Friday, February 7th, 2003, at 12:00 pm at the Royal Norwegian Embassy, Washington, D.C.

Guest Speaker: The Norwegian Minister of Trade and Industry, Ansgar Gabrielsen

• Welcome to The Royal Norwegian Embassy by Ambassador Knut Vollebęk
• Welcome to NACC MA - NACC MA President Atle Nordvik

• The IT & Communication Committee Of NACC MA
  Chairman Lasse Syversen (Moderator)
• IT - A Key Driver For The Next Economic Expansion?
  The Norwegian Minister of Trade and Industry, Ansgar Gabrielsen
• Building A Global Broadband Network For Remote & Mobile Communication
  Director Guy White, Telenor
• Videoconferencing, Marketing Productivity And Value In A Tough Economy
  VP Karl Hantho, Tandberg
• Broadband As A Utility Service
  Communication Consultant, Tor Soevik
• Q & A
  

Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr. Ansgar Gabrielsen.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me begin by expressing my great pleasure in being here today. Growth and continuity in our excellent bilateral relations are of the utmost importance. As the major force in the global economy, an important trading partner, and a very powerful actor in global trade and business, the United States is one of Norway's main economic partners. And our relationship keeps evolving and re-inventing itself. The Norwegian-American Chamber of Commerce is a great example of the strong and vital ties between our countries.

Norway was, through our merchant fleet, one of the first globalised economies in the world, sailing sea routes between all continents, already long before our independence in 1905. The need to safeguard our global trade links was indeed one main reason for our drive for independence. [To read the rest of this speech, please click here]

Chairman Lasse V. Syversen.

Minister, Ambassador, Members, and guests - ladies and gentlemen,

My name is Lasse Syversen and I have the pleasure of heading The NACC MA's IT and Communication Committee in the Mid-Atlantic region. Outside the Chamber of Commerce I'm an Investor in the IT industry and the owner of three companies based in the D.C. area. - NorHouse, a retail superstore on the Internet for Nordic products; Flagship Technologies, a computer center and software development company for the Global Shipping Industry, and Corvedia Technologies, a software house for electronic transfers of trade-documents. I have lived most of my life in Norway and have been in the industry for more than 30 years in various companies, like General Electric, Honeywell, Dell Computer, Olivetti and Bull in different positions and geographical locations including Norway, Europe and the Far East. In the last 5 years I have been living in the Washington D.C. area.

It is my great pleasure to welcome you all to the first meeting hosted by the IT and Communication Committee of the Norwegian-American Chamber of Commerce, Mid-Atlantic region. It is also a great honor and a privilege to have visiting us The Minister of Trade and Industry, Ansgar Gabrielsen, at this meeting and as always our honorary Chairman, The Norwegian Ambassador to the United States, Knut Vollebaek. Their presence underlines the importance of " IT" & Communication as part of the priority list of both the Norwegian and the U.S. Governments. [To read the rest of this speech, please click here]

Tor Soevik, Telecommunications Consultant.

Main Points:

• Developments in several US communities are confirming the assumption that broadband availability is becoming a main driver for local economic growth and prosperity.
• Several towns are building community controlled "pipelines" for broadband, with the idea that broadband is just one more utility, alongside water, electricity and gas.
• Wholesale revenue of the pipeline to competing service providers, in combination with low cost financing minimizes -if not eliminates - the financial burden for the local community.
• We suggest this is a viable model for broadband development in many towns and local communities, in the US and elsewhere. [To read the rest of this speech, please click here]