There has been much debate amongst the UK Digerati recently about the Carter Report. It was published by the British government in January with the intention of "positioning the UK for our digital future".  The final Digital Britain Report is released on June 16th so there is little time left for all concerned to air their views.

Some concerns of the Digerati are summed up well by Cory Doctorow in the Guardian:

“Among other things, the report called for:

• A new rights agency to clear copyrights for online distribution
• A national anti-copying scheme to reduce online infringement
• Recruiting ISPs to act as judge and executioner on their customers, making British internet connections liable to interference and disconnection on the basis of unsubstantiated copyright infringement claims
• A scheme to prevent unlawful remixing and other creative uses

These recommendations represent a kind of wish list from the entertainment companies and telecoms giants, and what makes them especially troubling is their total disconnection with the actual, worldwide experience in establishing successful national broadband strategies. Where is the country whose internet has thrived as a result of draconian punishments for copyright infringement?….It's already the case that the internet delivers a free press, free association, free speech, education, health care, employment and many other critical services to the public. It's outrageous to consider stripping people of this critical resource without a due process - that is, without a trial, a judge, the opportunity to face one's accuser and hear the evidence against you.'''

Following on from this the The Digital Britain Summit was held on the of 18th April, when the Prime Minister Gordon Brown explained how “only embracing” digital Britain and taking a lead in the global digital economy  "can we keep our place as a leading economy in the years to come”. Our digital networks will be the backbone of our economy in the decades ahead. "We need to support the creation and availability of high-quality content. We will support the legal framework that enables the private sector to create content."

Hmm –  so it was unsurprising that it didn’t take long for the UK Digerati to pull together and, within the space of a few weeks, set up Digital Britain Unconferences around the UK with the aim of creating a "Peoples Response" to the report.  Ah – the power of the people.

I attended one in London last week and was impressed with the passion and determination of all present - but just as importantly the organisation of what was a relatively large event (about 100 attendees). Within 2 hours approximately 10 major areas of concern had been highlighted, and key points had been established. It’s now down to the organisers to collate all the information gathered from all the Digital Britain Unconferences and to present them in one coherent document to Stephen Carter. In theory their findings should be noted and acted upon as part of the report. In practise… well, we’ll just have to wait and see. Below a great video with Stephen Fry at the Digital Britain Summit. Certainly worth a watch: