Internet Evolution Video Travelogue Chronicles the Internet's Rise in Chile

Web Wide World video documents government efforts to bridge digital/social divide; government procurement portal provides transparency and fights corruption

PRNewswire
NEW YORK
(:UBM.L)
Jan 20, 2010

NEW YORK, Jan. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- The Chilean government is a powerful catalyst in promoting e-government and Web-based transparency, with 98 percent of citizens filing taxes online and the launch of a government procurement portal used by 85,000 would-be contractors, according to Internet Evolution's newest Web Wide World video travelogue documenting Chile's use of Web technologies.

"Politicians around the world are fond of pointing to their 'e-government' activities, which usually amount to little more than 'ego government'," says Stephen Saunders, narrator of the Web Wide World segment and founder of Internet Evolution. "Chile has made fantastic headway with its use of the Internet and bridging the gap in the digital and social divide."

View this latest installment in Internet Evolution's award-winning travelogue series here:

http://www.internetevolution.com/document.asp?doc_id=186822

Chilean government officials point to the success of ChileCompra, its online procurement system used by more than 900 local and central government agencies, including hospitals, schools, and other government-funded institutions. More than 85,000 private firms bid and participate in this open, transparent marketplace, according to ChileCompra director Felipe Goya, and it has already saved government and taxpayers more than $140 million. "We believe in transparency as the most effective way to fight corruption," Goya notes.

In addition to government officials, the video travelogue also profiles a woman plumber who's tapped the Internet as a source of referrals, a recovering drug addict using Web-based training to land his next job, and "free" content purveyor and founder of online community BetaZeta.com, Leo Prieto, the "anti Rupert Murdoch" of Chile.

View all the Web Wide World video travelogues here:

http://www.internetevolution.com/archives.asp?section_id=461

About Internet Evolution

Internet Evolution (www.internetevolution.com) hosts more than 200 world-famous Internet experts - such as Kevin Mitnick, once the most-wanted computer hacker in the world; Dr. Lawrence Roberts, inventor of packet switching, and one of the world's foremost authorities on telecom network architectures; Vint Cerf, Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google - all of whom are addressing today's critical socio-economic issues within its ThinkerNet blogosphere. In December 2009, March 2009, Internet Evolution's ThinkerNet won Min's Best-of-Web award for best blog, beating out Time, Newsweek, and Martha Stewart Living; in March 2009, Min's awarded Internet Evolution Internet Digital Team of the Year, Best Community/Social Networking Site, and Best B2B Magazine-Branded Video.

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    Contact
    Amy Averbook
    TechWeb's Internet Evolution
    212 600-3373
    averbook@lightreading.com

SOURCE: Internet Evolution

Web site: http://www.internetevolution.com/