IBU News (Germany) Edition 0.9.9

The (Athens) Internet Governance Forum is at half-time...

Transcripts are now available here.

On the question of censorship and openness... the corporate chorus sings in a nutshell "We bring business to totalitarian governments and business is good and pure. The more wealthy one is the more democratic and free one will become"..

VINT CERF (Speaking for Google):
"I think that it is probably not consistent with our view that we would use or even feel that we have marketing power to force change. I rather like the comment of engagement. I like the idea that you bring information to people, you bring opportunities to produce revenues that wouldn't be available. In the case of Google, we've split revenues from advertising with parties that have information on Web pages that draw people to it. So I would rather think that the company can bring persuasion in the form of economic development rather than trying to use some form of market power in order to negotiate."

Selling Ads as the ultimate liberation force?

The same view too was sung by Fred Tipson speaking for Microsoft "The economic value in the internet is driving growth and development in educational opportunities [in China],".

And the Chinese government position voiced at the conference?

What censorship?

"In China we don't have software blocking internet sites. Sometimes we have trouble accessing them but that is a different problem.,"..."We do not have restrictions at all.".."Some people say journalists in China have been arrested. We have hundreds of journalists in China and few have been arrested. This has nothing to do with freedom of expression.".."We have criminals in our society. There are criminals in all society."