***Open Invitation to Submit Evidence (New Deadline-- 30 July 2002)

The Oxford Internet Institute (OII) is an independent, multidisciplinary research centre, established in October 2001 as part of the University of Oxford to focus on the social, economic, legal and ethical impact of the Internet.  A critical part of its mandate is to offer objective, independent investigation into issues of community, public policy and governance arising from the spread of the Internet.

As its first major initiative, the OII is to establish a committee of inquiry into the public policy issues concerning broadband Internet access in the UK.  The costs and benefits of broadband is a complex and pressing issue, complicated by the considerable debate regarding its development and application.  

The aim of the inquiry is to comprehensively survey the political, social, legal and economic environment in which broadband operates, both in the UK and abroad, and to develop practical policy recommendations for government.

One of the most important aspects of this inquiry is the collection of evidence from individuals whose opinions we feel are important to guiding the development of actionable and pragmatic government policy in this field. AIR-L has been included because of its members' specialist knowledge, which we feel will contribute substantially to an ongoing conversation about broadband issues.

We are seeking brief written responses of less than 3 000 words to a range of questions (please see documents on the OII website, linked below) which, although by no means comprehensive, are intended as a starting point for thoughtful discussion. 

Please address one, a few, or many of them, as you see fit. The OII would also welcome your contribution on any issues which you feel are of great relevance but which are not represented in the scope of these questions. We would also gladly receive evidence in the form of previously published works or guidance in relation to appropriate online and offline information sources. Please send all submissions to the OII, following the guidelines indicated in the introductory document.

Both the introduction and the questions can be found on our website at: http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/news.shtml

We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours truly,

A.R. Ross
andrew.ross@oii.ox.ac.uk
andrew.ross@new.ox.ac.uk
Public Policy Coordinator, OII