Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker urged the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Wednesday to remain committed to the group's 2011 Principles for Internet Policy Making as it continues its Ministerial on the Digital Economy in Cancun, Mexico, this week. The OECD's Principles for Internet Policy Making emphasize a flexible policymaking approach based on the multistakeholder Internet governance model. OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría warned Wednesday that legislation on a variety of issues isn't keeping up with changes in the digital economy. “Too many countries are taking a 20th century approach to a 21st century technology that is moving faster than any other the world has seen,” Gurría said during the ministerial. “The internet is profoundly transforming the way we live and work, but we could be getting a lot more out of it. The longer we dither on the digital economy, the less benefit we will get out of it as societies.” The OECD's digital economy ministerial “is an opportunity to ask ourselves, as the representatives of governments and the leaders of nations, if we are living up to those principles,” Pritzker said in a prepared version of her speech to the ministerial: “Too often, well-intentioned efforts to address legitimate concerns over issues like privacy and security lead to unintended consequences” via the enactment of data localization laws and "onerous" technical standards designed to restrict trade. Such policies “undermine our vision of a free, open and truly global internet,” Pritzker said. “We expect such policies from authoritarian regimes that want to isolate their people -- not from nations that welcome the global exchange of ideas and commerce.” Pritzker warned against the “alarming trend” toward internet fragmentation, which she said “should concern us all. Our ability to empower entrepreneurs, build long-term prosperity, and drive innovation hinges on our collective commitment to a global, free and open internet.” Pritzker also noted a new Commerce report that chronicles efforts during President Barack Obama's administration to expand the digital economy. The report shows Commerce's commitment to OECD principles on stakeholder cooperation on cybersecurity issues, privacy and multistakeholderism, she said.
The ICANN board adopted revisions to bylaws meant to implement aspects of ICANN's Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition plan and a related set of changes to the nonprofit's accountability mechanisms. The board also adopted ICANN's IANA functions service level agreement with the regional Internet registries and a supplemental memorandum of understanding with the Internet Engineering Task Force, ICANN said Friday. The revised bylaws generally track with draft revisions that ICANN released for comment last month (see 1604220061) but make some additional revisions in response to concerns raised in comments (see 1605230059). New revisions included removing a portion of the bylaws that grandfathers agreements between ICANN and five entities that aren’t set to take effect until Oct. 1 -- the Address Supporting Organization, Internet Engineering Task Force, Number Resource Organization, Root Zone Management System and Post-Transition IANA. Most commenters raised concerns about the inclusion of the agreements because they hadn't been finalized, ICANN said. ICANN planned to have transmitted the revised bylaws to NTIA after our deadline Friday. NTIA had required revisions to ICANN's bylaws before the agency could complete its review of ICANN's IANA transition-related bylaws. That review is expected to be completed by mid-June. “This is an important milestone for ICANN and the community,” ICANN Chairman Steve Crocker said in a blog post. “As we await the release of NTIA’s report, we continue to prepare for implementation of the transition proposals.”
The ICANN board voted to move its ICANN 57 meeting to Hyderabad, India, and reschedule it for Nov. 3-9, it said Tuesday in a blog post. ICANN said the board chose to move the meeting to Hyderabad from San Juan, Puerto Rico, in response to concerns about the Zika virus outbreak. ICANN rescheduled from the original meeting dates, Oct. 29-Nov. 4, because of limited space availability in Hyderabad on those dates. ICANN previously decided to move its June 27-30 policy forum from Panama City to Helsinki in response to the Zika outbreak (see 1602080015). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control reported 669 cases of Zika in Puerto Rico as of May 11 that the agency believes were caught within the U.S. territory. “This decision was based on available research and information and the fact that Puerto Rico has declared a state of emergency” related to the Zika outbreak, ICANN said. “We believe that the Zika virus poses a significant enough threat that we need to postpone going to Puerto Rico for the health and safety of our community and our ICANN team,” just as ICANN did when it relocated its ICANN 52 meeting in 2014 from Marrakech, Morocco, to Singapore due to concerns about that year's Ebola outbreak. ICANN 57 will be at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre, ICANN said.
NTIA is seeking input on what priorities the U.S. should pursue during the ITU's World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly this fall, Office of International Affairs Deputy Associate Administrator Venita Harris said Tuesday in a blog post. NTIA is working with the State Department to develop the U.S.'s formal positions for the quadrennial WTSA, which is to be Oct. 25-Nov. 3 in Yasmine Hammamet, Tunisia. NTIA also seeks input on “what role if any the ITU should play in setting technical standards related to such issues as cybersecurity, Internet governance, Internet of things, intellectual property, and over-the-top services,” Harris said. NTIA “wants to ensure that its contributions to the U.S. preparatory process result in proposals to the WTSA that accurately reflect the views and concerns of U.S. businesses and consumers about the Internet and the digital economy and ... We also want to ensure that the work plan agreed upon at the WTSA related to the upcoming ITU-T work does not duplicate the standards development processes of other bodies.” Comments are due June 16, NTIA said.
The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s recent draft measures on China-based domain names “run contrary to China’s stated commitments toward global” multistakeholder Internet governance “as well as its stated goals for economic reform,” said NTIA Administrator Larry Strickling and State Department Deputy Assistant Secretary-Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs Daniel Sepulveda in a joint blog post Monday. The draft measures, originally released in March, would require all China-based domain names to be registered through government-licensed service providers that have established a domestic presence and “would impose additional stringent regulations on the provision of domain name services,” Sepulveda and Strickling said. “Whether driven by a motivation to increase control over Internet content in China or a desire to increase the quantity of Chinese-registered domain names, these regulations would contravene policies that have been established already at the global level by all Internet stakeholders (including Chinese). If put into effect, these regulations would have potentially large and negative repercussions for everyone.” The U.S. and other pro-multistakeholder Internet governance stakeholders have raised formal concerns about the draft measures, particularly a provision that some have interpreted as meaning “all websites with domain names registered outside China will be blocked, thereby cutting off Chinese Internet users from the global Internet,” Sepulveda and Strickling said. “While Chinese authorities have clarified that the intent of the article would be to prohibit access to Chinese-registered domain names that are acquired from registries/registrars that are not in compliance with Chinese regulations, concerns remain that the language in its current form is vague and open to differing interpretations.” The U.S. is also concerned about provisions that would force data localization and real-name verification for domain name registration, Sepulveda and Strickling said. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and two other GOP senators skeptical of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority repeatedly have raised concerns in recent months about ICANN’s engagement with China given the country’s track record on Internet governance issues (see 1602040061, 1603030067 and 1604040056). ICANN Board Chairman Steve Crocker told the senators last month that ICANN’s engagement with China “does not suggest any level of support for the nation’s government or its policies” (see 1604070033).
Congress “must ensure that the U.S. remains in a position to protect the stability and freedom” of the Internet after ICANN completes the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) transition, said American Enterprise Institute Global Internet Strategy Project National Advisory Board Chairman Mike Daniels, former Network Solutions CEO, Wednesday in The Hill. Congress will have a chance to assess NTIA as it completes its review of ICANN-submitted plans for the IANA transition in June (see 1603110075). Congress can ensure Internet freedom by “making sure that any institution taking over the stewardship of the [Internet's] core functions should be structured to keep the [Internet] decentralized, open and free,” Daniels said. ICANN's current IANA transition plan “leaves unclear who will play the limited but crucial role” that NTIA currently plays in “making sure that any changes to the root-zone domain name file executed by the IANA administrator are in accordance with ICANN policy,” he said. “Ultimate control of the IANA function must never pass to an international organization controlled by governments, whether the United Nations, the International Telecommunications Union, or ICANN recast with governments in control.”
ICANN released a final draft version of the nonprofit corporation’s revised bylaws Thursday for public comment. ICANN’s lawyers began revising the bylaws in March to comply with the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition plan and a set of recommended changes to the nonprofit’s accountability mechanisms, both of which the ICANN board approved in March (see 1603100070). ICANN stakeholders told us this month an early draft of the revised bylaws largely track with provisions in both the IANA transition plan and the accountability recommendations from the Cross Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability (see 1604060063). ICANN’s lawyers also said the draft bylaws “are consistent with the community proposals” on the IANA transition, ICANN said in a notice. Comments on the draft bylaws are due May 21, which “allows for comments to be analyzed and incorporated” in time for the ICANN board to vote on the revised bylaws May 27, ICANN said. “NTIA has stated that it needs to see that changes to [ICANN’s bylaws] have been adopted sufficient to implement the [IANA transition plan] before NTIA can complete its review” of those plans.
Americans for Limited Government raised concerns in a report Thursday about what it views as NTIA’s violation of the ban on its use of funds for the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) transition, which the group said it reported to the Department of Commerce’s Office of Inspector General. “The actions of officials in the NTIA in many instances have been directly in conflict with the appropriations language that was enacted into law by Congress,” including multiple speeches by NTIA Administrator Larry Strickling on the IANA transition and the use of federal funding for NTIA staff to attend ICANN meetings, ALG said in the report. “The amount of appropriated funds ... being expended by NTIA to continue its efforts to relinquish its responsibilities are unknown at this point, but the agency is clearly expending appropriated funds for this purpose.” ALG cited an expenditure request by NTIA Office of International Affairs Senior Policy Adviser Suzanne Radell for “approval of other than coach-class” airfare for Radell to travel to ICANN’s Oct. 18-22 meeting in Dublin. ALG said Strickling and other NTIA staff also traveled to the ICANN meeting, which centered on planning for the IANA transition and a related set of changes to ICANN’s accountability mechanisms (see 1510160058). “Congress prohibited” NTIA from spending money on the IANA transition, “yet NTIA continues to act as if that prohibition does not apply to it,” ALG said. “NTIA officials should also refrain from improperly using premium travel to any such conferences.” ALG President Nathan Mehrens urged Commerce’s OIG in February to investigate Radell’s purchase of “premium” airfare to travel to the Dublin meeting, saying the expenditure violated federal rules and the NTIA rider. Mehrens also urged the OIG to “investigate other actions NTIA is taking to relinquish its responsibilities as discussed above, and take further appropriate action to ensure that taxpayer funds are protected and not spent in violation of the law.” NTIA didn’t comment.
ICANN's Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) transition plan “guards against 'capture' by any one group or government" of Internet governance, said ICANN Chairman Stephen Crocker in a Wall Street Journal op-ed Tuesday. “This is the primary reason the Internet community -- along with businesses, civil society and other interest groups -- has given its blessing to the changes.” ICANN sent NTIA its IANA transition plan and a set of recommended changes to ICANN’s accountability mechanisms in March (see 1603100070). Amazon and 10 other tech firms and industry groups jointly backed the IANA transition plans in a letter to Congress (see 1604190048). “These groups understand the vital role of the Internet in strengthening the global economy by creating jobs and economic growth,” Crocker said. “Almost $8 trillion of commerce takes place on the Internet annually, an example of how dependent the world economy has become on a single, unified network.” If the U.S. doesn't allow the IANA transition to proceed, “then other governments may try to move control to organizations like the United Nations,” Crocker said. “There is also a risk that some governments may form their own national or regional networks. This disruptive splintering would damage the economy and weaken personal Internet use.” There was criticism of the IANA transition plan in a Monday commentary in The Hill, in which Tech Knowledge Director Fred Campbell said the FCC had a “hidden” agenda to promote the transition via its decision to forbear from asserting authority over IP addresses under Section 251(e) of the Telecom Act. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said in his response to questions from GOP presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, that the commission forbore from asserting authority over IP addresses under Section 251(e) because of ICANN’s administration of the IANA functions (see 1604080058). Though Wheeler’s response is “revealing,” he “didn’t explain why the FCC believes ICANN can be trusted to uphold the public interest requirements in section 201 of the Communications Act,” Campbell wrote. “How could he? Once the U.S. relinquishes its authority, ICANN will not have to answer to the FCC and will have no responsibility to uphold the public interest or any other requirement of U.S. law.” The FCC didn't comment.
Amazon, the Internet Association and Microsoft were among 11 tech companies and industry groups that jointly told Congress Tuesday that ICANN’s Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition-related plans meet the NTIA’s criteria for the transition process and include “significant and concrete measures to enhance ICANN’s accountability to its global community.” ICANN sent NTIA its IANA transition plan and a set of recommended changes to the nonprofit corporation’s accountability mechanisms in March. NTIA expects to complete its review of ICANN’s plans in June (see 1603100070 and 1603110075). “The Internet is defined by its inclusivity and openness. Those critical characteristics are reflected in the work that -- over the course of many months of open, transparent and inclusive discussion -- went into the drafting of” the IANA transition plans, the tech companies and groups said in a letter. “We recognize that additional important work remains, including properly revising ICANN’s bylaws and further improving ICANN’s practices and procedures. It is imperative that this work be accomplished in a timely and effective manner and we look forward to ensuring that it does.” The other signatories to the letter included Cisco, the Computer and Communications Industry Association, Dell, Hewlett Packard, the Information Technology Industry Council, Intel, the Internet Infrastructure Coalition and the U.S. Council for International Business.