Innovation, Open Standards and Democracy

Elmar Husmann, Beckers Treppe 2, D-22587 Hamburg, Germany, Andrew Updegrove, Partner, Gesmer Updegrove LLP, and Jonathan Sage, IBM United Kingdom Ltd, IP Law Department

5/06/2009
(Original Publish Date: 12/31/2008)

This paper explores new dimensions of how open standards in ICT can have not only an economic impact through driving new innovation models and creating new business ecosystems but also a social impact through influencing the way European citizens are able to interact in social communities as well as with government. While there has been quite significant research and publications on open standards and innovation, the relation between open standards and democracy and the idea of "ICT civil rights" is still unexplored in a European context. Open standards policies in Europe need to take the democratic effect of open standards into account in the same way as economic effects.