy objectives.
New areas of emphasis for the OECD include the issues of identity management in the medium term and the role of ICT in responding to climate change.
Ministers also welcomed and recognised the importance of the policy framework which supports the Seoul Declaration (referred to as the OECD report on Shaping Policies for the Future of the Internet Economy), recommending that governments consider it in developing their policies.
Shaping
Policies for the Future of the Internet Economy (PDF, 2.3 mb)
- Shaping
Policies for the Future of the Internet Economy: Annexes (PDF, 2.5
mb)
Senator Stephen Conroy, Minister for Broadband Communications and the Digital Economy, chaired the round table discussion on Building Confidence, at which Ministers acknowledged the need for enhanced international collaboration in cyber-safety and cyber security initiatives.
Senator Conroy's address to the OECD Ministerial Meeting and the media release are available through the links in the column on the right.
The Department will use the outcomes of the OECD Ministerial Meeting to inform its domestic and international work in areas such as:
- developing future directions for the digital economya
- e-security and cyber-safety
- fostering innovation in the development, use and application of the internet, and
- enhancing global co-operation to address cross-border issues.
The Department's research in the lead up to the OECD's Ministerial Meeting
The Department's research in the lead up to the OECD's Ministerial Meeting involved analysis of the opportunities and challenges of the future of the Internet and assessment of the related public policy implications.
The Department's research included consultation and coordination with other key Government agencies and activities such as the National Broadband Development Group and the Australian Communications and Media Authority.
During 2007, and as part of this project, the Department
contracted research and analytical work by expert consultants on key
public policy implications of the future of the Internet. The completed
consultancy report: 
Reliability of the Internet (PDF,
1.4 MB) by SIFT Pty Ltd
covers the 10 years to 2017. The report is available through the link
in the column on the right.