Forum Report
3rd meeting
19, 20 & 21 May,
2000
Portmarnock, Ireland
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Welcome
Speech
Mr. Norikiyo Koide
General Manager,
Hitachi Corporate Office, Europe |
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Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.
I guess I met all
of you last night, and I simply want to say to all of you welcome to the
3rd Hitachi Science & Technology Forum.
To this welcome, my
sincere thanks and appreciation to our guest speakers who have so kindly
agreed to join us in spite of heavy business commitments. We are pleased
and proud to have you with us.
Last year, in Krefeld, I told you
that we, at Hitachi, want this forum to be your forum. Very soon Mr.
Verhagen will talk to you about the Working Group which he led since last
year...about its works, its Ups and Downs, and its success in putting
together the Agenda of our meeting, today and tomorrow. Members of the
Working Group deserve the deep appreciation of all of us.
I do
hope their commitment to the concept of the forum to be managed and
developed by its members will be followed by many of you this year, and in
the years to come. During this forum, members of the Working Group will
act as moderators for all sessions. Thank you again for their contribution
to our meeting.
Our forum is privileged to get new members from
Ireland and United Kingdom. They join their colleagues from France,
Germany and the Netherlands this time. And progressively all past HIVIPS
will be invited to join our forum. I expect to reach that stage by next
year, probably in May or June in Brussels.
Let me now turn round to
Dr. Nakamura, Managing Officer, Executive Vice President, Hitachi Research
and Development Group whose presence underlines Hitachi's senior
management interest and commitment to the forum. Dr. Nakamura, we are
pleased to have you with us.
We are also pleased to have many Hitachi
executives coming from different research centers and operating units from
our European operations.
I know they look forward to getting acquainted
with you all.
Last year, you elected for topic "E-commerce and its
impact on European society". In a way you anticipated the discussion which
took place during the Lisbon European Council in March, during which the
European Commission Communication on eEurope was overwhelmingly endorsed.
Europe wants to be a leading partner in e-Society. Your discussions during
the next two days will be addressing issues of particular significance to
our fellow Europeans. Congratulations for your choice and my best wishes
for a successful meeting.
Now I would like to hand over to Dr.
Nakamura. Thank you very much.
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Opening
Speech
Dr. Michiharu Nakamura
Executive Vice
President, R&D Group, Hitachi, Ltd. |
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Thank you, Mr. Koide.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the third
Hitachi Science and Technology Forum. Last night, we had a welcome
reception where I met many HIVIPS participants we saw in Japan some years
ago. It was really a very pleasant opportunity to chat with them, and I
really feel so happy to be here. I would like to express our special
thanks to all that came over here to share their valuable time with us
all.
I feel excited in listening to their presentations and
participation in discussions. I hope this meeting will be informative with
frank discussion, and also enjoyable. Each participant has some kind of
particular expertise and is pursuing a career in a specific field. So, I
think, through this forum today and tomorrow, we can form a valuable
expertise network covering many important areas including
e-commerce.
I hope each of us will enjoy talking with old and new
friends. In my experience, researchers tend to stick to their own specific
research themes. Therefore, this Hitachi European Forum gives us a
wonderful opportunity for us to meet people from different circles, and to
broaden our perspectives.
Here, let us reconsider a bit about how
our research will impact global society and contribute to the people's
quality of life (QoL) all over the world. This is our forum's foundation
philosophy and our base. We must not forget this point.
The theme
of this meeting is "Electronic Commerce and its Impact on Society". This
is a very timely topic, but the topic needs lots of deep discussions. So,
I would like to say congratulatory message to selecting this theme.
Electronic commerce connects many cultures across the border of nations,
using various advanced technologies. It will drastically influence and
change social structure and functions, which, crucially needs discussion
from wide. I am also given a chance to speak on this theme tomorrow
morning, and I am anxious to get your comments. I heartily hope this forum
will achieve a well-deserved success.
Thank you.
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Introduction
Mr. Michael
Verhagen
Chairman, Working Group on Electronic Commerce |
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It is great to see such diversity in culture, language, and field of
expertise gathered here at this Hivips forum. It strongly reminds me of
the days I spent at the Hitachi Central Research Laboratory about five
years ago. I was welcomed at the research laboratory by both a very
enthusiastic research group, as well as by an exciting Hivips community of
about 20 people. I am still in regular contact with quite a lot of the
people I met in Japan. This forum is of course a great opportunity to
catch up with these people. I am especially excited to see Dr. Nakamura
here, who was the director of the Central Research Laboratory at the time
that I was there.
I get a great feeling of synergy from seeing you
all at our own forum. And it is really our own forum. The people in the
working group that I had the pleasure of working with are a great example
of the fact that we, as ex-Hivips, have a major role in defining the
purpose and the content of this forum. But more about that later, let's
first have a look back at how we got to this forum here in
Dublin.
For those of you who were not there, at the previous Hivips
gathering in Krefeld we defined the subject of this meeting to be
"Electronic Commerce and its impact on society". At that meeting we formed
a working group that would investigate major issues and propose an agenda
for this forum. This working group consists of approximately eight people
from 5 different countries, and from very technical backgrounds. Also on
the working group were people from Hitachi who gave us all the support we
needed.
The goal of the working group was to make this an
interesting and enjoyable forum for you. And as with every goal, we had a
plan on how to achieve it. We set up an email reflector that we used for
the majority of our communication. Using this reflector we brainstormed
about implications and opportunities of E-Commerce.
We asked
ourselves questions like:
- Will our children be skilled enough to work in the new economy?
- Is our education system geared up for a new demanding job market?
- Will the new economy actually create jobs, or make us all obsolete?
- What about my personal integrity?
Why did we think these were such important questions? Even though at
the moment 80 percent of what is generally considered to be E-Commerce is
business to business, we strongly believe that sooner or later, E-Commerce
will affect all of us.
You may not realise it but we are in the
middle of a revolution. Take for example the transformation from analogue
to digital television broadcast. There is a lot more to this than a clear
picture on your television. Because digital television can be compressed,
we can broadcast seven or eight digital channels in the same amount of
bandwidth it takes to broadcast a single analogue channel. So what can we
do with this available bandwidth? Quite recently in the United Kingdom,
the government has auctioned this excess bandwidth. Five phone companies
paid over four billion pounds each for a part of these airwaves. These
companies obviously expect a huge return on their investment, and are
currently designing and promoting information and entertainment services
that hopefully, you will be willing to pay for.
Your television
will also never be the same. Moore's law, which states that for the
foreseeable future, processing power will double roughly every 18 months
while cost remains constant, has brought applications that were previously
too expensive for low cost consumer devices, into this domain. One of
those applications for example, is video recording onto a hard disk, as
opposed to a tape. Besides the obvious advantages of easy access and
indexing, it offers a whole new view on the medium television. Based on my
profile and viewing habits, smart agents will proactively create
personalised channels, composed of my favourite programs, and advertising
that is of specific interest to me. Prime time television will be whenever
it suits me best. Technology will give me what I want, where I want, when
I want it.
However, this same example brings up possible concerns.
Where are my viewing habits stored? Who has access to this information?
Can I control how this information is used in some way? Some of you may
already be familiar with the case of an Internet streaming company. With
their software you can listen to live radio broadcasts over the Internet,
or watch an Internet television broadcast. Their audio player somehow
stored information on CDs that you played using the CD player in your
computer. This information was then sent to the company as soon as you
established a connection with your Internet service provider. It could
then be used for profiling and marketing purposes.
Now this may
seem like a relatively harmless case, but you can easily see that there is
a fine line here that must not be crossed. And we, as technology
providers, are responsible for making sure that this line is not, and
maybe even can not be crossed. We have to understand our responsibilities
and that is for a large part what this forum is about. This forum is not
about the technology that is driving this revolution, but on the
consequences the technology may have on society.
So from literally
hundreds of questions that we asked ourselves we distilled four major
issues that formed the basis for the speaker sessions here at this forum.
We identified these issues to be:
- New business and employment
- Protection of privacy
- Education
- Social interactions
We took these major areas to Brussels for a face to face meeting. This
turned out to be a very productive brainstorm. Of course we also enjoyed
excellent Belgian food, beer, and hospitality. One thing I regret is not
taking the time to go and see Manneke Pis.
For each of the main
issues we first identified specific subjects that we would like to hear
about. For example, "Do I have the same legal protection on the Internet
as I do in my real society?" Or, "Do the dot-coms actually have a
sustainable business model?" From these subjects we brainstormed about
whom we would like to give a talk at the forum. For example, could someone
from a consumer organisation give a talk on how I can prevent distribution
of my personal data?
The result of the brainstorm was a large list
of possible speakers. The people at the Hitachi office in Brussels worked
very hard to invite the speakers that we had proposed. And looking at the
program, they have succeeded in convincing exciting speakers to come and
give a talk at this forum.
But before I go into the program of the
forum, let's have a look at the future. As we had with this forum, you can
have a very big say in what will happen at the next forum. During the next
two days there is a lot of free time in the program. Of course we hope
that you will use this time well to enjoy the great city of Dublin, catch
up with old friends, and maybe make some new friends. But, while you are
enjoying your Guinness, have a think about what you want from the next
forum. If you have something you feel passionate about, or have a good
idea for a new mandate please let anyone from the working group know.
In my experience it was good fun and educational to work with
people who have a completely different look on things that I have. It was
sometimes a welcome distraction when I got bogged down trying to solve a
technical problem. Since most of the brainstorming is done by email,
participating in the working group does not take a lot of your time, and
it should never interfere with your current work.
Now over to the
program itself: as I said before, we have split the program up into four
sessions:
- New business and employment
- Protection of privacy
- Education
- Social interactions
A member of the working group will moderate each of the sessions.
Volker Braun will moderate the first session on new business and
employment. After the break, Nicola Pfeffer will moderate the session on
protection of privacy. After that, Fabrice Axisa will take over for the
final session of today on educational issues. Finally, tomorrow Frank
Wallerstein will moderate the session on societal implications.
Enough from me now. I hope you enjoy the program for these two
days. I have heard some raving reports on what a great city Dublin is. Do
let us know of any ideas you may have for the next forum.
Session 1: New Business /
Employment
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1. Dr. Hugh Whittaker
Assistant Director,
ESRC Center for Business Research
Cambridge
University
"E-commerce and its Socio-economic Context" |
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E-Commerce and society impact each other, such as having the effect of
shrinking time and space. Because of this trend, shareholder capitalism
has become wide spread in recent years, and as a consequence, has lead to
weakened business relationships with the community, more layoffs, higher
board member salaries, and so on. This situation has also lead to an
imbalance among economic growth, social justice and social fairness, and
environmental sustainability, and will need to be modified at some point.
We also have to think about how science and technology will impact this
balance.
See full Text
Presentation Material
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2. Dr. Louise Curran
Directorate-General
Information Society
European Commission
"E-commerce and
Internet - the key to employment and new business
development" |
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Dr. Curran explained the issues facing eEurope, with the European
Commission taking the initiative to promote information technology in
Europe. eEurope consists of various approaches to information technology
and is supported by all member countries in the EU. There are two
approaches to IT education: 1) increasing the number of professionals, and
2) educating citizens in general. In order to tackle the challenges, the
European Commission has to work closely with member countries, as well as
with industry.
Presentation Material
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3. Mr. Jean Pierre
Oliva
President
JIPO
"Electronic Commerce: New
business & employment JIPO, a consulting company
experience" |
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In order to proceed with an Internet business, companies have to offer
more added value and a user-friendly system at the same time. Startups
have to deal with the overall business process including planning,
marketing, market studies, service, and finance, and it's useful for them
to use consulting firms, which offer wide expertise. In order to succeed
with a net business, companies have to use every available technology, so
recruiting highly skilled employees and training them to acquire new
technology is very important.
Presentation Material
Session 2: Protection of
Privacy
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1. Mr. Florian
Schmitz
Rechtsanwalt
Clifford
Chance
"E-commerce and the Protection of Privacy" |
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The development of data protection is key to the success of e-Commerce,
and Mr. Schmitz explained the legal aspects of this. Under the directive
of the EU, a legal framework has been set up, and each member state has to
adapt the implementation of the directive into national law. Legal
protections tend to not catch up with the speed of technological
development. Recently, the EU and the US agreed to cooperate on protecting
privacy, though it will take more time to reach international standards.
It's also important for consumers to be more aware of data
protection.
Presentation Material
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2. Dr. Guenter Mueller
Director,
Institute fuer Informatik & Gesellschaft
Friedburg
University
"Security Transactions in Internet-Trust in the
Kindness of Strangers" |
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Trust is an unavoidable factor in the development of e-Commerce. It's
also related to the risk of violating privacy. It's almost impossible to
eliminate 100 percent of the risk, but what we should do is consider how
to deal with risk effectively. There are two approaches to this: one is
legal and the other is technical. Either way, we can't handle it without
an internationally recognized system. The success of the e-Commerce is
heavily dependent on handling its risks.
Presentation Material
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3. Mr. Marcus Nance
Senior Technical
Consultant
Critical Path
"Overview of Email Privacy" |
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Critical Path, a company in the Internet security business, provides
public key infrastructure and mechanisms. E-mail is the oxygen of the
Internet, and the technology and systems for digital signatures through
e-mail are essential for e-Commerce. It is also necessary to educate users
to enhance their understanding of the technology and its
reliability.
Presentation Material
Session 3:
Education
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1. Dr. Brendan Tangney
Director, Centre
for Research in IT in Education
Trinity College
"Innovation in
Learning in an Information Age" |
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The development of net technology dramatically increases the coverage
of life long learning. On-line learning at schools and in the workplace
are prevailing, and there is a move to set up international technical
standards, recommended practices and guidelines at the IEEE to aid on-line
learning. But the new tools alone don't create educational change, and
"what our society will need are balanced, rounded individuals who can
think for themselves and who have strong analytical skills."
Presentation Material
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2. Professor Vance Gledhill
Visiting
Professor. Department of Computer Science
Trinity
College
"Innovation in Learning in the Information Age" |
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New technologies make it possible to realize new ways of teaching and
learning. Because of new technologies, current educational practice will
change, and we should consider how to utilize the technologies
effectively. For example, it's possible to create borderless classrooms
where teachers can use the best educational material in the world. There
are many things to be handled on the international stage for this
information age.
Presentation Material
Session 4: Societal
Implications
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1. Dr. Rosalie Zobel
Director,
Directorate-General Information Society
European
Commission
"Social and Economic Aspects of e-work and
e-business" |
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E-work and e-business reshape the way we live, work and interact, and
in order to analyze them, there are four factors: technical, legal,
economic and social. Under the eEurope initiative, the European Union
accelerates and further focuses Europe's transition to a digital economy,
and the EU is working to create a favorable legislative environment for
businesses and citizens. Dr. Zobel also mentioned the importance of trust,
the widening gap of skilled workers available to work at net businesses,
and the challenges governments have to tackle.
Presentation Material
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2. Mr. Jim Murray
Director, European
Consumers Organization (BEUC)
"E-commerce and Internet - the key
to employment and new business development" |
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E-Commerce will empower the consumer, however, it is still a small
market and consumers are still passive. We should clarify who controls
e-Commerce and who will decide the issues of "Trust" and "Fairness". In
order to strengthen "Trust", it's important that large companies, which
have strong brand names, cope with it properly. Consumer associations have
started providing trust-marks for the companies they can trust.
See full Text
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Hitachi's View on
E-commerce
Electronic Commerce and its impact on
Society : Hitachi's view by Dr. Michiharu Nakamura, Executive Vice
President of R&D Group, Hitachi, Ltd.
Presentation Material |
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Working Group
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After the forum discussion, the HIVIPS members discussed
selecting the theme for the next meeting in Brussels in May 2001.
They agreed on "Technology in the Future", and based on this theme,
a working group has formed and eight volunteers have joined it. They
are now preparing for the forum to make the next meeting as
effective and enjoyable as this year's. |
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