The Internet as a Global Public Good and the Role of Governments and Multilateral Organizations in Internet Governance (original) (raw)
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Meridiano 47 Journal of Global Studies, 2018
The Internet presents social and economic attributes of a global public good, requiring governments and multilateral organizations to play central roles in Internet governance. This article examines the Internet as a global public good, identifies the roles of governments and multilateral organizations in global Internet governance, describes the current status of multi-stakeholder governance, and proposes guidelines to enhance international cooperation.
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Demands for a more democratic, transparent and accountable management of the internet were strong when preparing for the World Summit on the Information Society Review (WSIS Review), held in 2015. Partly in response to criticism, the United States initiated a process for transferring responsibility for domain names from the United States to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). Increased accountability was among the key motivations for this change. ICANN practices what have subsequently been termed multi-stakeholder governance. This article finds that this form of governance is preferable to an intergovernmental governance model both in terms of transparency and accountability.
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The past decade of information technology governance issues and opportunities related to development has been tumultuous and transformation-filled. Much work has been done on nation-states, new institutions such as ICANN or the now ten year old and newly renewed Internet Governance Forum (IGF), civil society or even the private sector. (See, for example, Denardis (2014), Franklin (2013), Mueller (2010), Powers & Jablonski (2015).) Less work focuses on the roles of international organizations such as UNESCO or long-standing regional international organizations such as the Council of Europe (CoE) and their interactions with other key actors in complex, cross-national technology governance ecosystems as they relate to development. This paper focuses on major questions related to technology and sustainable development, reporting findings from a four-year project examining international organization roles in the context of nation-states, regions, civil society, technical communities, and...
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As innovations in communication technologies advance and penetration of the Internet grows, the need to reconsider a new mandate for the Internet Governance Forum is approaching a critical threshold. This paper addresses this objective using research concerning globalization and democracy (Chua, 2003), the “trilemmas” of global integration (Rodrik, 2000), and the logic of collective action (Olson, 1965). The paper uses arguments and research from economics, political science and communication theory to answer the question: to what extent are policies and actions for Internet governance achievable. The paper concludes first that the governments will have to settle for “thin” globalization of the Internet or choose between sovereignty and democracy; second, the paper concludes that the USA as the still-dominant country on the Internet must stay committed and involved in Internet governance.
Internet Governance from a Global South Perspective
The research intends to contribute to the academic debate regarding Internet governance from a Global South perspective. Of particular interest for the research are the organizational arrangements the Internet governance has on the global level and how the legitimate oversight of some central Internet resources have contemporaneously posited challenges to the way governance is imagined and constructed on a transnational scale. Basic questions in this regard are how and who should rule the Internet? This implies different conceptions on which agents —national States, civil society, intergovernmental organizations, technical organizations and so on— have or should have the legitimate power to regulate the Internet and under which organizational regulatory schemes or bodies. In this aim, the research pays attention, in Chapter II, to the origins of the Internet as a transformative information and communications technology. Later on, the definition and evolution of Internet Governance are addressed in Chapter III. For this aim, an introductory approach is set by an overview of the paradigms of Global Media and Communications Policy (GMPC). Further, the definition and evolution of the term ‘Internet governance’ is advanced on a theoretical level; in its technological aspects with an emphasis on the political and regulatory issues the term brings about; and finally, analyzing the role of Nation-states, intergovernmental organizations, technical organizations and civil society around the topic. For the chapter regarding Internet governance, it is crucial to outline a description of one of the central and most controversial technical regulatory organizations of the Internet, that is the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The corporation is of special interest due to the political struggles it had brought about in the past 15 years; mainly regarding its linkages to the US government and its organizational structure. Being a global Internet regulatory organization, it has been the locus for many debates around legitimacy and representation. ICANN has an organizational structure referred to as a Multi-stakeholder model (MSM). The understanding of the MSM is fundamental for the contemporary debate about Internet governance because as an organizational arrangement, it can take different shapes and forms depending on which actor advances it. Hence, Chapter IV tackles the rise of the MSM at the inter-governmental level, specifically, at the World Summit on Information Society (2003-2005) and the Internet Governance Forum (IGF); subsequently, the MSM is addressed in its conceptual framework with its respective problématiques and criticism. Chapter V depicts three main stances taken by nation-states —and other agents— regarding the shape and organizational arrangements the Internet governance should have. Categorized in 'Cyber-sovereignists', 'Status quo advocates' and 'Moderate approach advocates', the chapter presents the different proposals of particular states or group of states since 2011, mainly at intergovernmental fora. The second section of Chapter V portrays the role of Brazil regarding internet governance, chiefly by its involvement as a leading organizer and host of NETmundial, a Global Multistakeholder meeting on the Future of the Internet, held in São Paulo on April 2014. NETmundial had as chief objectives the elaboration of a set of international principles for the Internet governance and to outline a road-map for the future developments of the internet governance ecosystem. The outcomes of the meeting are addressed in its successes but also in its shortcomings. The latter, taking particular consideration to a comparison between the Brazilian national experience on regulating the Internet; the outcome document of NETmundial, the São Paulo statement; and the international context provided by Edward Snowden's leaks. Finally, in Chapter VI the conclusions depart from a critical perspective regarding the overall current situation of the Internet governance regulatory arrangements and proposals. Deriving out of a Global South perspective, understood as a paradigm that can broad the Internet governance debate regarding which model should be implemented, we suggest a more comprehensive, inclusive and participatory Multistakeholder Model for the global Internet Governance.
The public core of the internet: an international agenda for internet governance
The backbone protocols and infrastructure of the internet are in urgent need of protection against unwarranted interference in order to sustain the growth and the integrity of the internet. Countering the growing state interference with this backbone requires a new international agenda for internet governance that departs from the notion of a global public good. Core ingredients of this strategy are: • To establish and disseminate an international norm stipulating that the internet’s public backbone must be safeguarded against unwarranted intervention by governments. • To advocate efforts to clearly differentiate between internet security (security of the internet infrastructure) and national security (security through the internet) and have separate parties address these different forms. • To broaden the arena for cyber diplomacy to include new coalitions of states (including the so-called ‘swing states’) and private companies, including both internet giants as well as internet intermediaries such as Internet Service Providers.