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Following is a speech by Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting, Mrs Carrie Yau,at the Opening Ceremony of the 10th International World Wide Web Conference today (May 2):

Professor Shen, Mr French, Mr Ellis, Mr Berners-Lee, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

First of all, let me extend my warmest welcome to you all to the opening of the 10th International World Wide Web Conference which is one of the most important international events on web-based technologies. We are proud to be chosen as the first city in Asia to host this prestigious event and I must thank the organising committee for their efforts and dedication in bringing the event to Hong Kong.

The conference follows closely on the heels of another important event held in Hong Kong in December last year, the ITU Telecom Asia 2000, which was regarded as the most successful ITU regional event ever held. The conference also precedes immediately another major international event, the FORTUNE Global Forum, which will be held in Hong Kong next week. The hosting of all these events raises the profile of Hong Kong as a showcase for innovation and advances in the region. It also reflects our leading position in the information economy.

The 10th International World Wide Web Conference comes at an interesting juncture when technology and web-based companies have been experiencing a worldwide downturn, and consolidation is the order of the day among 'dot.com' companies. Does this mark a major shift in the world economic sentiment? Or are we experiencing the inevitable pause to catch breath after the unprecedented e-commerce growth and technological transformation which have swept the world over the past few years? No doubt these and many other issues will exercise our minds over the next few days. But there is one clear common denominator - more and more people around the globe are using the Internet and the World Wide Web. And we have increasingly seen conventional companies with solid foundation in the old economy expanding into the cyberworld to explore their niche market in the new economy.

Indeed, it is hard to believe that the World Wide Web did not exist prior to 1989. And even when it was invented in that year by Mr Berners-Lee, I wonder if anyone then predicted the information explosion it would create - and create so quickly. Today, there is no stopping sign on the information superhighway. Now people want faster connections to the Web. They want to download more information. They want to do that more quickly and they want to have more interactive and multi-media content. And, of course, e-commerce is changing the way we conduct business. So, it is true to say we really are experiencing a communication and information revolution.

In Hong Kong we already have much of the infrastructure in place to meet these demands and aspirations. Broadband coverage is available to every business and over 95 per cent of households. Our external connectivity, currently at 44Gbps, is amongst the highest in Asia and will increase by around ten-fold in the next two to three years. The Government's Electronic Service Delivery Scheme to provide public services online to the community is up and running. We have a mobile phone penetration rate of 78 per cent, which is amongst the highest in the world. We will soon embark on the issue of 3G licences for the next generation of interactive mobile services and the development of mobile commerce. We have over seven million smart cards circulating in the market for use in payment transactions by a population of around the same number which, as far as we know, is the highest utilisation of smart cards in the whole world. We will also roll out new generation of smart identity cards with multiple application capacity for the whole population starting from 2003. And all these provide the scope for us to further explore and develop all manner of innovative, value-added and user-friendly applications employing new technology.

This is the environment we are creating in Hong Kong - an environment that embraces innovation and technology. A business environment that has tremendous advantages such as - a low and simple tax regime; no restrictions on foreign investment in almost all sectors of the economy; no restrictions on capital flows; access to a free flow of uncensored local, regional and international news and information; independent Judiciary; the rule of law; and a clean and efficient Government.

The International World Wide Web Conference has brought together an enviable list of speakers all over the world from different sectors of the industry - including academics, CEOs and senior executives of leading, global IT firms. They will share their valuable thoughts and insights on issues and challenges facing the web community as we move into the 21st century. I am sure everyone participating in the conference and discussions in the coming few days will find these most useful and thought-provoking.

Once again I have great pleasure in welcoming you to Hong Kong. I hope you have a most enjoyable and memorable stay here and that you have already begun to experience some of Hong Kong's hospitality. And, finally, I wish the holding of the 10th International World Wide Web Conference every success. Thank you.

End/Wednesday, May 2, 2001

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