Changes to the Internet in Bermuda will be the topic of a public forum today.

Hosted by the Top Level Domain Committee, under the Ministry of Tourism, Telecommunications and E-Commerce, forum panellists will explain recent changes to the way the Internet is organised in Bermuda.

Telecommunications Minister Renee Webb, in a Press release issued yesterday, said the forum would provide important information to both businesses and the general public about the .bm domain. "There have been recent changes to the .bm domain on both the technical and policy level which my Committee feel are worth sharing with the wider community," Ms Webb said.

She continued: "Essentially we are working to improve the reliability and availability of the domain whilst also working to make it easier and quicker for businesses and other organisations to register domain names."

Minister Webb added that ultimately she would like Bermuda's business to evolve to a place where each saw the "real value in owning a .bm domain name". She added that the Bermuda domain (.bm) should be seen by businesses as a "symbol of excellence and prestige .... (and) an important component of our overall strategy of making Bermuda a leading e-business jurisdiction."

The forum, which is to be held at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess on Thursday from 5.30 to 7 p.m., will be lead by Committee chairman Troy Symonds and include presentations from Mike Oatley, director of Government's Information Technology Office and Nigel Hickson, E-Commerce Consultant.