Honorable Mr. Chairman, ministers, delegates and ladies and gentlemen. I would like to take the opportunity to thank Honorable Minister John Manley for hosting the OECD Ministerial Conference and also the people at the Industry Canada and the Secretariat of OECD who devoted their time and effort to ensuring the success of this conference. We all know that enhancing information infrastructure is essential for global electronic commerce. Considering the importance of electronic commerce in information society and its socio-economic impacts, information infrastructure should be examined in the context of the overall economic policy framework, rather than narrowly limited telecommunication policy.
Packet switching raises the efficiency of network dramatically.
The continuous enhancement of information infrastructure, however, requires broadband backbone deployment by using advanced technologies like ATM switching or high-speed routing. Subscriber loop also needs enhancement by applying various new technologies such as FTTC, FTTO, cable modem, xDSL, WLL, and so on. It is also necessary that smooth interconnection of different infrastructures should be guaranteed for the efficient flow of electronic commerce traffic. For developing countries, planning to introduce CATV, CATV network can also be utilized for various communication service, including the Internet. Users can choose the most appropriate network for their own needs in a competitive service market.