OECD teams with YouTube to build a better world

Stuart Corner
Friday, 30 May 2008 12:29

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

Here's your chance to get the ear of a whole bunch of world leaders and tell them what to do: the OECD is asking you via YouTube, how  you think the Internet can be used to make the world a better place.

In June the OECD will hold a ministerial meeting on the Future of the Internet in Seoul. It will be attended by at least 40 ministers from OECD member countries along with leaders from international government organisations, business, organised labour, the Internet's technical community and civil society.

They will consider social, economic and technological trends shaping the development of the Internet Economy and will "forge broad principles that can provide an enabling policy environment for the Internet Economy." In preparation for that meeting the OECD has published a report  warning of an impending shortage of IPv4 addresses and exhorting the world to move swiftly to implement IPv6.

YouTube users will be able to submit videos setting out their views on the issues to be discussed, and the best will be shown to ministers and VIPs at the event. Their responses will in turn be uploaded onto YouTube during the meeting.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría, in a video posted on the new dedicated section of YouTube, encouraged the YouTube community to "Take part in making a difference," saying: "You tell the leaders and opinion shapers in Seoul what you think and they will upload responses to your ideas. Join in."

The move represents a rare convergence in that it brings together a staid long established inter-government body, best known for churning out large volumes off dry reports packed with statistics and other economic data with one of the 'coolest' and most successful startups of the Web 2.0 era.

The OECD was founded in 1961 and claims to be  one of the world's largest and most reliable sources of comparable statistics, and economic and social data. YouTube was founded in February 2005, launched in December 2006 and sold to Google in November 2007 for $US1.65b in Google stock.