Black Helicopters Crash In Dubai

Michael Hedges December 6, 2012 Follow on Twitter

Diplomatic negotiations carving out new international rules for the internet are underway in Dubai. Every media organization has a vested interest as the Web, crossing borders as it does, is the present and future. Don’t be fooled by the hype or the conspiracy theorists. Follow the money.

First round meetings (December 4) failed to secure agreement for proposals from North American and European delegates to the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT-12) limiting definitions in the aging international telecommunications regulations treaty negotiations to telecom operators.  Developed countries with established economic interests relying on internet governance remaining unhindered, led by the United States, want the obvious drivers of internet usage and economics such as Google left out of any new treaty obligations. Developing countries, like Russia and China, want the treaty to allow greater internal control over the Web.

The International Telecommunications Union (ITU), a United Nations agency based in Geneva, is holding the WCIT-12 in Dubai through December 14th. The international telecommunications regulations treaty (ITR) was last updated in 1988, before Google, YouTube, Facebook, Skype and any other household names in the Web world were born. Western governments prefer the status quo in internet governance, a largely free-market approach, and view differing proposals, often from governments with less than stellar records of media repression, as attacks on freedom of expression.

The Russian delegation proposed introductory language that “member states shall have equal rights to manage the internet, including in regard to the allotment, assignment and reclamation of internet numbering, naming, addressing and identification resources and to support for the operation and development of basic internet infrastructure.”  Western delegations took that as opening the door to censorship or “even cut off internet access in their own countries,” noted internet luminary and Google’s “internet evangelist” Vint Cerf. For several days last week the internet was shutdown in Syria, presumably by the government.

“Nothing can stop the freedom of expression in the world today, and nothing in this conference will be about it,” said ITU Secretary General Hamadoun Touré in a presser ahead of the conference, quoted by AFP (December 4). “I have not mentioned anything about controlling the internet.” The ITU’s mission has, indeed, evolved from setting up country codes for international phone calls, international treaties organizing radio spectrum and orbits of telecommunications satellites. To the chagrin of black helicopter watchers, the ITU is unlikely to take control of the internet.

The major real world issue at the WCIT-12 is the “sender pays” principle. As usual, it’s about the money. Telecoms want a fee from big bandwidth users, multi-nationals like Google, shifting the financial burden from domestic ISPs and their customers. Governments would be able to set fees as they like. Similar rules set up by the ITU keep international telephone calls pricy. Of course, Skype has threatened that revenue stream for the telecoms. Like Google, Skype would get a big bill under the proposed rules. Outside the United States, legacy telecoms are at least partly government owned. The picture becomes clear.

The European Telecommunications Network (ETNO), a support group for legacy telecoms, vigorously supports the “sender pays” principle even if most Western European governments officially oppose any denigration of net neutrality. Unsurprisingly, governments of developing countries in Africa and the Middle East, all owning national telecoms, are excited about getting Google money. Legacy telecoms worldwide are seeing lower fixed line revenues.

Being the undisputed search engine market leader – and quite rich from advertising revenues – Google is the target of opportunity for anybody in need of a little cash. German and French newspaper publishers successfully lobbied their favorite politicians to bring taxes on search results to votes. When Google mounted a “Save Your Net” public campaign against the proposed law  ahead of the Bundestag debate, the German publishers association (BDVZ) cried foul, calling it “vicious propaganda.” Several national governments are pursuing Google and other US-based tech companies for alleged tax avoidance.

Other proposals at the WCIT will likely be revealed in the coming days; all official meetings being secret. A few – and some scary – have come to light on the WCITleaks website. In the end, Dr. Touré will need, as he said, “the spirit of consensus, the spirit of compromise, and the spirit of multi-stakeholderism…to deliver that win-win solution.”

Whatever the final ITR treaty holds, if it does, the 193 UN Member States must ratify individually.

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