spiked: The Internet: A Saviour in a Time of Recession? Can technology help revive the economy? March 31, 2009

The Internet: A Saviour in a Time of Recession? Can technology help revive the economy?

"Speakers from the world of journalism, business and telco will interrogate how technological breakthroughs might help alleviate, and even overcome, the impacts of economic downturn.

As Britain enters into a recession, there is much talk about how bad things will get. Yet there is something very different in the current recessionary period as compared with the past – today, through the internet, society is far more interconnected than ever before. Could the internet play a role in offsetting some of the impacts of the recession, and even breathing life back into the economy and resuscitating economic output?

What role can the internet play in sustaining business’s retention and acquisition strategies? Could the internet provide a lifeline for small businesses in particular, allowing them to overcome potential isolation by continuing to engage with their customers? And for individuals who find themselves out of work, what role can online social networking and information-sharing play in securing temporary work and sustaining the job market?

Perhaps the new telecommunications can do even more than this. Could the internet be utilised, not only to offset recessionary impacts, but also to generate new economic output and spark economic recovery? It is known that economic downturn frequently provides the impulse for online entrepreneurship, with the rise of start-ups and new online businesses. And who should be responsible for improving the broadband infrastructure, in order to free up the internet’s potential in this period of economic uncertainty?"

Speakers:
Simon Forge, director, SCF Associates Ltd
Chris Francis, director of government and regulatory affairs, IBM UK
Norman Lewis, chief strategy officer, Wireless Grids Corporation
Andrew Orlowski, executive editor, the Register

Official Website: http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/eventindex/