YNOT EUROPE – On the eve of the G8 Summit, which brings together the heads of state and government of Germany, Canada, the U.S., France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and Russia, opens to the first e-G8 Forum. This year, the G8 is chaired by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The e-G8 Forum is an initiative organized and financed by companies and chaired by Maurice Levy, chief executive of Publicis Groupe. Among the major corporate partners are Orange, Vivendi, eBay, Google, Capgemini, Huawei, Iliad Free Foundation, Microsoft, Intel, HP, Alcatel-Lucent, Eutelsat and Thomson-Reuters.

By bringing together world experts and leaders of the digital economy in all fields, participants hope to reach greater accord about the role of the internet in world affairs. Participating chief executives come from technology sectors including service providers and equipment manufacturers, media, advertising, music, governmental and educational institutions, non-governmental organizations and entertainment, investors and entrepreneurs, scientists and innovators, bloggers, thinkers and researchers. Companies from countries outside the G8, such as China and India, also were invited.

The meeting is to take place 24-25 May in the Jardin des Tuileries, in the heart of Paris. Internet and economic growth and the implications of their interaction will provide the topics for several roundtable discussions, as will the impact of the internet on society, entertainment, financial and commercial markets, modes of communication, media and education. The participants plan to spend a good deal of time discussing innovation and the future of the internet, particularly in light of intellectual property rights.

Conspicuously absent from the event, however, is any member of the Hadopi enforcment group, which is tasked with enforcing France’s anti-digital-piracy laws. This despite Sarkozy’s desire to export the French regulation and control model worldwide.

“[The e-G8 Summit] has not requested our presence, so we are not attending,” Hadopi group chairperson Marie-Françoise Marais said.

The e-G8 Forum immediately precedes the G8 Summit, to occur in Deauville 26-27 May.