Newsmaker: Internet showdown in Tunis

newsmaker The United Nations' World Summit on the Information Society began with a high-minded purpose: to bridge the technological gap between richer and poorer nations. But now the WSIS event, which begins Nov. 16 in Tunisia, has transformed into a week-long debate about who should control key portions of the Internet.

Delegates from nations like Iran, China, and Cuba have been clear in what they want: less control by the U.S. government. Instead, they've suggested creation of some sort of cyberbureaucracy---perhaps under the U.N. International Telecommunication Union.

Those arguments have met with a cold shoulder in Washington. The Bush administration said in no uncertain terms in June that it intended to relinquish the United States' unique influence over domain names and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) that position. But that doesn't advocate relinquishing total control or creation of a U.N. bureaucracy.

CNET News.com's chief political correspondent, Declan McCullagh, will be reporting direct from the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia beginning next week.

If the U.N. prevails in this international political spat, business groups worry that domain name fees would go up and regulations would increase. If no agreement is reached, there's always the possibility of a bifurcated Internet divided by geographical region.

CNET News.com recently spoke with Ambassador of Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs David Gross, who's leading the U.S. delegation to Tunisia. Gross previously was a telecommunications lawyer and a lobbyist for AirTouch Communications (now part of Vodafone).

Q: What are the stakes at the WSIS summit?
The stakes are really very high. The focus of the summit originally--and we believe still--is on the use of technology to take advantage of the historic opportunity to better everyone around the world, economically, socially and politically. Those are very high stakes.

How much of the current opposition over this issue is a result of global tensions regarding the U.S. as the world's lone superpower and involvement in Iraq?
This is an issue that I think should be and will be addressed on its merits. The Internet has been an extraordinary development in the history of the world. There are about a billion people connected to the Internet in a remarkably short period of time.

The Internet is technically, constantly changing...We're not interested in trying to lock in the current system as the right system.

The system has worked extraordinarily well and arguably better than any other technology that's ever been rolled out. We seek to ensure that that continued advancement goes forward. I know by the way that the president just this afternoon (Thursday) is awarding the Medal of Freedom to a host of extraordinary Americans. Two of those Americans include Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn, who are often referred to as the fathers of the Internet.

Does the U.S. government have too much control of Internet governance?
If you look at it the way most people would, it's a very bottom-up approach. There are a lot of players--civil society and the private sector--that play an important role. Certainly, the U.S. government has played an extraordinarily important role in the past. It was because of the U.S. government and the research funded by it that the Internet exists in the first place.

We think it's working very well. We don't think there are any pressing problems associated with it.

At the preliminary meeting in New York last year, I found that discussions were all over the map, including spam, viruses and computer security. Is there a lack of focus here?
Issues like spam and cybercrime and viruses are extraordinarily important. We've encouraged WSIS and other forums to work cooperatively in solving those issues. So we seek to have a very robust and inclusive discussion about these issues and others as well.

If critics of the U.S. join forces at WSIS and oppose the U.S., are there any red lines for the U.S that the administration would find intolerable?
We've been very clear in what we think the summit should be accomplishing and should be focusing on. We continue to work with governments around the world and with civil society and with the private sector to secure an outcome

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[System Tyrant]

Give it too them.

I say we make a five year plan to create a new better Internet for America and let the UN have the old one. Then in ten years after the UN has screwed up that Internet because they can't get Americans to pay for third world countries they can come appologizes to us.

** The above statement is total BS and just me acting stoopud.

But, in truth, I don't think anybody, but America has the right to control the Internet. I wan't our government to stay out of it as well and they do for the most part. If they UN gets ahold of it they will just ruin it. If some of the other countries had control of it they would impose censorship. What we would end up with is an Internet that cost a lot, with very little innovation, and even less content.

I'm sorry the rest of the world hates the US, but we have done a good job with the Internet for all the world and I see no reason to stop. I don't recall anywhere that the US was stopping anybody from having acces to the Internet. I'll be damned if I am going to pay for anybody to get it either.

You all in other countries may hate Americans and our way of life, but what makes your's any better. Better yet, what make anybody think the UN or another country is going to do anything better?

[FutureGuy]

agree

use it or leave it, don't try to steal.

[MatthewFaulk]

Yes

Your right the un will screw it up. And chances are this whole thing is just a front for the US/UN government to censor free speech on the net. The UN has already talked about doing such a thing

I agree

The internet isn't perfect but it's pretty good. As a wise old engineer once told me "if it ain't broke don't fix it."

[System Tyrant]

I want to extend what I said.

I do believe in world trade and the right of all to free and uncensored information. I'm ok with the US government letting go of any control it has over the internet.

What I don't agree with is the US giving up control so some multi-nation nightmare (UN) can screw it up or tax countries like America so they can fund the growth of third world nations or line their own pockets. I also don't agree that the control of the Internet should go to some other country just because people don't like America, Americans, or our international policies.

Like I said before America hasn't done anything to cause consern over our handling of the Internet. We haven't even tried to shut down access to websites we know support terrorist.

I believe the Internet is a universal tool for communicating with everyone in the world and I hope that it only grows stronger in those areas. I hope through the Internet we can all grow to understand people and their way of life. I hope that someday the Internet will grow outside of the control of any government, but in a positive way. And I realize that most of the problem now is beurocrates and their need for territorial pissing.

The Internet is a powerful tool for those who will and do use it. I think it will stay that way for now under US control. If someday the US starts impossing restriction upon the Internet then that will be the day we should let go of our control.

My question to everybody is name one time that the US has used it's control over the Internet against any other country?

[niravabhavsar]

Great Discovery of Internet

There was a discovery in Mohavi desert that the wheel was invented by people in US some 5000 years ago. Now, the next thing US does is to setup an institution Wheel Corporation of Assigned Size and Color (WCASC) that would ask all users of wheel to pay registration fees and would control various sizes and colors. The remaining world use some sizes and colors that are not being used by US military or companies. To protect the right of US companies some sizes and colors are not available for the rest of the world. And since the rest of the world didnt invent the wheel they dont have any right to ask for specific size and color of wheel.
Internet is not the property that can be controlled by only one country for their selfish use. On one hand the mighty US talks about democracy but on the other hand acts as a totalitarian on the world forum. If somebody is saying that only US can handle Internet than it means he is BSing and is ignorant about the world. There are countries and governments around the world that acts more efficient and are more tech savvy.

[System Tyrant]

Right...

except for the fact that the example you used is done by every country.

The UN is a mess that can't even control themselves and you expect the US to do what no other country would do.

I'm sure some will say the US is the only country that can contorl the internet, but I only subscribe to the belief that the US is doing a good job and there is no reason to let go of the control.

Name one country that is better prepared to take control of the Internet. Better yet prove why the US shouldn't keep control. So far the only reason I've heard for the US not keeping control is because we are the US.

[philpacker]

Discovery???

Your comments imply that the internet (and the wheel) were
discoveries and therefore should be freely available for the public
good. Correction, they are inventions, paid for by the investment
by many over years. The internet is wonderful, but it is not a
human right, it is a privlidge. If the wheel were invented today, you
bet you would be paying licencing fees for the rights to use. And
you'd be glad for it.

[PatrickSc]

Only the US invented internet?!?!

Just pasting a little edited info from wikipedia.

""The subsequent creation of ARPANET in the United States in turn catalyzed a wave of technical developments that made it the basis for the development of the Internet.

The first TCP/IP wide area network was operational in 1984 when the United States' National Science Foundation (NSF) constructed a university network backbone that would later become the NSFNet. It was then followed by the opening of the network to commercial interests in 1995.

The collective network gained a public face in the 1990s. In August 1991 CERN in Switzerland publicized the new World Wide Web project, two years after Tim Berners-Lee had begun creating HTML, HTTP and the first few web pages at CERN in Switzerland. In 1993 the Mosaic web browser version 1.0 was released, and by late 1994 there was growing public interest in the previously academic/technical Internet. By 1996 the word "Internet" was common public currency, but it referred almost entirely to the World Wide Web.""

From what I read, the Europeans have a pretty significant contribution to Internet as well especially in its public use, which is the whole cause of debate here. Does America want to go back to the ARPANET because public use of the internet and the WWW was promoted by the Europeans?

Secondly I love the messages saying that "we discovered the internet, leave it to us or go your own way." Maybe the Native Americans should have told us when we landed here that "leave us alone and get out of our country". They didn't and look what we did to them!!

No one is questioning the fact that the Americans have an important contribution to the internet. However the internet is LARGER than the US, and it has grown BEYOND the US. Or is that difficult to understand.

I really don't understand why it is so difficult to share with others or is it something that is utterly lacking among us Americans.

[Earl Benser]

Maybe just wave goodbye.....

The US should run the internet just as it is now, with virtually no
control at all. If other countries don't like it, they can go wandering
off on their own and set up their own internet. We will probably
miss them, but nowhere near as much as they will miss us.

And the probable moves are for the oppressive governments, like
China and North Korea, to separate because those governments
cannot survive in their current form with any sort of free flow of
information. Nor should they.

[PatrickSc]

Missing?

What a condescending attitude. Your whole world revolves around the US and that it is not oppressive. How come people in countries outside the US view the US as oppressive in many ways? Have you read Howard Zinnor Chomsky? Even if there is hyperbolese in their writings they are many true facts as well.

My request to you is to stop seeing the world as only American but try being a human being as well.

And if you are truly opposed to China then go ask White House to ban exports from China.

The Internet was not "discovered"

The internet wasn't just laying around somewhere, waiting to be found. It was developed. Here. In the US. Yes, there were contributions from outside the US, but essentially it was developed in the US for DARPA. It would be plain insanity to turn it over to the UN, or anybody else.

[tgrenier]

Give some hiatory please

I am not exactly clear on how anygovernment "controls" the internet. Is it throught root servers? Contracts to preside over naming rights? I am somewhat familar with the stories if Berkley and Cal in the early days but what eaxctly does control of the internet mean anyway. BTW I support total freedom on the net. Companies that profit from the infrastructure should fund the servers and authorities maitain DNS and that's it.