Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the Foundation's mission?
The World Wide Web Foundation ("Web Foundation") is the next phase of fulfilling Tim Berners-Lee's original vision: the Web as humanity connected by technology. The World Wide Web Foundation's mission is to advance the Web, connect humanity and empower people. The Foundation will fund and coordinate efforts that work toward a future:
  • served by One Web that is free and open,
  • where understanding, capability and robustness of the Web improves
  • where the Web is usable by all people, and
  • where useful content and services are available for people who might benefit from it
What makes this Foundation unique?
The Web Foundation was founded by the inventor of the Web, Tim Berners-Lee. The Foundation has the strong support of the W3C and WSRI communities. It is being launched through the commitment of the Knight Foundation's $5 million seed grant. Building upon these unique resources, the Foundation starts with an incredible base of people, expertise and support across the globe. It will expand this base to include all who share the vision of a Web that benefits all people, and will give this community the capabilities to reach toward that vision.
What sort of work will the Foundation support?
The Web Foundation will pursue two types of programs, with different breadths of scope and different time horizons:

Global Leadership Programs = Big picture, long-term view

  • Continually assess the state of the Web around the globe according to the four objectives, and plan future initiatives
  • Advance the Web to benefit people over the long term, through investment in:
    • the expanding field of Web Science, to understand and improve the Web, and
    • work on emerging and proven Web Standards, to ensure that the Web is interoperable and that it works

Targeted Programs = Specific goals, focused work

  • Advance the Web through specific initiatives with focused outcomes
  • Strategic planning, smart grant making, and knowledgeable management of initiatives increases return on investment and opportunities for significant impact

What are the goals of the Web Science program?
  • To study and understand how the web works in order to anticipate and ensure its future.
  • To research issues (such as privacy and security) that impact the billions of people that use the Web.
  • To understand how to make the Web stable and secure, and to mitigate threats and weaknesses.
  • To spearhead thought leadership in Web research and to educate future Web Scientists.
What are the goals of the Web Standards program?
  • To promote the development of technology and standards that foster creativity, collaboration, and communication.
  • To encourage the spread of technology that can be integrated and used alongside existing technology, ensuring the stable evolution of the Web.
  • To ensure that the technology enables anyone to use the Web from any device, anywhere.
What are the goals of the Foundation's targeted programs?
  • To learn from people in socially or economically disadvantaged communities how the Web can better serve them.
  • To leverage the Web to empower people, especially in under-served populations, by lowering barriers to life-critical services.
  • To ensure the Web is accessible and useful to people, including people with disabilities, from different cultures, and language and literacy skills that span the range of the Earth's population.
  • The first targeted program will focus on lowering the barriers to providing useful content that is usable on mobile phone in developing countries.
Will the Foundation focus on providing Internet access to people?
It is not in the scope of the Foundation to address infrastructure challenges. Instead, the Foundation will work with individuals, communities, governments, NGOs, and private sector players who develop critical services for underserved populations, to exploit fully the potential of existing and new infrastructure to deliver Web-based services that are accessible, usable, useful, and improve people's lives.
Are SMS and other technologies that are not Web-based in scope?
There are many ways to deliver Web content, including through browsers and non-browser channels. More specifically, concerning the mobile platform, as of today, the only ubiquitous technologies available to all of the installed base are SMS and voice. Therefore, it is important to consider these channels, along with Web-based channels, in order to have an impact on people's lives in the short term.
Illiteracy is a significant barrier to access. Is combatting illiteracy in scope for the Foundation?
Lowering barriers to Web access, including lowering barriers related to literacy, is in scope for the Foundation. This could include investigating current approaches to lowering barriers (e.g., iconic languages and text-to-speech engines) as well as how the Web can help in teaching people to read.
Who is involved?
Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, is leading the effort to create the Foundation and invites people who share a vision for a more inclusive Web to help shape the Foundation. Steve Bratt will be CEO for the Foundation.

Tim Berners-Lee remains actively involved in two organizations that are contributing the community, credibility, and support necessary for this plan:

  • The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which is responsible for HTML, XML, and many of the standards that make the Web work.
  • The Web Science Research Initiative (WSRI), which is developing plans for the Web science component of the program, and includes the support of a growing community of researchers and funders who are working within this new field of study.

Steve Bratt will be the first CEO of the World Wide Web Foundation. He expects step down from his position as CEO W3C by mid-2009 to focus entirely on the work of the Web Foundation.

Why did this Foundation emerge from W3C and WSRI and why now?
Those organizations have contributed significantly to the vision of the Web as humanity connected, but still more is required to include more people, in particular in underserved communities. The Foundation seeks to extend the benefits of a Web, improved by further research and technology development to all people.
How will the Foundation relate to W3C and WSRI?
W3C and WSRI remain independent organizations. It is within the scope of the Web Foundation to support the missions of both WSRI and W3C. The "umbrella" mission of the World Wide Web Foundation will build synergies between Web Science and Web Standards, and work to leverage the talents and results of the W3C and WSRI communities to ensure that the Web benefits all people on the planet.
Why couldn't W3C simply change its scope?
It was preferable not to disturb the W3C ecosystem for building consensus around Web standards.
How will the Foundation raise funds?
The Web Foundation aims to secure substantial funding through a multi-faceted strategy:
  • Seed funding. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is the seed donor for the Foundation. This funding will cover initial costs of establishing the Foundation, starting a capital campaign, and developing strategic plans for the Foundation's programs.
  • Major donations. ($50 thousand - $10+ million, each). With a goal of raising $50 - $100 million to fund projects that will have significant impact in the identified programs.
  • Supporters programs. Smaller contributions (of time, money, services, hardware, etc.) and a grass-roots membership program ("Friends of the Web") for a growing community on the order of millions of people.
How will the Foundation be governed?
The Web Foundation will begin with effective governance, a trusted and influential board, experienced and committed management, and strong relations with an expanding international community. Governance specifics will be announced in early 2009.
Is the Foundation international and tax exempt?
The headquarters of the Web Foundation are being established in Geneva, Switzerland. The Foundation is also incorporated in the United States, and the IRS determined that the Foundation is tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal revenue code.
Who are the funders so far?
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation has provided a seed grant to support the initial planning phase of the Web Foundation.

Organizations that wish to become Founding Donors should contact donations@webfoundation.org.

When will the first activities of the Foundation be known?
The first activities will be announced in early 2009.
Is this organization related to the Open Web Foundation?
No.
Will the World Wide Web Foundation issue Trust certificates?
No. Some labeling systems do exist, but Web Trust is a major research area. Some academic work and business initiatives are studying and exploring trust mechanisms.
Is there a relation to One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)?
No. The primary focus of OLPC is to deploy devices (laptops) operating within a specific infrastructure (mesh networks). That sort of work is not the focus of the World Wide Web Foundation; see the question Will the Foundation focus on providing Internet access to people?.