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 World's IT chiefs discuss
high-tech trends with Chinese ministers Some of the biggest players in global information technology Monday called for governments around the world to establish unified standards to prevent a cyberspace meltdown. Speaking at a special IT workshop kicking off the Fortune Global Forum in Shanghai, big-name speakers said developments such as the impact of broadband network technology would revolutionise Internet use. But they warned that unified regulation was needed to keep pace with the information explosion. Michael Dell, the chairman of Dell Computer Corp., said the broadband revolution would explode the Internet's capabilities for ordinary users, making it easily a carrier for video and text. "By 2003, we expect millions of people worldwide will access the Internet at speeds 150 to 500 times faster than today," he said. A number of speakers warned the accompanying rapid expansion of on-line commerce would severely challenge the traditional concepts national sovereignty. "A seemingly simple transaction, such as the transmission of the latest movie over the Internet, raises a number of concerns including the protection of intellectual property rights, the jurisdiction of potential regulators ... and the possible imposition of taxes and tariffs," said Mickey Kantor, a former US secretary of commerce. John Chen, the chairman of US software giant Sybase Inc., called for international negotiations to establish global standards. "Otherwise, I predict we will have a new '.com' the around the world + chaos.com," he said. The creation of a truly seamless global financial system is necessary, he said, adding Participants also expressed concern about a growing divide between the world's technology haves and have-nots, with Toshiba Corp. president Taizo Nishimuro warning this could bring about a new "North South problem" that could cause world instability. Chinese officials were upbeat and pointed to the country's immediate plans to improve its telecoms and computer industries, but Duan Yongji, the chief executive of domestic computer firm Stone Group Corp. said China was "at least 20 years behind the US and other developed countries." Officials participating included Minister of Information Industry Wu Jichuan and Minister of Science and Technology Zhu Lilan. Other speakers from overseas included figures such as Nokia chairman Jorma Ollila, Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang and digital-age guru Nicholas Negroponte, one of the founders of Wired magazine. Sony Corp. president Noboyuki Idei sent a pair of his company's new robot dogs to make up for his last-minute cancellation. The fully autonomous creatures scampered about to the amusement of assembled power players and were to remain on the scene for the remainder of the roundtable IT forum, Fortune organizers said. The Global Forum is due to run through Wednesday. (Xinhua-CD-PD) |
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