Internet Governance

The Internet And Its Governance: Where Should We Look For Models?

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has recently signed a new contract with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) for one more year. ICANN and the DOC are to continue to work together to design an organizational form that is suitable to administer and control the infrastructure of the Internet. That infrastructure includes the IP numbers, which are critical to the functioning of the Internet protocol TCP/IP. These numbers must be unique for the Internet to continue to function. The infrastructure also includes the protocols that make the Internet possible. Protocols involve the conventions or agreements that each network that is part of the Internet accepts in order to make communication possible across the boundaries of the different technical and political and administrative entities that comprise the networks of the Internet. Another component of the Internet's infrastructure is the domain name system (DNS). This system includes the names that identify various sites on the Internet and the translation of those names into IP numbers via the system of computers that make the one to one mapping between names and numbers. more

Domain Name Theft, Fraud And Regulations

When it comes to domain name disputes, no domain name has captured more media attention than sex.com. Of course, disputes about sex often obtain a great deal of attention, and the sex.com domain name dispute can grab its share of headlines because the case involves sex, theft, declared bankruptcy, a once-thriving Internet porn business, and fraud, instead of the typical cybersquatting allegations. Indeed, this case is remarkable for its potential impact on the development of caselaw concerning whether there is a valid basis to assume that trademark interests should overwhelm all non-commercial interests in the use of domain names. The answer is no, but the caselaw to support that answer is in tension with cases that strongly imply a contrary conclusion. more

Whose Precedent Gets Remembered? Selective Amplification Has Its Own Amnesia

DotConnectAfrica's .africa victory established an accountability principle later invoked by Amazon, yet institutional memory favored the better-known winner, revealing how selective amplification can detach precedent from its origins and reshape internet-governance history. more

Why Ghana Needs a Community Network Policy Framework: Connecting the Unconnected and Underserved

Ghana has expanded digital connectivity, but many rural communities remain underserved. Community networks could close the gap, provided policymakers create proportionate regulation, improve infrastructure access and build sustainable models that complement commercial operators. more

The AI Enclosure Movement

The battle over open-source AI echoes England's Enclosure Movement, pitting collaboration against proprietary control as technology firms compete to shape innovation, economic power and the future governance of the digital commons. more

ICANN Wiki, SHE.africa, AI, and the Integrity of Digital Platforms

As AI increasingly relies on digital archives, the quiet revision of ICANNWiki entries raises broader questions about platform accountability, historical integrity, and whether institutions can reshape the records that future researchers and machines will treat as fact. more

From Access to Agency: Why the IGF-DCAD Fellowship Should Become a Global Standard

The IGF-DCAD fellowship shows that meaningful inclusion requires more than open access. By funding accessibility, leadership and participation, it offers a practical blueprint for making Internet governance genuinely representative of the one-sixth of humanity living with disabilities. more

Digital Sovereignty Is More Than Data Sovereignty: Understanding Africa’s Digital Dependency Stack

Africa's pursuit of digital sovereignty demands more than keeping data at home. True resilience depends on controlling the infrastructure, platforms, cybersecurity capabilities, governance, and human expertise that underpin an increasingly interconnected digital economy across Africa. more

The gTLD Registrar Market Is Uniform in Rules, Not in Structure

ICANN applies identical rules to every registrar, yet new research reveals a sharply unequal market where seven firms capture half of inflows, renewals dominate activity, and many accreditations barely operate at all in practice today. more

The Implementation Gap: Why Africa’s Digital Strategies Rarely Become Digital Reality

Africa has digital strategies in abundance, but weak institutions, inconsistent leadership, poor governance and limited execution keep ambitious policies from delivering trusted, interoperable public services and sustainable digital transformation across the continent in practice today. more

Can Orbiting Data Centers Solve Terrestrial Deal Breakers?

Orbiting data centers promise cleaner power, cheaper cooling and relief from terrestrial opposition, but formidable engineering, regulatory and orbital governance challenges may keep ambitious space-based computing grounded for years unless launch economics improve dramatically first. more

Quantum Readiness Governance: Why Regulators Must Measure, Not Just Warn

Quantum policy has shifted from warning about future threats to measuring institutional readiness, creating an urgent need for governance frameworks that let regulators, auditors and boards assess, compare and verify post-quantum migration before deadlines arrive. more

The Hidden Socio-Technical Issues Threatening Africa’s Digitalization Agenda

Africa's digital ambitions face threats beyond software and infrastructure. Lasting transformation depends on governance, trust, interoperability, political continuity, and user adoption, making socio-technical challenges as critical as the technologies themselves. more

Africa Does Not Have an Internet Access Problem: It Has an Internet Governance Problem

Africa's digital future depends less on expanding Internet access than on shaping the rules that govern it. Stronger institutions, cybersecurity, and global influence will determine whether the continent becomes a digital leader or remains a dependent consumer. more

The 2026 New gTLD Round: A Strategic Framework for Risk Management

The 2026 new gTLD round is less a domain application than a high-stakes contest for digital territory. Contention, objections, opaque evaluations and information gaps can derail applicants long before launch, demanding rigorous strategic preparation. more