Calls to make Internet safer for kids
The Internet industry was called upon by an Internet child welfare organisation to make greater efforts in making the Internet a safer place for children at the Internet Content Summit held in Munich on 10 September 1999. Childnet International was one of the first groups to call for an international rating system of Internet content, arguing that free speech is not compromised by accurate labelling of what websites contain, and allows parents to limit what their children see. A Childnet survey for the European Commission, DG XIII, revealed an enormous desire among parents for this sort of information. Nigel Williams, Director of Childnet, said: 'The Internet is the most important advance for children's education and social development for decades. But the dangers are real and must be taken seriously. 'The [Internet] industry needs especially to focus on ensuring their services are child and family friendly, with easy to understand safety information and tools readily available. 'No rating system will ever be perfect - but the benefits of pressing ahead with refining existing approaches are enormous. We welcome the debate on this and call on initiatives like the Internet Content Rating Association to move swiftly to implement and promote a new international rating system.'