Re: Response to GSMA from the W3C

Dear Brent,

Following my earlier email on this topic, I have drafted a letter in
response to the GSMA liaison statement, which I believe takes into
consideration all the various positions, facts and offers of support
that have been voiced so far in this thread. This is for you to send
if and when you deem appropriate, following the protocol that Ivan
outlined. As mentioned during the session at TPAC, it is of great
importance that the correspondence is both comprehensive and welcoming
considering the positive impact that this collaboration could have on
European adoption of Verifiable Credentials. I think you will find the
letter most 'ausführlich'!

Attached to this email is the letter as I have drafted it.

Best wishes,

Sebastian


On Fri, Sep 15, 2023 at 05:21:51PM +0100, Sebastian Crane wrote:
>
> Dear Brent,
>
> Thank you for finding time during the TPAC meeting to discuss the GSMA
> liaison request. Since I was on the queue to speak when the meeting
> closed, I shall instead write my thoughts below.
>
> The GSMA's offer for collaboration in our BBS-based data integrity
> specification is a significant vote of confidence in the ability of
> Verifiable Credentials to provide the desired privacy enhancements for
> the EU's Digital Identity programme. The resources that will become
> available to the VCWG from this collaboration are to be considerable.
>
> I believe it would be appropriate for the VCWG to collaboratively form a
> response for you to send, as this will give us the opportunity to
> present the diversity of expertise that we possess as a group, and as a
> result will best communicate to the GSMA which of our participants are
> able to inform them in specific areas of interest. Considering the
> saturation of our available meeting time, I suggest a CryptPad or GitHub
> document could be used for this purpose in order to conclude such
> drafting efficiently.
>
> Additionally, as a European myself and a keen advocate of the
> Self-Sovereign Identity efforts, I would like to volunteer myself as an
> individual who will be able to help guide their collaboration in a way
> which is effective between the stakeholders (in this case, primarily the
> W3C, IETF, GSMA, European Commission and of course the citizens and
> residents of Europe who stand to benefit from this work). I would be
> grateful if you could include my offer directly in your correspondence
> with the GSMA's contacts.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Sebastian