A push by some countries for stronger regulation under the International
Telecommunications Regulations (ITR) treaty later this year could seriously
impair the spirit of innovation behind the success of the internet and could
have major implication for Asean, internet and telecoms experts have warned.
Concerns about privacy protection
and security issues should not be pretexts for greater regulation of the
internet, says David Gross, the chairman of the working group for the World
Conference on International Telecommunications 2012 (WCIT-12).
“The problems should be dealt
with by other mechanisms and in other forums. The International
Telecommunications Union (ITU) should not be involved in internet regulation
but with traditional telephony,” said Mr Gross, speaking on the sidelines of a
WCIT-12 preparatory meeting in Bangkok.
The ITR treaty, which was agreed
on in 1988 and came into force in 1990, is one of the four treaties forming the
foundation of the ITU.
The WCIT meeting in Dubai on Dec
3 and 4 will be the first review of the ITR. Among the changes being proposed
for discussion are amendments dealing with human rights of access to
communications; security in the use of ICT; protection of critical national
resources; international frameworks; charging and accounting including
taxation, interconnection and interoperability; quality of service, and
convergence.
The current system of internet
governance uses a “multi-stakeholder model” in which decisions about technical
and operational aspects are made through international non-profit and
non-governmental organizations. These include participation by academics,
engineers, representatives of the private sector and governments.
The strength of this model, Mr
Gross explained, is that decisions on governance are forced to be made
collaboratively with input from a wide range of members, rather than being
under the direct, exclusive control of governments or a single organisation.
The internet has expanded the
borders of knowledge for all people across the globe and no one should be given
additional tools to regulate it, in his view.
Countries that have suggested
greater control include Russia (more stringent internet regulations), China
(concerns on security issues), and Saudi Arabia (which favours an ITU role in
internet regulation). Other countries such as Singapore take a more liberal
view that the ITU should not deal with internet control, according to Mr Gross,
a former coordinator for international communications and information policy in
the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs at the US Department of State.
Many countries, including
Thailand, he said, apparently are being cautious about the amendment proposals
because they would expand the jurisdiction to the ITU beyond its traditional
mandate.
He believes any revisions should
reflect what has been proved to work for billions of internet users for two
decades and support competition and innovation in the private sector.
“This model has led to the
massive growth and expansion of the internet, especially in Asia which has
become the region with the largest number of internet users in the world,” he
said.
The Internet Society Board of
Trustees also raised concerns at its Vancouver meeting early this month that
some proposed changes to the ITR treaty could have a negative impact on the
internet.
The chair of the Internet Society
board, Eva Frölich, said the revisions should focus on things that have clearly
worked in the field of global communications: competition, privatisation, and
transparent and independent regulation.
The success of the internet had
been driven by open, consensus-based standards and processes embodied in
organisations such as the Internet Engineering Task Force and other critical
parts of the internet “ecosystem” that rely on openness and transparency, Ms
Frolich said.
Her board has identified some
“troubling” aspects of the amendment proposals, including
making ITU-T standards
mandatory;
creating a new model for
internet interconnection via the ITR;
adversely affecting internet
naming, numbering, and addressing;
regulating network aspects that
have never been part of telecoms, including IP routing; and,
extending the scope and
application of the ITR to the internet and internet providers.
These types of provisions, if
adopted, could jeopardise global connectivity and the future growth of the
internet, particularly in developing countries, she said. They would affect the
architecture, security and global interoperability of the internet, and impose
detrimental burdens on the free and open internet on which billions of people
depend.
Kanchana Kanchanasut, director of
the Internet Education and Research Laboratory at the Asian Institute of
Technology, said she agreed that less control was better and that cooperation,
not regulation, would help solve the problems.
Adoption of the proposed ITR
changes would have wider implication for people in Asia, where the impact of
these decisions will be substantial.
According to Mr Gross, some of
the proposals at WCIT could even change the economics associated with the
internet and result in higher prices, with some internet content companies no
longer being willing to serve poor people.
Some other proposals may result
in greater censorship of internet content and make it harder for new Asian
companies and entrepreneurs to reach global markets, he said.
The free flow of information and
access offered by the internet has brought tremendous benefits to the world,
said Mr Gross. A rural child can now learn much more and acquire knowledge and
skills online, despite being physically remote from academic centres. If there
are more restrictions over the internet, this remarkable opportunity may be
lost.
“The Internet had been growing
significantly under multiple-stakeholder regime, becoming a great contributor
to national development in all aspects,” he said. “I would love to see this
trend continue.”
Achara Ashayagachat and Nithi
Kaveevivitchai
Business & Investment Opportunities
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