Internet Governance

The 50th Anniversaries of the Moon Landing and First ARPANET Message

The anniversaries of these milestones remind us of the economic and social returns we have seen from ambitious Federal research and development programs. These events were milestones... the manned spaceflight program and the development of digital telecommunication networks from Morse's telegraph to early electronic digital computers and telemetry experiments, the SAGE early-warning system and eventually the ARPANET and the Internet. more

Creating a Russian No-Cyber Zone

In response to Russia's horrific invasion and war against the Ukrainian nation ordered by Dictator Putin that will live in infamy, an array of nations, organizations, and companies have responded to shun and shut off Russia in every possible manner. The actions include no-fly zones, removal from ICT network services, and essentially universal declarations of condemnation. For the first time ever, all Russian proposals to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) quadrennial standards body plenary known as the WTSA have been "bracketed"... more

US Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing Held on IANA Transition

"I urge you: Do not give a gift to Russia and other authoritarian nations by blocking this transition," Lawrence Strickling, administrator of the U.S. Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, said on Wednesday at a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing Held on IANA Transition. more

ICM Registry Publicly Posts Filings for Independent Review Panel Against ICANN on .XXX Domain

ICM Registry (proponents of the .xxx initiative) and Stuart Lawley, Chairman and President of the organization, have filed a 522-page brief in the ongoing Independent Review Process that began last June. "In what may prove to be the biggest sleeper Internet governance issue of the year, ICM Registry has publicly posted its filings for the Independent Review Panel that will decide whether ICANN acted improperly in rejecting its application for a .xxx domain," writes Brenden Kuerbis in a post on the IGP blog.  more

White House Announces Agenda for Game-Changing Cybersecurity R&D

The United States White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has released a new report titled, Trustworthy Cyberspace: Strategic Plan for the Federal Cybersecurity Research and Development Program, specifying an agenda for "game-changing" cybersecurity R&D according to an official announcement today. The report is described as "a roadmap to ensuring long-term reliability and trustworthiness of the digital communications network that is increasingly at the heart of American economic growth and global competitiveness." more

GAO Rules IANA Transition Not a Transfer of Government Property Requiring Congressional Approval

The Untied States Government Accountability Office (GAO) has concluded that the IANA transition is not a government transfer of property requiring congressional approval. more

When You Hear “Security,” Think “National Sovereignty”

These days you can hardly talk about Internet governance without hearing about security. DNSSEC is a hot issue, ICANN's new president is a cyber-security expert, and cyberattacks seem to be a daily occurrence.
This reflects a larger shift in US policy. Like the Bush administration before it, the Obama administration is making security a high priority for the US. Only now the emphasis is on security in cyberspace. The outlines of the new policy were published in the recent US Cyberspace Policy Review, which even recommends a cyber security office directly in the White House. more

China Releases Strategy on Cyberspace Cooperation

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cyberspace Administration of China has jointly released a document titled "International Strategy of Cooperation on Cyberspace." more

IANA Stewardship Transition: Full Steam Ahead

Last week the IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group (ICG) met in Los Angeles to review and discuss public comments concerning the Proposal to Transition the Stewardship of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) Functions. Upon review of the comments received, the ICG decided to continue advancing the proposal as planned, aiming to make as much progress as possible by the time of ICANN 54, scheduled for October 19-22. more

The “Bottom Dilemma”

I attended the 46th ICANN meeting in Beijing, China, and made a statementat on the panel "Internet Governance -- The Global Agenda", questioning the limits of the multistakeholder model, or more precisely the "bottom" of the bottom-up concept. My expectation was enormous, just at the time when two important meetings on governance and information society are in evidence: the WCIT and WSIS +10. more

Running-Code Betrayal: How the RIR System Turned Consensus Against the Technical Community

A dispute over African IP governance exposes a flaw in the RIR system, where thin policy, weak accountability and institutional self preservation risk overriding running networks and undermining the technical legitimacy that sustained global coordination. more

ICANN Must Stop Resisting Accountability Changes, Warn US Senators

Two leading US senators, John Thune, chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Technology, and ranking member Brian Schatz have signed a letter warning that without "significant accountability reforms that empower the community," Congress will not support the transition of the IANA contract from the US government to ICANN. more

Diversity Is Neither an Option Nor a Secondary Requirement for ICANN

While enhancing ICANN's diversity has been agreed on as a principle, previous discussions were often characterized by conflicting views on priorities, dimensions of diversity, or the current levels of diversity. As a new group is about to be formed to enhance ICANN's diversity, the importance of the purpose cannot be underestimated: "Maximum participation and transparent deliberations by all affected stakeholders are necessary in order to capture the diversity of views that constitute the (global) public interest in a given instance". more

NetMundial Initiative Still Lacking Support Despite New Efforts

Kieren McCarthy reporting in the Register: "Plans to create a new internet governance body have grown increasingly desperate... and confusing. A conference call between the organizers of the 'NetMundial Initiative' and business organization the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) earlier this week saw ICANN's CEO Fadi Chehade pleading with the group to withdraw their rejection of the program and join its 'coordination council'" more

ICANN Turning into a FIFA-Like Organization, Says the Guardian

A story published today in the Guardian warns that the US government's plan to give up control of ICANN may create the web's answer to Fifa. more