Experts from Europe presented their initiatives at the event run by the LMK Rheinland-Pfalz (Regional Office for Media and Communication in Rhineland Palatinate, the co-ordinator of klicksafe.de) as part of the European Union's Safer Internet programme.

"Co-operation and partnership in European networks are of central importance precisely because national borders blur in the internet," emphasised Manfred Helmes, Director of LMK. "The successful individual initiatives in the various member states will become even more successful if they co-operate synchronously in the European network."

For example, INHOPE has had impressive successes in the battle against child pornography.

The exchange of resources, in particular, plays a vital role in national campaigns: the German node "klicksafe" adopted a teacher training module from Scandinavia. The TV spot "Where is Klaus?" created by the German project "klicksafe" has become a hot export property and been dubbed into several languages.

Successful models such as the Polish Regional Conferences which feature presentations on the topic of internet safety, or a full evening Late Night Show on Greek television dealing with various aspects of safer internet, are prime examples of educational and awareness projects in other member states.

The marketing and campaign input from the EU has inspired individuals and organisations to take new approaches to the protection of minors. One notable innovation can be seen in the concerted co-operation between klicksafe, the advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather and TV broadcasters such as ProSiebenSat.1, RTL and MTV. These broadcasters have provided free broadcasting time as part of their commitment to public education campaigns.

Today, the protection of minors requires comprehensive marketing as well as in-depth, sustained programmes of seminars, brochures and teaching materials in order to raise internet safety awareness among parents and educators.