[LINK] Internet Governance: Request for comment

[rchirgwin at ozemail.com.au]

Thanks, Tom.

We have swings and roundabouts here. Swapping from a US Department of 
Commerce mandate for Internet governance (ie, ICANN) to an international 
treaty-based model is a good thing. The Internet - at least outside the 
U:S - should not, even if only in theory, depend on the goodwill of one 
country.

OTOH, I wouldn't like to see an "Internet Governance" model try to 
create an ITU-like "perfect model" for technical standards. IETF is 
certainly not utopian, but from a technical point of view it works well 
and quickly.

My feeling is that largish chunks of the "Internet governance" model are 
at risk from being a mechanism to promote things like stronger IP laws; 
and content regulation is, IMO, outside what I'd regard as an 
appropriate mandate for a world body. The model should end at enabling 
connectivity (to call on the ITU for another example: its main mission 
is to get as many people as possible connected to telephones, and to let 
any of those phones call any other; it does not and should not mandate 
what you can say on the telephone).

Richard C

The ups

Tom Dale wrote:

>The Department of Communications, IT and the Arts is calling for public comment on the establishment of a Working Group on Internet Governance by the UN Secretary General.  This is part of the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS).
>
>More information at http://www2.dcita.gov.au/ie/international/internet_governance
>
>
>Tom
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