“Openness – a synthesis of collaborative creativity,
connectivity, access and transparency – is revolutionising how we
communicate, connect and compete,” says the report. “It reshapes
ICT ecosystems, and makes it possible to re-engineer government,
rewrite business models and deliver customised services to
citizens.”
“As technology commingles with other disciplines, this new
openness is driving innovation in politics, health care, disaster
management and countless other sectors. Today, evolving to more
open ICT ecosystems is a decisive, even necessary, step in
governance reform, market success or medical discovery,” it
explains.
The report, the product of a collaboration of public and private
sector experts from all round the world, was published by the
Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law
School.
It does not push for government take up of open source
technologies – which are non-proprietary – but for open standards,
which allow different proprietary products to communicate. At
present most government bodies use products, such as Microsoft
Windows, which are not interoperable with rival products.
Such closed products would not disappear under the vision put
forward by the report. Rather, they would become part of a more
fluid ICT ecosystem that uses all types of products, but is built
on five core principles: interoperability, user-centricity,
collaboration, sustainability and flexibility.
According to Harvard Law Professor Charles Nesson, founder of
the Berkman Center, the roadmap “makes pragmatic policy
recommendations for governments, businesses, and individuals".
"This is a groundbreaking piece of collaboration by an
international team. It will help clarify public issues relating to
the structure of the Net and lead, we hope, to action," he
added.
