Ecommerce leaders in London summit

The UK's leading ecommerce experts gather today at the London School of Economics to discuss the government's Ecommerce White Paper, and explore a replacement for its discarded key escrow policy.

The conference, called Scrambling for Safety, is organised by the Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR) and rights group, Privacy International. The keynote speech will come from Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) minister, Michael Wills.

Conference chairman, Caspar Bowden said it's the first time the government will publicly express its views on key escrow. However, a DTI spokesman said Wills will not be giving much away about the contents of the final Ecommerce Bill, which is due for release on 1 April.

The conference's 200 delegates will address the technical, commercial and legal aspects surrounding the concept of digital signatures. The government originally planned to make the licensing of digital signatures mandatory in order to class them as legal, but opted for a voluntary scheme following pressure from industry groups.

Delegates will also discuss whether the idea of licensing should be thrown away altogether - a subject which Bowden said could be controversial. "It may emerge that all that is needed is the legal recognition of digital signatures without the need for a voluntary licensing scheme," he added.

Other speakers include representatives from the Post Office, the London School of Economics and e centre UK director, Roger Till.