As some of you know, we invited EU Commissioner Neelie Kroes to speak at GUADEC 2010. She couldn't make it, but recorded a video statement for us instead that shows she is steadfastly on the side of the FLOSS community - - e.g., us!
It's a really nice video and I encourage all of you to watch it and share with other FLOSS communities you may participate in. The full press release is below, and transcripts in English and Spanish (and someone out there has a Dutch version!). Best, William GUADEC Comms www.guadec.org --- GNOME conference draws Open Source support from EU Commissioner Thursday, July 15 European Union (EU) Commissioner for Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes has released a <a href="/">video statement</a> emphasising the importance of Free/Libre Open Source Software (FLOSS) in Europe and the need to foster a growing open source community. The video came in response to an invitation by the GNOME Users and Developers European Conference (GUADEC). While Commissioner Kroes was unable to attend, she instead recorded a statement strongly supporting FLOSS and its work across European sectors. Commissioner Kroes explained that FLOSS was in everyone's best interests. Fear of copyright infringement and perceived lack of support, said Kroes, "discouraged [government] officials from selecting software on merit." Many governments, such as in France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and the UK, are already using or testing FLOSS, and the benefits are "not only good value for money ... but also more choice." Aside from member states, EU-level commitment and preparedness for FLOSS has sent promising signals, showing that in Europe the work of shaping the digital future is a responsibility shared by government, communities, and people alike. In her statement Kroes cites several EU-supported public FLOSS tools, including: <a href="http://www.osor.eu/";>the Open Software Observatory and Repository (OSOR)</a> database, a platform to develop, collaborate and share software and best practices between public administrations; the <a href=" http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/eupl";>European Union Public License (EUPL)</a>, a "copy left"-style software license; and the <a href=" http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/en/document/3473";>European Interoperability Framework</a>, a policy instrument that aims at interoperability in and between public administrations. Commissioner Kroes is a well-known advocate for digital rights. Coordinated with the GUADEC conference, her message is meant to help raise awareness and support of community participation in FLOSS development. The GUADEC conference, in its eleventh year, brings users and developers together in various European locations and hosts a number of speaking sessions, training activities and special pre-conferences. A key pre-event this year is the GNOME Open Desktop Day, a panel of government officials, FLOSS project managers and advocates who will discuss FLOSS's role in public government and education sectors. GNOME, the default graphical environment in many major Linux and Unix systems, has millions of users around the world and the support of large enterprises and small business. Holding its main tenets as freedom, accessability and usability, GNOME is well positioned to play a key role in future FLOSS projects. As Commissioner Kroes says, government "can bring people together and help get rid of obstacles." "But," she continues, "the real difference is made by people and communities, like the open source movement." The full video is on the GUADEC 2010 homepage: <a href="http://www.guadec.org/";>www.guadec.org</a> The video can also be found on Youtube: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok100U4Fo3Y";> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok100U4Fo3Y</a> More information about GNOME can be found at: <a href="http://www.gnome.org/";>www.gnome.org</a> Attached video transcripts: <a href="http://www.guadec.org/docs/NKroes(English).sbv">English</a> <a href="http://www.guadec.org/docs/NKroes(Espanol).txt">Spanish</a> ---
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