Regulation alone can provide the stability that is needed to give confidence to consumers and businesses using the internet. The EU should lead the way in pushing for global standards of services to be recognised and regulated. It is vital that there is equality of access to the Internet and other forms of electronic communication. The Internet provides a key source of information as well as direct access to goods and services which should benefit the many and not the few. Traditional intermediaries will be replaced with cheaper electronic forms of purchasing and it is therefore essential that it is not just the better off who are able to take advantage of this cheaper form of consumption.
Government investment is needed to ensure that an adequate grid exists.
In rural areas it will not be profitable for these commercial companies to lay down cable. Action is therefore needed by the Government to ensure that a split does not arise between the facilities available to those in rural areas and those elsewhere. The EU should commit to invest funds in research in anti-privacy measures and rights management systems. Global regulations are therefore required to give consumers and businesses the confidence needed to operate in this sphere. Codes of conduct and self regulation will not be sufficient to give this confidence and businesses operating over the Internet may find it difficult to compete with companies that do not choose to abide by self imposed codes of conduct.