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GSMA Joins Internet Content Rating Association (ICRA)Tom Phillips appointed chairman of ICRA Board & ExecutiveLondon, UK, 10th June 2004: The GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade association representing more than 630 GSM mobile network operators across 200 countries today announced that it has joined the Internet Content Rating Association (ICRA). ICRA's Board of Directors has also appointed Tom Phillips, Chief Government & Regulatory Affairs Officer of the GSMA as Chair of its Board and Executive Committee. ICRA is an independent, non-profit, organization working with Internet content providers and other members of the industry to develop a filtering and labelling system that can be used by parents around the world to protect their children from potentially harmful material on the Internet. The GSMAs commitment to ICRA reflects its growing focus on the challenges and issues surrounding inappropriate content that can be potentially accessed by, or delivered to mobile devices. "The new generation of mobile devices mean that it is possible to do almost everything on an Internet-enabled phone that can be done from an Internet enabled computer," said Tom Phillips. "Therefore the sharing of experiences on the lessons learned from the fixed Internet will be invaluable to the GSMAs global operator community as it strives to create a safer mobile Internet environment." ICRAs aim is to make content labelling standard for all internet content, so that the public can reliably expect what kind of content web sites offer. In particular, parents are encouraged to use filtering devices, ultimately making the internet a safer place for children. ICRA makes no value judgement on internet content - it is up to content providers to rate the type of content they display and help protect vulnerable members of society, like children. Stephen Balkam, CEO, ICRA, said, "The GSM Associations support for ICRA is a key development and a boost our efforts to encourage responsible Internet content access and labelling, helping parents to protect their children from potentially harmful material in the evolving world of mobile communications." Ends About the GSM AssociationThe GSM Association (GSMA) is the global trade association that exists to promote, protect and enhance the interests of GSM mobile operators throughout the world. In February 2004, it consisted of more than 630 second and third generation mobile operators and 130 manufacturers and suppliers. The Association's members provide mobile services to more than 1 Billion customers across more than 200 countries and territories around the world. The GSMA aims to accelerate the implementation of collectively identified, commercially prioritised operator requirements and to take leadership in representing the global GSM mobile operator community with one voice on a wide variety of issues nationally, regionally and globally. The GSM family of wireless communications platforms, including GSM, GPRS (General Packet Radio Services) and 3GSM (EDGE - Enhanced Data for GSM Evolution and W CDMA) account for 73 percent of the total digital wireless market today. The GSM Association is a unique organisation, with truly global reach, offering a full range of business, technical and public policy services to its members. For more information, visit the website at www.gsmworld.com. Next steps
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