Policy & Regulation

Internet Commerce Association Calls for ICANN to Withhold Approval of .Org Sale

The Internet Commerce Association (ICA) in an open letter issued today, has asked ICANN to withhold the approval of the assignment of the .ORG top-level domain to the private equity company Ethos Capital. more

America’s Telecoms Market in Dire Straits

In late 2008 it was my good fortune to be asked to write a number of reports on broadband and trans-sector development for the Obama Transition Team. President Obama had just won office and this team was crucial in setting the policies for the future. I gathered together a team of international experts to assist in writing these reports. I was able to do this because the revolutionary plans of the Australian government in relation to the NBN very much appealed to the Obama Team. more

The Facts about Vertical Integration?

In a far less dramatic event, the ICANN Board will soon decide the question of vertical integration between domain name registries and registrars in the new Top-Level Domain (newTLD) round. But Adams' statement continues to ring true today and the question the ICANN Board must ask itself is: "what facts do we have before us to justify a change in policy." After 2+ years of intense community discussion on this topic, the answer is clearly -- very few. more

Telecom Policy Review Panel Calls For Net Neutrality Legal Safeguards

The Telecommunications Policy Review Panel report [Canada] was released yesterday and while the immediate reaction will no doubt focus on the recommendations for a market-oriented approach with significant changes to the CRTC, I would call attention to three other recommendations gleaned from reading the executive summary (the full document is nearly 400 pages). more

Supercookie Debate Offers a Transparent Opportunity

Recent articles in the press have outlined how sites including MSN and Hulu are now using an advanced version of the old cookie file to track user behavior. These "supercookies" are very hard to detect and delete, and can track user behavior across multiple sites, not just one. These tricky little trackers have lawmakers pressing the FTC to investigate, and the IAB scrambling to defend industry practices. more

American University Washington College of Law to Hold Open Discussion on the .ORG Sale Controversy

The American University Washington College of Law announced it will be hosting a fireside chat on the sale of the Public Interest Registry (PIR) to the private equity firm Ethos Capital. more

Why Wouldn’t Skype Want 30 Million Paying Customers?

Skype has cut Nimbuzz off. What that means is that users of Nimbuzz' popular mobile clients will no longer be able to make calls using the SkypeOut network. According to Skype themselves, it was for unspecified violations of the Skype API terms and license... more

US Court Upholds FCC’s Net Neutrality Repeal But Says States Can’t Be Barred from Passing Own Rules

A U.S. court decision today determined net neutrality laws could return at the state level overruling Trump administration's effort to block states from passing their own net neutrality laws. more

A to Z on Internet Policy and Regulation – Brazil 2022

Time has come again, another year of general elections in Brazil. Some 30,000 candidates are running for Executive and Legislative seats: 1 President, 27 State Governors, 27 Federal Senators, 513 Federal Deputies, 1059 State Deputies, 24 District Deputies to govern 212+ million people and one of the largest economies in the world. For a few lucky industries, success and failure do not correlate with who is in power; for others, policy and regulation are everyday business. more

It’s Time to Put a Bow on the URS: Our Work is Almost Done

For years our community has struggled with the rules of the URS - the Uniform Rapid Suspension - aimed at taking down the "worst of the worst" domain name registrations in a manner faster and cheaper than its predecessor, the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy - the UDRP. On June 27, in Prague, a diverse group met to discuss the fate of the URS. To my surprise, it was a rare "kumbaya" moment, and that makes it worthy of comment. more

IPv6 Medics Without Borders

At its November 5th plenary, the Canadian ICT Standards Advisory Committee approved the recommendations of the Canadian IPv6 Task Group set up by isacc in april. The 50 members of the Task Group were invited to individually produce a list of seven recommendations. Received inputs were collated, debated, ranked and ultimately distilled down to a pair of quite straightforward recommendations for immediate action. more

FCC Proposes Over $200 Million in Fines Against Four Largest Wireless Carriers

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has proposed fines against the country's four largest wireless carriers for apparently selling access to their customers' location information without taking reasonable measures to protect against unauthorized access to that information. more

Want a New gTLD? Some Items to Consider

Over three years ago ICANN boldly announced that the top level of the domain name system would be opened up to new registry operators. As we now approach a likely spring 2011 launch, a number of key issues remain unresolved including how trademarks will be protected. more

National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Chief David Redl Resigns

David Redl, head of U.S. Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) resigned abruptly from his position on Thursday. more

Did Broadband Deregulation Save the Internet?

Something has been bothering me for several months, and that usually manifests in a blog at some point. During the COVID-19 crisis, the FCC and big ISPs have repeatedly said that the only reason our networks weathered the increased traffic during the pandemic was due to the FCC's repeal of net neutrality and deregulation of the broadband industry. Nothing could be further from the truth. more