The global politics of internet governance, discusses internet governance from the angles of both the state and civil society while simultaneously trying to find an answer to the question of whether we need new global institutions to deal with issues and problems related to the internet. As the field of internet governance is continuously evolving, the book is. Read more national telecommunications and information administration the ntia, located within the us department of. Internet corporation for assigned names and numbers icann. This paper critiques the prevailing conceptualization of internet governance. The iana transition and the role of governments in. Icann performs a small but important role in this system with respect to the internets system of unique identifiers. This postnote describes the structure of the internet and summarises the debate over its management. Relinquish its authority over icann congressional research service summary currently, the u.
Contractual migration of core requirements for iana functions 8 the iana functions contract 9 the affirmation of commitments 10 migrating the core contractual requirements. Multistakeholder approaches are used in many areas as an accepted international norm. The internet assigned numbers authority iana is responsible for the global coordination of the dns root, ip addressing, and other internet protocol resources. Internet governance is the development and application by governments, the private sector and civil society, in their respective roles, of shared principles, norms, rules, decisionmaking procedures, and programmes that shape the evolution and use of the internet. The iana includes the global registry for ipv4 and ipv6 addresses and autonomous system numbers asns.
Stewardship of iana functions transitions to global internet. The internet assigned numbers authority iana is responsible for maintaining a collection of registries that are critical in ensuring global coordination of the dns root zone, ip addressing, and other internet protocol resources. Today, 1 october 2016, the contract between the internet corporation for assigned names and numbers icann and the united states department of commerce national telecommunications and information administration ntia, to perform the internet assigned numbers authority iana functions, has officially expired. Stewardship of the internet assigned numbers authority iana has now. Listclass article index outline crystal clear app linneighborhood. The internet assigned numbers authority iana is a function of icann, a nonprofit private american corporation that oversees global ip address allocation, autonomous system number allocation, root zone management in the domain name system dns, media types, and other internet protocolrelated symbols and internet numbers before icann was established primarily for this purpose in 1998. An introduction to internet governance diplofoundation. The book s basic argument is that the success of the internet is largely due to its development within open and democratic cultures, and that internet governance structures ought accordingly to. A pathway completed, the road ahead 2 by 2000, the mou was replaced by a sole source, nocosttothegovernment contract with icann that included. Inspect icanns books and records, and initiate investigatory audits.
Internet governance, multistakeholder models, and the. Us to give up control of the internets address book after. To be sure the iana function is but a small portion of the broader international internet governance question but the answer we choose in this transition may well be a. In general internet governance is the development of norms and principles relating to how the internet functions by a group of stakeholders including governments, organizations, and commissions and the regulation and administration of those principals by the parties involved. The iana transition and the role of governments in internet governance posted on september 19, 2015 november 28, 2017 by milton mueller mueller, m.
After jon postels death in 1998, iana became part of icann, a california nonprofit established in september. The multistakeholder approach is a key reason why the internet has grown and thrived. The white paper articulates no internet governance role for icann, and the initial board shares that negative view. This function is known as the internet assigned numbers authority, and it is effectively the address book of the internet. The proposed transfer of the iana function to icann the. The aim of the book an introduction to internet governance, by dr jovan kurbalija, is to provide a comprehensive overview of the main issues and actors in the field through a practical framework for analysis, discussion, and resolution of significant issues. Internet governance refers to the rules, policies, standards and practices that coordinate and shape global cyberspace the internet is a vast network of independentlymanaged networks, woven together by globally standardized data communication protocols primarily, internet protocol, tcp, udp, dns and bgp. Nov 27, 2014 the global commission on internet governance gcig has waded into the debate over the critical iana contract with a formal statement and position paper. The iana stewardship transition will help maintain the global open internet by supporting and enhancing the multistakeholder approach to internet governance.
In october 2016, the ntia contract for the iana functions expired, beginning a new era in internet governance without direct u. The term internet governance has evolved over time, and various groups have attempted to develop working definitions. Us to give up control of the internets address book after years of. Commerce department contract which has been awarded to icann. Instead, some countries disconcerting statements on reforming internet governance are likely to lead to more tension between icann and elements of. And someone has to decide that in addition to dotcom addresses we will now start recognizing dot.
Internet governance is the development and application of shared principles, norms, rules. The internet assigned numbers authority iana, which controls the address book of the internet, has always been under u. Following the iana stewardship transition in 2016, the iana function is carried out by public technical identifiers pti, a purposebuilt organisation wholly owned by icann with regard to internet number resources, ianas role is to. While a transition plan for the iana functions has been approved by the commerce. Someone, in the end, has to decide that means the big computer software company in washington. Global commission on internet governance wobbles into iana. In 2008, a special, revised version of the book, entitled simply an introduction to internet governance, was published in cooperation with nixi india on the occasion of the 2008 internet. Government has with the iana functions and allowing for true multistakeholder governance over the internet a truly global resource. The iana neither makes policy nor exercises judgment. A collection of technical actions, known as the internet assigned numbers authority iana functions, ensures that the internet works. Jun 29, 2016 the internet assigned numbers authority iana, which controls the address book of the internet, has always been under u. The books basic argument is that the success of the internet is largely due to its development within open and democratic cultures, and that internet governance structures ought accordingly to.
Although internet governance deals with the core of the digital world, governance. This change positively reinforced the worlds confidence in the stability and trustworthiness of internet governance. Internet corporation for assigned names and numbers icann coordinates the internet assigned numbers authority iana functions, which are key technical services critical to the continued operations of the internets underlying address book, the domain name system dns. This community validated the multistakeholder model of internet governance. Iana allocates blocks of internet address space to the five rirs who in turn allocate address space to isps or assign address space to qualified end users.
Ensuring a healthy, collaborative ecosystem is critical to successful ig efforts longterm. The global commission on internet governance gcig has waded into the debate over the critical iana contract with a formal statement and position paper. The us action last month was a step toward a more stable and open multistakeholder internet of. Internet governance too uscentric, says european commission. The third role is the political oversight function, referred to as the administrator in the iana. The internet corporation for assigned names and numbers icann is a usbased notforprofit corporation whose main role is to coordinate the global internets systems of unique identifiers mainly domain names, internet protocol ip numbers, and ip parameters, and to define policies for how these identifiers should run. The iana registries fall into three categories, each of which relate to a specific function in the internet infrastructure. Internet governance is the development and application by governments, the private sector, and civil society, in their respective roles, of shared principles, norms, rules, decisionmaking procedures, and programs that shape the evolution and use of the internet 2 introduction to internet governance. Ntia, however, also indicated that it would require, as a precondition for its withdrawal, that an acceptable transition plan be developed through icann. Internet governance and online freedom publication series. Icann performs a small but important role in this system with respect to the internet s system of unique identifiers. Us to give up control of the internets address book. Stewardship of iana functions transitions to global. The governance of the internet provides one of the most important arenas in which new ideas regarding internet studies can be applied and tested.
This book is donated by undp asiapacific development information programme undpapdip to the community. Apr 15, 2014 to be sure the iana function is but a small portion of the broader international internet governance question but the answer we choose in this transition may well be a model for other aspects. The multistakeholder approach to internet governance has grown from the internets own dna and is what allows it to thrive. These lists contain entries for all the ip address ranges and asn blocks that are allocated for use on. Converging on the future of global internet governance. Internet governance wikibooks, open books for an open world.
As the internet first opened to commerce and the wider public in the mid1990s. Cruz pushes last chance to block iana transition fcw. Iana transition and icann accountability digital watch. Any reference to a particular product in this book serves merely as an. Internet governance there is increasing international debate on internet governance, which encompasses a variety of public policy issues related to internet infrastructure, management and use. The internet assigned numbers authority iana is a function of icann, a nonprofit private american corporation that oversees global ip address allocation, autonomous system number allocation, root zone management in the domain name system dns, media types, and other internet protocolrelated symbols and internet numbers. Mar 17, 2016 for the past two years, icann and the broader internet community have been working towards one goal. Following the iana stewardship transition in 2016, the iana function is carried out by public technical identifiers pti, a purposebuilt organisation wholly owned by icann. Apnic asiapacific rim, lacnic latin and central america, afrinic africa, ripencc europe, and arin north america. Milton mueller, professor at the georgia institute of technology school of public policy and a principal of the internet governance project, said that the real story of the iana transition is that. It has been called nothing less than the internets constitutional moment. The iana functionthe maintenance of registries of unique internet names and numbers, often likened to a phone bookis purely administrative.
The moment we seek to capture here is no ordinary moment in the development of the internet. The book is written in a clear and accessible way, supplemented with numerous figures and illustrations. The nearly20yearold icann was already overseeing the distribution of internet addresses, and now it officially owns the internet assigned numbers authority, or iana, the database that stores. In march of 2014, ntia announced that it did not intend to renew its contract with icann. The areas of focus include digital accessibility for persons with disabilities, access to knowledge, intellectual property rights, openness including open data, free and open source software, open standards, open access, open educational resources, and open video, internet governance, telecommunication reform, digital privacy, and cybersecurity. The internet is open, distributed, interconnected, and transnational. Internet governance remains a balance of complex forces. Law professor yochai benkler developed a conceptualization of internet governance. The iana transition and the role of governments in internet. This historic moment marks the transition of the coordination and management of. Disaggregatedinternetgovernancetaxonomy functionalarea tasks primaryinstitutionalactor i. The common adoption and use of these protocols unified the world of information and. An introduction to internet governance 7th edition by.
The iana transition and the role of governments in internet governance. Internet governance is a broad term and has many definitions depending on the context. Table of contents 4 about the global commission on internet governance 4 about the authors 4 acronyms 5 executive summary 5 introduction 6 background on the iana transition 8 external accountability. Iana, which basically serves as the address book of the internet, has been under u. As there is much disagreement about what internet governance, this paper synthesizes the main issues and debates and provides an overview of internet governance. It then examines the iana function, which is governed by a particular version of the multistakeholder model, and the current discussions regarding the reduction of the role of the us government in that governance the socalled iana transition. This paper shows that in fact no single multistakeholder model is used for internet governance. Therefore, icann does not aspire to address any internet governance issues. Internet governance and the free market splash after years of multistakeholder discussions, the u. Readers of this blog know that a consequential decision about internet governance looms on the horizon the decision of the us goverment to relinquish its contractual control over the interent assigned numbers authority and allow the domain name system to be operated by the internet corporation for assigned names and numbers icann, a non. Internet governance the internet corporation for assigned names and numbers icann in a meeting at marrakesh morocco decided that the icann will now be governed by a multistakeholder multistakeholder icann community model, including businesses, individual users and members of governments across the world. It has shown that a governance model defined by the inclusion of all voices, including business, academics, technical experts, civil society, governments and many others is the best way to assure that the internet of tomorrow remains as free, open and accessible as. For the past two years, icann and the broader internet community have been working towards one goal.
Oct 04, 2016 milton mueller, professor at the georgia institute of technology school of public policy and a principal of the internet governance project, said that the real story of the iana transition is that. Developments in 2015 throughout the year, the iana stewardship. Written in a clear and accessible way, supplemented with figures and illustrations, it. Those who feel that the conclusion of the iana transition closed the book on icanns involvement in internet governance are wrong. Icann, the iana transition and the marrakech package. Jan 11, 20 mueller, in his book networks and states. An introduction to internet governance provides a comprehensive overview of the main issues and actors in this field. It focuses on technical, legal, economic, development, and sociocultural aspects.
185 1192 138 957 157 742 1078 1665 443 1362 242 1655 998 395 1473 61 1202 591 1579 631 877 1062 1394 1262 149 1024 942 640 521 1476 230 378 1332 300 1459