From Ottawa to Seoul

©Korean government

See Joong Choi
Chairman, Korea Communications Commission

In 1998, the Internet was emerging as a major new medium for communications. OECD ministers gathered in Ottawa, Canada, and established policies promoting online activities in areas such as privacy, security, taxation and consumer protection. Since the Ottawa ministerial, the global Internet economy has grown remarkably.

Now, the Internet has become a critical infrastructure which the world depends on to support economic growth and social development. The OECD Seoul ministerial meeting provides an opportunity to address the role of the Internet in the 21st century and the direction of the Internet economy.

Currently, the ministerial meeting is expected to be attended by some 1,500 participants including ministers and high-level officials from communications, economy, industry and trade portfolios from 47 countries as well as leaders from all stakeholder communities.

The meeting will be preceded by stakeholder forums where leaders from business, the Internet technical community, civil society and organised labour will gather and exchange ideas on major policy issues for the growth of the Internet economy.

Moreover, various forums and seminars will take place in relation to the ministerial, bringing together government officials, civic group leaders and academic experts. The participants can also network and exchange information with one another through bilateral and multilateral meetings. In addition, the ministerial participants will be able to gain hands-on experience of the future Internet economy through various events, such as the World IT Show and the OECD ministerial theme pavilion.