Open information & communication technologies road map leads to World Bank
By Staff -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 12/1/2005 12:00:00 AM
Adoption of open technology standards on a global basis is essential to "unleashing newfound comparative advantage, invention, social development, and market opportunities," claims a report on information & communication technologies (ICT) presented at a World Bank forum in September by members of Open ePolicy Group.
The report, Road Map for Open ICT Ecosystems, was championed by the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at the Harvard Law School. Supported by IBMand Oracle, the project includes input from representatives of 13 national governments—among them, the U.S., Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, Jordan, and South Africa.
"The World Bank provides an ideal platform from which to launch a message to developing nations about the importance of technological interoperability," says Charles Nesson, Weld Professor of Law at Harvard, and faculty codirector of the Berkman Center.
The "road map," replete with case examples of the benefits of openness—and problems arising from a lack of it—is intended to "present a coherent set of principles and best practices that can help create and sustain open ICT ecosystems."
According to Karla Norsworthy, VP of software standards for IBM, "What you have is a set of governments sharing their understanding about why open standards are important. They're all at different stages, but all are headed down the same path with different local considerations. Open standards enable them to have control, and encourage innovation and growth in their geographies."
The report defines an ICT ecosystem as open "when it is capable of incorporating and sustaining interoperability, collaborative development, and transparency." Such openness unlocks "efficiencies, standardization, and flexibility needed to propel the transformation of governments and business... revolutionizing how we communicate, connect, and compete."
The report authors "hope to provide policymakers, managers, and other stakeholders with a user-friendly tool for understanding what open ICT ecosystems are, why they are embraced, and how to evolve them."
