In keeping with its international mission to lead the web to its full potential, W3C has announced a new fee structure designed to reduce the barrier of entry for organizations in developing countries. The goal is to make it easier for small companies and not-for-profit organizations to become W3C members and become engaged in the development of foundation technologies for the World Wide Web. For small companies and not-for-profit organizations in developing countries, the resulting fees are reduced to between 15 percent and 60 percent of former values.
“W3C is all about building web technologies that can be of service to the world. This new fee structure for organizations from the developing world affirms the value W3C places on their participation in, contribution to and use of the standards and guidelines we are developing to drive the future of the World Wide Web,” declared Dr. Steve Bratt, W3C’s chief operating officer.
To develop globally-accepted technology, diverse representation is essential. Technologies such as the web proliferate to the extent that they are easily available. Standardized technologies built in a flexible manner, with attention to internationalization needs (languages and/or infrastructure) can have dramatic impact on life, education and commerce in a given region.
However, one of the greatest obstacles for participation in large consortia is the cost of entry. What appears to be a reasonable membership fee in Western Europe, Japan, or North America is prohibitive in other parts of the world. Building on its broadly recognized work for the development of a global infrastructure, W3C is actively soliciting participation from organizations in the developing world. For more information click to http://www.w3.org/Consortium/join.