The Exploding Internet Homepage


Open Access - Introduction

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Contents
 

Readings

Speakers

Further Resources

 Webcast Information 










 

 

Open Access implicates the very character and future of the Internet itself.  At stake is the survival of a truly independent media and the virtually limitless access to unfiltered information and content that has become synonymous with the very notion of a World Wide Web. 

The Internet is currently being transformed from a world of dial-up access over traditional copper phone lines, often amusingly referred to as the "World Wide Wait", to a world of broadband high-speed access that offers the potential to deliver a wide array of new voice, video, and data applications.  The promise of these new technologies, however, also presents our society with a vast array of new challenges and problems.

In particular, as we enter into this new world of high-speed Internet access we most confront a number of difficult questions.  At the core of these questions are whether we, as a society, will allow the proprietary owners of the high-speed cable networks, such as AT&T & AOL-Time Warner, to serve as Internet gatekeepers in the next millennium?  If a single corporation controls access to the Internet of the future, do we risk converting the Internet into a corporate Intranet? Will control over the Internet backbone allow corporations to control the content we view on our desktops? 

Open Access is a debate about who will control the future of the Internet.  At an economic level the stakes include potentially higher prices, reduced consumer choice, and stifled innovation.  Perhaps more troubling, however, is the potential threat that Internet gatekeepers pose to our core values of freedom of speech, freedom from censorship, and equal protection.  Regardless of your point of view in relation to the overall outcome, therefore, the stakes in the battle for Open Access could not be higher.  Consequently, we hope that these pages will inspire you to become an active participant in a debate that implicates the very character of the Internet, and has the potential to dramatically alter the broader landscape of our political and social discourses.

To assist you in preparing for this week's class, we have put together a selection of required readings.  These are designed to introduce you to the issues which Open Access raises and provide you with solid understanding of the most recent developments in this area.  For those of you who want to find out more about these issues, we have also compiled a page of further resources from which you can link to large number of reports, articles, opinions and sites relating to Open Access. 

We have a number of distinguished speakers forming a panel for us on Wednesay night.  To find out more about our guest speakers we have created a Speakers page which contains a short bio of each participant.  The panel discussion is to be webcast to an international audience.  For more information about the webcast and how to participate in it, please visit our webcast information page

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