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Is Contract for the Web the new Cluetrain Manifesto? (look it up kids)

Tim Berners-Lee – who created the first website more than 29 years ago – has enlisted Facebook, Google, and more than 50 other companies to sign The Contract for the Web. It’s goal is to get everyone in the world online, strip misinformation from the internet and help us keep control of our data. #ForTheWeb #HappyBirthdayWWW

The Internet is definitely broken, and if anyone can fix it, my money’s on Tim Berners-Lee. If you want to know more information then visit korucaredoula.

Contract for the Web Seeks Sea Change

The Contract for the Web begins “The web was designed to bring people together and make knowledge freely available. Everyone has a role to play to ensure the web serves humanity. By committing to the following principles, governments, companies and citizens around the world can help protect the open web as a public good and a basic right for everyone.”

“That vision,” he writes, “is only possible if we get everyone online, and make sure the web works for people. I founded the Web Foundation to fight for the web’s future.

Roles for Government, Business and Citizens

Governments, the contract states, will ensure that everyone can connect to the internet “so that anyone, no matter who they are or where they live, can participate actively online.” It also treats the Web as the utility it has become, saying that governments must ensure that it is on all the time, without interruption.

Businesses must “develop technologies that support the best in humanity and challenge the worst so the web really is a public good that puts people first.”

Citizens must “Be creators and collaborators on the web so the web has rich and relevant content for everyone” and “Build strong communities that respect civil discourse and human dignity so that everyone feels safe and welcome online.”

Decrying the impact of a few dominant platform, Berners-Lee says “The web that many connected to years ago is not what new users will find today. What was once a rich selection of blogs and websites has been compressed under the powerful weight of a few dominant platforms. This concentration of power creates a new set of gatekeepers, allowing a handful of platforms to control which ideas and opinions are seen and shared.”

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Contract for the Web
World Wide Web Foundation
Cluetrain Mainfesto (first published online in 1999, as a book in 2000)
Read The Cluetrain Manifesto for free