Davos to debate internet's future

Bill Gates of Microsoft and Pierre Omidyar, the founder and Chairman of eBay, will be among those attempting to provide answers. On Sunday a video debate between participants of the WEF in Davos and anti-globalisation summit, the World Social Forum, taking place concurrently in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre, degenerated into a slanging match. Earlier on Sunday, organisers of the World Social Forum announced that they intend to make the anti-Davos meeting an annual event. Key questions expected to be addressed on Monday include how the internet can be policed, who will tax the goods traded on it and how mobile phones will change digital communication. Who should have responsibility for controlling web content is a key question on the agenda in Davos. Just one person in 10 living in the world has access to the internet. With the demonstrations against globalisation fresh in their minds, industry leaders know they have to do more to spread the benefits of the new technology.