After complaints about American dominance of the internet
and growing disquiet in some parts of the world, Washington has said it
will relinquish some control over the way the network is run and allow
foreign governments more of a say in the future of the system.
Icann
– the official body that ultimately controls the development of the
internet thanks to its oversight of web addresses such as .com, .net
and .org – said today that it was ending its agreement with the US
government.
The deal, part of a contract negotiated with the US
department of commerce, effectively pushes California-based Icann
towards a new status as an international body with greater
representation from companies and governments around the globe.
Icann
had previously been operating under the auspices of the American
government, which had control of the net thanks to its initial role in
developing the underlying technologies used for connecting computers
together.
But the fresh focus will give other countries a more
prominent role in determining what takes place online, and even the way
in which it happens – opening the door for a virtual United Nations,
where many officials gather to discuss potential changes to the
internet.
Icann chief Rod Beckstrom,
a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur and Washington insider who took
over running the organisation in July, said there had been legitimate
concerns that some countries were developing alternative internets as a
way of routing around American control.
"It's rumoured that there
are multiple experiments going on with countries forking the internet,
various countries have discussed this," he said. "This is a very
significant shift because it takes the wind out of our opponents."
He
added that the changes would prove powerful when combined with upcoming
plans to allow web users to use addresses with names in Chinese, Arabic
or other alphabets other than Latin. Many countries have lobbied for
the shift in recent years, as the expansion of the web reaches out
deeper into society and business.
While the issue reached
critical mass in emerging economies such as China, it is not the only
country that has lobbied for a change. Earlier this year European
officials said that they did not think it was proper for America to
retain so much control over the global computer network.
Viviane
Reding, the EU's commissioner for information society and media, said
she was pleased that Washington chose to make the shift.
"I
welcome the US administration's decision to adapt Icann's key role in
internet governance to the reality of the 21st century," she said. "If
effectively and transparently implemented, this reform can find broad
acceptance among civil society, businesses and governments alike."
Meanwhile
Nominet - the British organisation that handles the day-to-day running
of .uk domain names - said that Icann had started a trend for companies
with internet influence to appear more open and accountable.
"Putting
public interest first will also be a focus for the UK internet
community over the coming months as there is growing support for
Nominet to develop more of a public interest role," said Nominet's
chief executive, Lesley Cowley.
The new agreement comes into
force immediately. It replaces the old version which had been in place
since 1998 and was scheduled to expire today.
Beckstrom suggested that bringing more countries to the table was the best way of ensuring the long term future of the internet.
"We're
more global, period. The chances of the internet holding together just
went up, the cohesion just went up," he said. "We expect more active
involvement from governments, a higher level of participation from many
governments and we're already hearing about more governments joining
the team… This was, ironically, a power move from the US."
Recent Comments